NEWSBrian Austin Green Reveals 'Martin' Star Tichina Arnold Forced Him to Hide Their Romance: 'It Really Triggered Something'
Brian Austin Green felt 'insecure' after Tichina Arnold asked him to keep their romance secret.
Jan. 15 2026, Published 7:30 a.m. ET
Brian Austin Green is opening up about a past relationship that left him feeling unsure of where he stood.
On the Wednesday, January 14, episode of Deon Cole’s “Funny Knowing You” podcast, the actor revealed that Tichina Arnold pushed him to keep their romance under wraps when they dated years ago. The two crossed paths while Green was starring on Beverly Hills, 90210, and Arnold was leading the cast of Martin.
Brian Austin Green discussed his past relationship on a podcast.
“She was very clear on day one of like, ‘Nobody can know about this,’” the 52-year-old shared. “Can’t tell people, can’t talk about this.”
“I have someone who I’m attracted to who’s telling me like, ‘You can’t tell anybody,’” he explained. “I think for me, it really triggered something like, ‘Oh, OK. I’m not good enough for any of this. You don’t even want your friends to know that you’re hanging out with me.’”
Green recalled that the pair initially connected through their shared love of hip-hop. Arnold, who was pursuing music at the time, would come over to his place so they could collaborate while he was producing tracks.
After spending time together and “fooling around” for a while, their bond eventually turned romantic. Still, keeping the relationship hidden continued to weigh on him and made him feel “insecure.”
“At some point it flipped a little bit and all of a sudden she was like, cool with it. But I think somewhere in my mind, like, I had that subconscious switch of like, ‘Oh, I’m not this isn’t a real relationship. This is just a thing that we’re doing,’” he said. “Now maybe her view of it has changed a little bit, but it didn’t even start in a healthy way.”
The actor said Tichina Arnold wanted to keep their romance private.
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Although the romance didn’t last, Green stressed that there’s no bad blood between them. He said he still has a lot of “love” for Arnold, and that the two have remained close friends over the years.
“That’s my girl. I will always have her back. She has always had my back,” he said, adding that he didn’t want anyone to think he was speaking “poorly” about her.
The secrecy made Brian Austin Green feel 'insecure.'
Before Green’s appearance on the podcast, Arnold herself sat down with Cole last month and reflected on their relationship and why it ultimately stopped.
“I told him. I said, ‘The reason why we’ve come to the end of our road is because I see you dating all these Black women. Now you’re dating me, and you’re not going to end up with a Black woman. You’re going to share your riches and your legacy with someone white. And so I’m getting off this train.’ I told you I’m very good with endings,” she said, while also calling Green “a really nice guy.”
Arnold added that she “knew it wasn’t going anywhere” but still described the relationship as a “great experience.” She said the connection helped confirm what she already knew about herself.
“I’m just attracted to Black men, like, that’s my natural,” she admitted. “It comes down to everything, just the pheromones, the smell and everything.”
Tichina Arnold later explained why the relationship ended.
After his relationship with Arnold, Green went on to date Vanessa Marcil before marrying Megan Fox in 2004. The former couple divorced in 2020, and Green later moved on with his current partner, Sharna Burgess.
Arnold was previously married to Lamon Brewster from 1991 to 1995 and later to DaRico Hines from 2012 to 2016.
