Renee Zellweger responds to Kenny Chesney gay rumours

Renee Zellweger split from Kenny Chesney in May 2005 after four months into their marriage.

Renee Zellweger has responded to reports regarding her former husband Kenny Chesney's sexual orientation. The Bridget Jones's Diary actress had split from the country singer in May 2005 after four months into their marriage.

The 47-year-old actress had filed annulment papers, citing fraud. However, in a statement, she later explained that the word "fraud" was "simply legal language and not a reflection of Kenny's character."

During an interview with LGBT magazine the Advocate, Zellweger was asked about the gay rumours surrounding Chesney. She said: "I forgot about that. It's a pretty big thing to forget, isn't it? That made me sad. It made me sad that somehow people were using that as a way to be cruel and calling someone gay as a pejorative, which has fateful consequences. Of course, there's the bigger-picture problem of why anyone had to make up a story at all."

Zellweger further shared: "I'm an old-fashioned gal who doesn't feel it's appropriate to hang out your laundry (personal business) on the lawn. I feel you devalue yourself as a human being when you share very personal things with a bajillion strangers who are making fun of you. I just don't see that there's any dignity in that. But sometimes it is difficult to just let something be what it is, especially when it's unnecessary ugliness. Once you've said your piece, shouldn't that be enough? And why is the ugliness that's perpetuated in the media so attractive to people?"