Inside Selena Gomez's split with heiress Nicola Peltz and Brooklyn Beckham after 'throuple' jokes: Friends reveal brutal betrayal whispers

She used to third-wheel them at events and even joked about being in a 'throuple.'

But Selena Gomez's close friendship with Nicola Peltz and Brooklyn Beckham has seemingly soured since then.

Ominous rumors of a rupture began swirling last year, intensifying when the nepo baby couple were absent from the 33-year-old's wedding to Benny Blanco.

Pouring fuel on the fire, Peltz, 31 - the daughter of billionaire Nelson Peltz - deleted her Instagram photos of Gomez this January and then cryptically posted: 'Some friendships come with expiration dates.'

Now, an insider has exclusively pinpointed the source of their estrangement and revealed the discomfiting story of how their bond was born to the Daily Mail.

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Gomez and Peltz for comment.

They struck up a rapport when Gomez found herself awkwardly confronted with the sight of her ex, Justin Bieber, and his wife, Hailey, at a star-studded Hollywood gala.

'Nicola and Selena actually met at an event when she saw Justin and Hailey and needed a wingwoman and Nicola swooped in and invited her to sit with her,' the insider told the Daily Mail.

'But eventually, Selena felt Nicola was stealing her friends as she started hanging out with her friends without her present and that bothered Selena, so Selena separated herself,' the source added.

Having once been thick as thieves, the actress and her heiress confidante are allegedly 'no longer friends due to Selena's insecurity.'

Another source has exclusively revealed that as Gomez settles into a more sedate married life with Blanco, her high-octane celebrity friendship with Peltz and Beckham has been placed on the back burner.

'Selena’s life changed - in her eyes, for the better - once she fell in love with and married Benny. These days, her world is much more low-key. She spends most of her time working, writing and recording music, and simply enjoying life with him,' the insider told the Daily Mail.

'She still sees friends at award shows or the occasional house gathering that she and Benny host, but for the most part, they’ve embraced a quieter lifestyle and stepped away from the constant celebrity scene of going out, partying, and always being seen,' the source continued.

'Because of that shift, friendships with people like Nicola and Brooklyn have naturally taken more of a backseat. It’s similar to what happens after high school - you can reconnect years later and have an amazing time catching up, but you no longer spend every day together,' the insider said. 

'Not because there’s any bad blood, but because life has taken everyone in very different directions. Selena looks back fondly on the memories she shared with Nicola, but that chapter of her life has passed, and her focus now is centered on her immediate family and the life she’s building for the future.'

Gomez and Bieber were teenage sweethearts who briefly got back together as adults and split in 2018, months before his impromptu courthouse wedding with Hailey. 

The month after Bieber got married, Gomez reportedly suffered a breakdown connected to her lupus and entered treatment for her mental health.

She befriended Peltz, 31, and Beckham, 27, four years later at the Academy Museum Gala, an annual Los Angeles bash that reliably draws gobs of celebrities.

The encounter came six months after the splashy Peltz-Beckham wedding in Palm Beach, the disputed particulars of which have become the flashpoint of the couple's explosive feud with the groom's parents, David and Victoria Beckham.

At the museum gala, Gomez cuddled up to Hailey for a picture that went instantly viral, suggesting the development of a cordial equation between the two women. 

Meanwhile, Peltz gushed in 2023 that she and Gomez 'just clicked and had the best time' at the Academy Museum Gala and 'became super, super close' to each other.

'I feel like she’s my soul sister. I love her so much. She’s truly one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met in my whole life. The kindest person ever. Truly, her heart is gold. I feel like I’ve known her forever,' Peltz raved to Cosmopolitan UK.

Gomez was equally effusive about the friendship that year, posting a picture of her with Peltz and Beckham and writing: 'Fine call us a throuple #foreverplusone.'

Peltz offered the same description of their connection a couple of months later, saying: 'We’re like: “Yeah, we are a throuple.” We are all three best friends.' 

That summer, Gomez started dating 38-year-old music producer Blanco, whom she married last year at a luxurious ceremony in Santa Barbara.

Celebrities galore were in attendance, from Gomez's Only Murders in the Building co-stars Steve Martin and Martin Short to her longtime friend Taylor Swift, who flew in and out that day especially for the function and gave a toast alongside Ed Sheeran.

Amid the cavalcade of boldface names, Peltz and Beckham's absence was all the more glaring, prompting fevered speculation they were on the outs with the bride.

Then, in January, the heiress scrubbed her Instagram of Gomez, striking another blow to the hearts of fans who had been charmed by their friendship.

However, the couple still follow Gomez on the platform, and she still follows Peltz, leaving the tantalizing potential for reconciliation hanging in the air.