Elizabeth Hurley and Billy Ray Cyrus Secretly Flirted for Years Before Relationship

The bizarre love match of actress Elizabeth Hurley and country singer Billy Ray Cyrus has thrown fans for a loop, but insiders reveal that they had been flirting for years before they landed in each other’s arms.

The 59-year-old Austin Powers actress and the 63-year-old Achy Breaky Heart crooner first met when they costarred in the 2022 Yuletide flick Christmas in Paradise, and Liz admitted she already knew plenty about Billy Ray through her now 23-year-old son, Damian.

“My son was the age where he used to watch Hannah Montana all the time, so of course, I used to watch it with him,” she reveals. “I knew Billy Ray really well from that, and of course, some of his music. That was a big plus.”

Even back then, Liz “had her eyes on Billy Ray — she thought he was just so sexy,” says a source, but he had a complicated romantic life at the time: He was splitting from wife Tish and had begun canoodling with 27-years-younger Aussie songbird Firerose.

“But Elizabeth bided her time,” notes a source. “She and Billy Ray had been texting back and forth and talking on the phone all the while, and Billy poured his heart out to her about all his problems.”

Those included marrying Firerose in 2023, only to file for divorce seven months later, and his heartbreaking estrangement from pop superstar daughter Miley and son Chance — who publicly said his father needed professional help after his disastrous, gaffe-filled performance at Donald Trump’s January inauguration.

“Elizabeth became a port in the storm for Billy Ray, and when the smoke cleared a bit, he finally asked if she wanted to get together,” the source says.

“And those were the words she’s been waiting for!”

Another source reveals that the pair has been dating since late February, finally coming out publicly as a couple on Easter Sunday.

They even vacationed in the Maldives in early April — where Hurley posted a video of her blowing a kiss to someone off camera while Billy Ray’s hit She’s Not Cryin’ Anymore played in the background.

“Elizabeth has been single for quite a while, and Billy’s love life has been a total mess, but they feel like fate brought them together,” the source says. “They seem like an oddball pairing, but to Elizabeth and Billy Ray, they feel like they are a love match.

“They’ve begun planning a life together!”