A Family Torn Apart: Brooklyn and Nicola Peltz Drop Bombshell That Sends the Beckham Dynasty Into Turmoil

For decades, the Beckham name has symbolized unity as much as fame—public milestones, shared celebrations, and a carefully guarded image of togetherness. But in recent days, that picture has been shaken. According to widespread reports and intense online reaction, a move by Brooklyn Beckham and his wife Nicola Peltz has been interpreted as a “bombshell,” sending shockwaves through one of the world’s most recognizable families.

Just when you thought the British royal family had cornered the market on years-old, who-made-whom-cry wedding gossip, here come the Beckhams.

More than three years after Brooklyn Peltz Beckham married Nicola Peltz Beckham and their two names became one, rumors of a feud involving the couple and several members of his family—including dad David Beckham, mom Victoria Beckham and brother Romeo Beckham—have been picking up steam for months.

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And with news of a bizarre mishap at Brooklyn and Nicola’s 2022 nuptials surfacing, the no-longer newlyweds have hired an attorney to, as a source put it to E! News, “set the record straight” and “combat spread of misinformation.”

But even if most everything is fine, the Beckhams are a famously tight-knit family. So if even just one thread starts to unravel, it leaves a noticeable hole in the fabric.

The latest snag: Cruz Beckham’s Dec. 20 claim that he and his parent woke up to discover themselves “blocked” on Instagram, he wrote, “as did I.”

So, no, Brooklyn wasn’t exactly cozying up with his crew around the Christmas tree this year, the couple instead wearing matching holiday pajamas beside her folks.

Though the Beckhams have grown used to their eldest son RSVP-ing no to most family events.

Because, sure, stuff can come up last minute, but generally speaking you don’t go around missing your father’s black-tie 50th birthday festivities for no reason. Or his knighthood ceremony. Or the premiere of your mom’s docuseries.

And fingers tend to get pointed at significant others—girlfriends, boyfriends, wives, etc.—when a rift among blood relatives starts to form.

Beckham family, Cruz, Harper, David, Victoria, Romeo, Brooklyn, Nicola Peltz Beckham

In this case, it’s not that Nicola, whose parents are billionaire businessman Nelson Peltz and model Claudia Heffner, did anything, per se. But however welcome an addition she’s been to the Beckham family, their union couldn’t help but change the dynamic in Brooklyn’s corner.

A corner that, incidentally, is now based in Beverly Hills, where he lived as a boy when his dad played for the Los Angeles Galaxy but is now thousands of miles away from his family’s various homesteads in Miami and the U.K.

“We’re happiest just hanging out with our dogs at home,” Brooklyn told Glamour Germany in a joint interview with his wife in April. “No cameras. Watching Love Island.”

As the eldest of David and Victoria’s four kids, now-26-year-old Brooklyn—who knew early on he wouldn’t be following in his father’s footsteps as a professional soccer player—was logically the first to leave the nest years ago.

The teen with the “Mama’s Boy” tattoo on his chest flew all the way to New York to pursue photography, a passion from an early age since his dad gave him his first camera, but only spent a year studying at Parsons School of Design before moving back to the U.K. to be close once again to his family.

Still, Brooklyn has made it clear over the years that he wants to distinguish himself apart from the Beckham name, telling InStyle in June 2024, “I mean, I can’t help how I was born. I couldn’t ask for better parents and I’m just trying to work my ass off and trying to make a name for myself. That’s all I can say, really.”

He has more recently leaned into food and his latest venture is spicing up our lives with Cloud23, the hot sauce brand he started with Nicola. The number is inspired both by the day they got engaged, June 23, 2020, and his dad’s jersey number playing for the Galaxy and Paris St. Germain.

“I love taking pictures of my wife,” Brooklyn told Variety in 2022 of his change in direction. “I still have all my film cameras, but now it’s just more of a fun thing to do. They were kind of all hobbies. I was still trying to find that one thing I would literally die for, and I found that with cooking.”

He started cooking more during the pandemic and “Nicola encouraged me to share it,” he explained to Glamour Germany. “But I never wanted to be a traditional chef—I was more interested in the business side.”

Meanwhile, David and Victoria attended at least two Cloud23 launch events in October 2024, Brooklyn captioning photos of himself and Nicola with his parents, “I love you guys so so much xx thank you for supporting @cloud23.”

David commented, “So proud of you mate well done love you Bust.”

And while only brother Cruz and sister Harper Beckham were snapped at one hot sauce event, Romeo made it to the other.

So why, again, have there been reports of tension in these ranks?

From the alleged 2022 wedding drama involving the bride and the mother of the groom, to why Brooklyn and Nicola have skipped some major Beckham family milestones, grab your stilettos and let us walk you through the drama: