Damian Hurley Endorses Mum Elizabeth’s New Man Billy Ray Cyrus on Father’s Day

Damian Hurley has officially given his seal of approval to Billy Ray Cyrus’ relationship with his mum Elizabeth.

The actress, 59, and the controversial musician, 63, sent shockwaves across the internet on Easter Sunday as they announced their relationship to the world with a cosy Instagram snap.

While fans were left less than impressed at her choice of partner at first, Damian appears to approve of their relationship.

The model and actor, 23, paid tribute to Billy Ray as part of his Father’s Day tribute on social media.

Damian shared pictures of his own father, but also some of his ‘favourite’ men in a sweet post.

From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail’s new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 

He told his 213,000 followers: ‘Happy Fathers’ Day to my beautiful daddy and some favourite men in my life.’ 

Damian could be seen smiling with Billy Ray as they posed for a snap, both wearing black sunglasses.

Billy Ray was wearing a signature hat and black leather jacket, while Damian donned a red suit over a black mesh shirt.

Tragically Damian’s biological father Steve Bing died by suicide in 2020.

Also included in Damian’s Father’s Day post was Hugh Grant, Elton John and his partner David Furnish, Henry Cole and Denis Leary.

An insider previously revealed Damian was delighted to see his mum happy and really liked Billy Ray, with the pair’s relationship said to be like ‘siblings’. 

A source told Hello! magazine: ‘Damian loves Billy Ray and is delighted to see his mother happy and in love’.

The nepo baby first met Billy when the country music legend was cast as Elizabeth’s love interest in the 2022 film Paradise in Christmas. 

And friends close to the mother and son previously revealed that Damian was instantly impressed with Billy and spotted his chemistry with Liz.

Speaking to The Sun, a source said: ‘Damian has met Billy and is a really big fan of his. They hit it off when they hung out on set.

‘All he wants is for his mum to be happy and he saw their spark straight away and is delighted they are now giving it a go.’

Despite Damian’s pals saying he is happy for his mum, they also added that they are worried their close bond might be a problem, due to Billy being estranged from his own children, including pop superstar Miley Cyrus.

The friend added: ‘Damian has always been and will continue to be Liz’s number one. She has raised him alone for 23 years and his blessing is the most important thing to her.

‘In the past Liz’s relationship with Damian has taken its toll on some men. Billy is deep down a family man but is currently struggling with a number of issues.

‘Everyone is a bit worried that his own troubled relationship with his kids could impact Liz and Damian. The biggest fear is that Billy will want Damian to take more of a back seat.’ 

Elizabeth’s pals have since told that ‘marriage could be on the card’ for the pair, who despite their very different backgrounds share similar interests which has proven to be the secret to their romance. 

This would not be Elizabeth’s first time down the aisle, after wedding multimillionaire Arun Nayar in 2007, with their two lavish ceremonies spanned two continents, with a civil service in an English castle and then a traditional Hindu ceremony in India.

The actress and the textile heir eventually divorced in 2011, but have remained good friends ever since, often appearing at public events together.

During a previous interview with the Daily Mail’s YOU magazine in 2018, Liz said: ‘My husband and I had the most amicable divorce in the world and my lawyer said it was the cheapest case she’d ever handled because neither of us wanted anything.’