Tristan Thompson Apologizes to Kylie Jenner for Jordyn Woods Cheating Scandal

Tristan Thompson tried to make amends with Kylie Jenner four years after he cheated on Khloe Kardashian by kissing Kylie's BFF Jordyn Woods at a party. Here's how his apology went down.

By Lindsay Weinberg Nov 16, 2023 5:00 AMTags
Watch: Tristan Thompson Apologizes For Cheating Scandals

Tristan Thompson is trying to right a wrong.

During the Nov. 16 episode of The Kardashians, the NBA star apologized to Kylie Jenner four years after he cheated on Khloe Kardashian with Kylie's best friend Jordyn Woods.

During what he called an "overdue" sit-down at Kylie's house, Tristan told the cosmetics mogul, "I think you were affected the most by a situation of losing a sister, basically. You lost Jordyn, who is a big part of your life."

"You guys were two peas in a pod," he continued. "So, the fact that I put myself and her in a situation that wasn't right and wasn't smart made it tough for you and Khloe. Because, at the end of the day, you have your best friend and then you have your sister, who you love more than anything else."

Tristan—who shares daughter True, 5, and son Tatum, 15 months, with Khloe—took the full blame for kissing Jordyn during a house party in February 2019.

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A History of Khloe Kardashian and Tristan Thompson's Relationship

"It's 100 percent on me, but I want to say I'm sorry and I feel bad about it," he told Kylie. "The fact that I came with my poor decisions and being a f--king idiot and just being young and stupid, I just wanted to say I'm sorry again for that."

Kylie was receptive to his apology. Although she remains protective of her older sister, the Khy founder recognized how all parties have grown since the fallout.

George Pimentel/Getty Images / Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for SECNDNTURE

"Thank you for saying that," she shared. "I appreciate that. I think I was so co-dependent with Jordyn that I could have never imagined my life without her. We would have probably still been living together. I think she needed to grow without me, I needed to grow without her." 

And the 26-year-old made it clear that she isn't holding it against her former BFF, noting, "Jordyn and I are cool. We still talk and catch up. We're good." (Indeed, the pair later reunited for a sushi dinner in Los Angeles in July, their first public outing since the scandal.)

Tristan Thompson/Instagram

Tristan, 32, additionally asked Kylie to pass on his peace offering to Jordyn, 26. 

"Let her know I apologize for, you know, whatever," the basketball player said. "She went through a lot during that time too, probably gave her a lot of flak, so I'm the reason why that relationship went a different direction."

Jerritt Clark/Getty Images for Remy Martin

Kylie admitted that Tristan has done some "dumb ass s--t" and doesn't understand why he cheated on Khloe multiple times, including his tryst with Maralee Nichols that led to a paternity scandal over their baby boy Theo in December 2021.

"You have such a good heart and good energy, and to know you is to love you," she told Tristan. "So, it is confusing."

Going forward, Kylie wants to move past the drama: "It's just hard to forgive the things that you did to Khloe, but I want to move on from that."

(Photo by Stephane Cardinale - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images

Tristan ultimately attributed his "selfish" behavior to "not really understanding the value of good people."

"I'm not in a position to ask for anything," he noted. "The only thing I can do is continue to just prove myself and be who I am. Then, I think over time, it's maybe not forgiveness, maybe moreso try to gain everyone's trust back. At the end of the day, you want your family to be comfortable around you. You never want someone to look at you or side eye or question your character or integrity as a human being."

In fact, Tristan—who is also dad to son Prince, 6, with ex Jordan Craig—said that fatherhood is his biggest motivation to make amends over his past mistakes.

Instagram / Tristan Thompson

"I never want my daughter to go to school and talk so great about me and then a little kid comes and says, ‘Well your dad is like this, this and this,'" he explained. "She'll be embarrassed and that will break my heart, because she views me in such a high regard. You want to just be a good influence and role model for them so they can be proud of you."

To look back on Kylie and Jordyn's friendship evolution over the past decade, read on.

2012

Kylie Jenner and Jordyn Woods met when they were in eighth grade through their mutual friend Jaden Smith.

"One day I got a phone call from one of my friends and they were like, 'Yeah, come over to Kylie's house. We all wanna hang out,'" Woods explained in a Buzzfeed interview.

Jenner continued telling their middle school meet-cute story, saying, "And she put her name in my phone and we just got closer and closer throughout the years and realized all we need is each other. Now we are our only friends!"

While Jenner was a cast member on one of TV's most popular reality shows from the age of 10, the duo acted just like any other teenagers would.

"We used to Segway everywhere," Jenner revealed. "I mean everywhere when we didn't have our license. Like we would Segway outside the community to, like, miles and miles to the mall." 

Woods soon became an unofficial member of the Kardashian family and part of their trusted inner circle, even landing invites to events such as Kim Kardashian and Kanye West's 2014 wedding and Khloe Kardashian's 2019 baby shower.

May 2017 

Jenner and Woods' bond was so solid that the pair held a commitment ceremony during their tripe to Peru that aired on E!'s Life of Kylie.

The purpose of the event, Jenner explained, was to demonstrate that their connection extended far beyond friendship.

"I want people to know we're more than that," she noted. "She's my girlfriend. I care for her like I care for my girlfriend."

During their ceremony, Woods vowed "to always be there" for Kylie, "through thick and thin." In turn, Jenner pledged "to encourage you, inspire you, love you, through all the good and bad times." 

