The great cheating debate — the social media argument regarding where the blame lies when it comes to infidelity — is raging once more amid Adam Levine’s alleged scandal.
On Tuesday, Levine addressed and denied cheating allegations levelled at him by Instagram model Sumner Stroh earlier this week. Stroh accused him cheating on his wife, Behati Prinsloo, with her “for about a year,” in a series of TikTok videos, some of which included screenshots of her and Levine’s alleged direct messages to each other.
The 43-year-old Maroon 5 frontman released a statement on his Instagram Stories in response to the allegation, stating in part, “I used poor judgement in speaking with anyone other than my wife in ANY kind of flirtatious manner. I did not have an affair, nevertheless, I crossed the line during a regrettable period of my life.”
Levine added that “in certain instances it became inappropriate.”
The musician also spoke about handling the fallout from the scandal with Prinsloo, who is currently pregnant with the couple’s third child.
“I have addressed that and taken proactive steps to remedy this with my family,” he wrote. “My wife and my family is all I care about in this world. To be this naive and stupid enough to risk the only thing that truly matters to me was my greatest mistake I could ever make. I will never make it again. I take full responsibility. We will get through it and we will get through it together.”
Levine’s remarks sparked many comments and served as a catalyst for debate regarding fault when it comes to cheating.
Actress Sara Foster took to TikTok to share her thoughts, in which she blamed both Levine and Stroh for the scandal, laying a lot of the responsibility at Stroh’s feet.
“This woman chose to make a viral TikTok video, putting it out there for the world to see for a pregnant woman to see when she could have just messaged her privately,” Foster said in the post, without referring to either Levine or Stroh by name. “We don’t feel sorry for you. You knew this man was married and you participated.”
@sarasadmomfoster Dear married men who cheat , You suck. Dear married women who cheat with married men, You suck too. #fyp #cheaters ♬ original sound – Sara Foster
Meanwhile, model and actress Emily Ratajkowski strongly disagreed with Foster’s posts and expressed her disappointment at how men are not held accountable for their behaviour in any meaningful way.
“I don’t understand why we continue to blame women for men’s mistakes, especially when you’re talking about 20 something year old women dealing with men in positions of power who are twice their age,” Ratajkowski said, after stitching part of Foster’s TikTok. “The power dynamic is so skewed its ridiculous.”
“Also, if you’re the one in a relationship, you’re the one obligated to be loyal so the whole other ‘the woman’s to blame’ [thing], that’s bad and it’s literally designed to keep women apart,” added the 31-year-old model, who recently filed for divorce from her husband, Sebastian Bear-McClard, amid his alleged cheating scandal.
Ratajkowski — who also avoided referring to Levine or Stroh by name — followed this up with a second post, sharing, “I think a huge problem in our culture right now is we say, ‘Oh men are monsters, they’re terrible, they’re horrible.’ Then we don’t hold them accountable. We blame other women and ask women to adjust their behaviour, instead of just saying that men need to change their behaviour. It’s sexism. It’s classic misogyny.”
Meanwhile, “Selling Sunset” star Chrishell Stause took to Twitter on Tuesday, and remarked, “When apologizing for cheating publicly I hate the – we will get through it together part from a man. Don’t speak for her. You’ve done enough.”
When apologizing for cheating publicly I hate the -we will get through it together part from a man.
Don’t speak for her. You’ve done enough
— Chrishell Stause (@Chrishell7) September 20, 2022
In the original TikTok video, Stroh called herself “young and naive” when she had the alleged affair with Levine, and said she feels “exploited.”
In the screenshots she posted, Levine allegedly told her, “It is truly unreal how f**king hot you are like it blows my mind. …You are 50 times hotter in person and so am I hahaha.”
She further claims that he later came back into her DMs asking if he had a baby boy if he could name the child Sumner. Stroh alleges that she had no plans to come forward, but alleges that after sending screenshots to a supposed friend, that friend tried to sell the screenshots to a tabloid. In a second TikTok video, Stroh said of Levine and Prinsloo that she was “under the impression their marriage was over.”
Levine and Prinsloo tied the knot in 2014, and are already parents to daughters Dusty Rose, 5, and Gio Grace, 4. Prinsloo confirmed she was pregnant last week, posting some baby bump pics to Instagram. The 34-year-old model has not publicly commented on the allegations.
Shortly after Levine posted his statement, Stroh took to her own Instagram Stories, writing, “Someone get this man a dictionary.”
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Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo’s Relationship Timeline
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Adam Levine Addresses Cheating Allegations: ‘I Crossed the Line’
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