Meg Ryan Thrilled With Her Press-Generating Mellencamp Romance

Although Meg Ryan has been laying low for quite some time (both romantically speaking and with her work), she's now supposedly in love and is greatly enjoying the buzz her new relationship is creating.

Meg, 49, and John Mellencamp, 59, surprised everyone last week when they announced they were a couple by gallivanting around New York City's SoHo and sipping coffee at Martha's Vineyard. And the most surprising element is that they were spotted out in public together mere days after the singer announced his divorce from his wife of eighteen years. A source to People magazine claims that Meg and John have been dating for seven weeks, and that John and his wife had been separated for some time prior. New Couple Alert: Meg Ryan & John Mellencamp

And Meg's not only in love with being in love, but she's also thrilled with all the heightened attention she's received from this pairing. "Meg couldn't be happier," a friend of the actress tells Popeater. "Not only has she got a great new guy, she's back in the headlines. It's not easy going from being one of the highest paid actresses in the world to an anonymous New Yorker. Meg's loving all this attention again."

Meg hasn't been on the celebrity romance radar since her split with Denis Quaid in 2001 (after ten years of marriage and one child) and her brief affair with Russell Crowe in 2000 (allegedly while Quaid and she were separated. In 2008 Meg revealed that Quaid had been unfaithful to her during their marriage.) Since then there's been some far-fetched assumptions about her love life, but none of which held any merit. 5 Unforgettable Hollywood Love Triangles

Meg used to be Hollywood's go-to romantic comedy female lead. She was perky and cute and a pro at cueing her adorable puppy dog eyes for a rolling camera. But she hasn't been offered one of these types of roles in quite some time, and she hasn't done a highbrow film since the star-studded, yet poorly-reviewed, The Women in 2008. And most of the press Meg's been getting over the past few years has been bad press. Her role in The Women earned her a Golden Raspberry Award nomination for Worst Actress and she's also often cited as one of Hollywood's most profound examples of plastic surgery gone wrong. So it's no wonder Meg is relieved to have some attention that isn't flat out negative criticism. And although Meg would much rather be receiving press for a new hit movie instead of a budding romance, she's happy the tabloids are finally focusing on something other than her slowing film career or her physique.

Photo credit: INF