It was the photo that launched a thousand tabloid covers. In the summer of 2015, a grainy image surfaced of a smiling blonde woman relaxing on a private jet. She wasn't just lounging; she was wearing four massive, diamond-encrusted Super Bowl rings.
That woman was Christine Ouzounian, the nanny for Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner. The rings belonged to none other than Tom Brady.
Almost overnight, the internet exploded. People weren't just asking why the nanny was with Ben Affleck in Las Vegas; they were asking what on earth she was doing with Tom Brady’s most prized possessions. It looked bad. Honestly, it looked like a scene straight out of a Hollywood drama that had gone off the rails. But while the gossip mill tried to link Christine Ouzounian and Tom Brady in a romantic scandal, the reality was a lot more about "guys' night" logistics than a secret affair.
The Infamous Flight to Vegas
The timeline is pretty wild. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner had just announced their split. To escape the media firestorm, the family—including Ouzounian—headed to the Bahamas.
Then things got weird.
Ben decided to fly from the Bahamas to Las Vegas for a charity poker tournament. He invited Ouzounian to come along for the ride back to LA, but first, they made a pit stop to pick up Tom Brady. For a few hours, the trio was stuck in the air together.
📖 Related: Nicole Young and Dr. Dre: What Really Happened Behind the $100 Million Split
Why was she wearing the rings?
If you've ever been around high-level athletes, you know the rings are basically the ultimate party trick. According to sources on the plane, Brady didn't just hand them over to Ouzounian specifically. He was showing them off to everyone.
- The rings were being passed around.
- Other staff members reportedly tried them on.
- Ouzounian just happened to be the one who took a photo that leaked.
She wasn't hiding it, either. She sent the photo to friends, and in the world of celebrity gossip, "sending to friends" is basically the same as CC'ing the New York Post.
Was Gisele Bündchen Actually Angry?
You bet she was. While there was never any credible evidence of a physical relationship between Christine Ouzounian and Tom Brady, the optics were a nightmare. At the time, Brady was already dealing with the "Deflategate" headache. The last thing he needed was his name dragged into the "Nannygate" divorce drama.
Reports at the time suggested Gisele was livid—not because she thought Tom was cheating, but because he was being "careless." Being on a private jet with a woman who was currently being accused of breaking up one of their best friends' marriages wasn't a great look for a family-man quarterback.
It reportedly put a massive strain on their marriage that summer. You have to remember, Brady and Affleck have been "Boston bros" for decades. They've weathered a lot together, but this was a level of public messiness that Gisele famously had little patience for.
👉 See also: Nathan Griffith: Why the Teen Mom Alum Still Matters in 2026
The Aftermath: Where is Christine Ouzounian Now?
For a few weeks, Ouzounian was the most famous woman in America. She was spotted living at the Hotel Bel-Air, driving a brand-new Lexus, and seemingly enjoying the paparazzi attention. There were even rumors she was gunning for a spot on The Bachelorette or a reality show.
That didn't happen.
Hollywood is a small town, and "the nanny who took a photo with the rings" isn't exactly a resume builder for high-profile childcare.
A Pivot to Real Estate
By 2016, the smoke had cleared. Ouzounian didn't become a reality star. Instead, she did what many former "it-girls" do: she went into corporate real estate.
According to her professional profiles, she transitioned into estate management and eventually title insurance. By 2025, she had climbed the ranks to become a Vice President at a major title insurance company. She basically disappeared from the red carpet and traded it for boardrooms and commercial sales. It’s a total 180 from the woman posing with Super Bowl rings on a private jet.
✨ Don't miss: Mary J Blige Costume: How the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul Changed Fashion Forever
What Most People Get Wrong
The biggest misconception is that there was a "triangle" between Affleck, Brady, and Ouzounian. There wasn't. Brady was essentially a bystander in a messy divorce situation.
- The Affair Rumors: Jennifer Garner later told Vanity Fair that Ouzounian had nothing to do with the divorce decision. They had been separated for months.
- The Private Jet: It wasn't a "secret" getaway. It was a flight to a public charity event where dozens of people saw them.
- The Rings: Tom Brady didn't give her the rings as a gift. It was a "hey, check these out" moment that got caught on camera.
Basically, Ouzounian was a young woman caught up in the orbit of two of the biggest stars on the planet, and she took a photo that she probably shouldn't have.
Lessons from the "Nannygate" Era
Looking back at the Christine Ouzounian and Tom Brady saga, it’s a masterclass in how a single image can define a narrative for years. For Brady, it was a reminder that even when you’re "just hanging out" with friends, the camera is always on. For Ouzounian, it was a brief moment of infamy that she eventually had to outrun to build a "normal" career.
If you’re looking to dig deeper into how celebrity scandals like this are managed, you should look into the "paparazzi tip-off" culture of the mid-2010s. It explains a lot about why we saw so many photos of her at the Hotel Bel-Air during that exact window.
To stay informed on the actual facts of these older celebrity cases, always cross-reference "source-heavy" tabloid reports with long-form interviews from the actual principals involved, like Garner's 2016 Vanity Fair profile, which remains the most honest account of that time period.
Next Steps for Readers:
Check out the public filings regarding Ouzounian's recent professional work in California if you're curious about her career trajectory after 2015. It's a fascinating look at how someone can successfully pivot away from a massive public scandal. Also, for those interested in the Brady-Affleck friendship, look into their joint charitable efforts through the Eastern Congo Initiative, which was the actual reason for many of those Vegas trips.