August 2017

When Jenner landed her own spin-off, she immediately asked Woods to film with her. But the model was hesitant to step in front of the cameras for Life of Kylie

"I didn't want to do the show at first," Woods told Refinery29 at the time. "But Kylie and I are a big part of each other's lives, so if it's about her life, I'm a key player, so I'm not gonna just not come around. I figured, being with her all the time is already my life, so we might as well do it.

While the experienced "turned out to be really fun," Woods did admit on Life With Kylie that her friendship with the star could sometimes be "draining."

 "I actually feel like I'm in a full relationship with Kylie," she explained. "There are different types of relationships—we're definitely in one. Not necessarily sexual, but definitely emotional. It's draining sometimes. I don't want to say she's a needy girlfriend but..."

January 2017

When Woods lost her father, sound engineer John Woods, to cancer, Jenner was there to support her friend through her grief.

"My Fire Ox, My Brother, My Soul Sister. Give Jordy & her family some support and prayers right now," Jenner wrote on Instagram after his passing. "I love you the long way @jordynwoods. The other half of me … When you cry I cry."

Jenner also donated $10,000 to a GoFundMe page set up to help the Woods family raise funds to pay for a memorial service and medical bills.

February 2017

When Jenner suspected that she may be with child just weeks into her romance with Travis Scott, it was Woods who was at her side when she took a pregnancy test.

"One day, I was in your mom's bathroom with her," Woods shared in an intimate 11-minute video Jenner created as a tribute to her daughter Stormi Webster, "and she took a little test...and then she passed it to me after, like, 'surprise.'" 

And after Stormi's birth, Woods was there to help her BFF, even tagging along when mother and daughter traveled to Miami and Turks and Caicos.

"Jordyn is basically a third parent to Stormi," a source told E! News at the time, "and was her biggest supporter for all of Kylie's major life moments." 

September 2018

Jenner threw Woods not one, but two lavish 21st birthday celebrations, hosted in Miami and Los Angeles. 

And the pair officially teamed up for the Jordyn Woods x Kylie Cosmetics makeup collaboration, with Jenner calling the partnership "special" in a social media tribute to her bestie. 

"jordyn and i have had a true unmatchable relationship and i consider her family," she wrote on Instagram. "she's helped me remain ME throughout all these years and this is the first time we have collaborated on such a project! it has been so much fun and I'll cherish the memories forever!"

February 2019

Jenner and Woods' friendship came to an abrupt end when it was reported that Tristan Thompson had cheated on Khloe Kardashian—with whom he shares daughter True Thompson, 5, and son Tatum Thompson, 11 months—with Woods at a house party.

Kardashian broke up with Thompson amid the allegations, while the basketball player said in a now-deleted tweet that the report was "FAKE NEWS."

The cheating scandal was later depicted on E!'s Keeping Up With the Kardashians.

"Tristan, we've all known what he's capable of. Look what he did when I was 9 months pregnant," Khloe said on the show, referring to a 2018 report about her ex cheating on her with another woman just before she gave birth to True. "But I knew who he was. I never in a million years thought that's who she was."

March 2019

Woods broke her silence about the cheating allegations when she appeared on family friend Jada Pinkett Smith’s Red Table Talk and set the record straight about the night in question.

During the candid conversation, Woods admitted that she was drunk and alcohol was involved. But she made it clear that she never slept with Thompson. 

"On the way out, he did kiss me," she explained. "No passion. It was like a kiss on the lips. I don't think he's wrong either because I allowed myself to be in that position and when alcohol is involved, people make dumb moves or people get caught up in the moment."

Ultimately, Woods stated she was "not the reason that Tristan and Khloe are not together."

But Woods did admit she was not completely honest with Jenner or Kardashian when they first asked her about the rumors.

"I talked to Kylie and Khloe in the morning and told them I was there," she shared. "I was honest about being there but I wasn't honest about the actions that had taken place."

 

December 2021

During the Keeping Up with the Kardashians reunion, Jenner reflected on the unexpected ending of her longtime relationship with Woods.

"When we were friends, we never thought that we wouldn't be friends," she explained. "It was kind of an overnight thing."

But during the special, Khloe encouraged her younger sister to bury the hatchet with Woods. "I don't care enough to ever hurt my sister," she explained.

December 2022

After Woods posted a video in which she showcased her lips and said "thank you mom & dad for these genetics," some followers wondered if she was throwing shade at her former BFF.

 However, the model was quick to set the record straight.

"There's no shade towards anyone," she replied to one commenter, explaining that her reasoning for the video was simple, "this is a trend I've seen a bunch of girls doing and I wanted to hop on."

July 2023

It was the reunion that nearly broke the Internet when Jenner and Woods were spotted out together, after seemingly having broke bread (or fish, perhaps) over dinner at West Hollywood's Sushi Park.

The outing marked the first time the pair had been seen together publicly in more than four years.

September 2023

And then it was TikTok official. 

Jenner and Woods confirmed their friendship was fully reestablished when the Kylie Cosmetics mogul posted a video of the duo on social media.

In footage set to Humming Urban Stereo's 2004 song "Banana Shake (Sped Up)," Jenner and Woods are seen visiting an Acne Studios store and taking selfies, before exiting the shop and climbing into a waiting vehicle as a crowd of lively fans stand nearby snapping photos.

The video marks the first footage the former besties have taken together in four years. Hatchet, consider thyself buried.