Lena Dunham candidly spoke about her past relationship with Jack Antonoff, which was her first relationship ever and changed her in ways she realised only after they broke up.
The 39-year-old filmmaker and writer looks back at the formative years of her life – personally and professionally in her newly published memoir, Famesick, and she discussed it with Drew Barrymore on her show.
While talking about all aspects of the book, Dunham also shed light on the chapter she wrote about her relationship with the Bleachers frontman.
“I just met like a really sensitive, kind, smart person. And when you’re, you know, 25, you don’t know how young you are. So you think like this is it. We’re going to be together for the rest of our lives. Like this is our shield against the storm,” the Too Much creator said about her former boyfriend.
As Barrymore agreed that the two looked like a brilliant team together and radiated a goodness between them, Dunham agreed and noted, “I’m so glad you felt that and writing the book was a really great reminder of that because sometimes then you know I think of course there are lots of factors that end a relationship and most people don’t end up with the person that is their first serious boyfriend.”
The Girls star shared that at the time she was confused after the split as to why she couldn’t seem to move on, but she realised that Antonoff was not only her “first love” but also a source of validation for her about herself.
Dunham said, “having this person who was so smart and so bright and so shiny and sort of like you know the cool boy at the center of the room that everyone wanted to talk to, think that I was okay felt like no matter what anyone said about me.”
She continued, “I and I think so many women feel this way whether they’re in the public eye or not which is that if a certain kind of man chooses them it’s validation.”
As a young adult navigating her life in the public eye, and constantly reading feedback from viewers about her looks and things she needed to fix, Dunham shared that the validation had become necessary to her.
This is not the first time Dunham has openly discussed her relationship with the music producer. In the book, she offers a candid glimpse into their love and how it came to an end.
