--- description: Tom Hiddleston revealed the truth about his relationship with Taylor Swift and the meaning behind the famous tank top he wore on July 4. title: Tom Hiddleston Explains the Meaning of His Taylor Swift Shirt image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8dc8963d105091cd/6988b93dcf40a8c6a4c46642/tom-hiddleston-taylor-swift-truth.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Tom Hiddleston Breaks Silence on His Shirt at Taylor Swift's Fourth of July Party At Last by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 8, 2017 4:48 PM CUT  Actor Tom Hiddleston arrives at the AMC Networks' 68th Primetime Emmy Awards After-Party Celebration at BOA Steakhouse on September 18, 2016 in West Hollywood, California. Actor Tom Hiddleston arrives at the AMC Networks' 68th Primetime Emmy Awards After-Party Celebration at BOA Steakhouse on September 18, 2016 in West Hollywood, California.Amanda Edwards—WireImage/Getty Images by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 8, 2017 4:48 PM CUT [Golden Globe](http://time.com/4628539/tim-hiddleston-golden-globes-speech-criticism/ "undefined") award-winning actor and Taylor Swift’s ex, [Tom Hiddleston](http://time.com/4450589/tom-hiddleston-taylor-swift-instagram/ "undefined") finally broke his silence about his epic “I ‘heart’ T.S.” tank top that defined [July 4, 2016](http://time.com/4394697/tom-hiddleston-taylor-swift-july-4th/ "undefined") in GQ’s [March cover story](http://www.gq.com/story/tom-hiddleston-cover-profile "undefined"). Hiddleston told _GQ_ that the shirt, which launched a thousand memes, was “a joke among friends.” He explained: --- > “” --- So there’s the story. He continued, “I was just surprised that it got so much attention. The tank top became an emblem of this thing.” By “this thing,” Hiddleston refers to his relationship with [Swift](http://time.com/4648633/taylor-swift-zayn-50-shades-video/ "undefined") that lived under perpetual scrutiny and [rumors](http://time.com/4407101/tom-hiddleston-taylor-swift-relationship-not-publicity-stunt/ "undefined"). The couple [split](http://time.com/4481255/taylor-swift-tom-hiddleston-break-up-reaction/ "undefined") in September after three months of dating. While hinting at the speculation and criticism without addressing the Hiddleswift drama by name, he said, “If you’re under attack, if your values are under attack, if you’re being shamed, if you’re being humiliated, the animal response is to hide in the bush…And the lesson of 2016 is we have to love more, we have to risk more, we have to be braver, we have to be more outspoken.” Hiddleston stressed that it was just a shirt, people. “Nobody had the context for that story,” he said. “And I’m still trying to work out a way of having a personal life and protecting it, but also without hiding.” Read the full GQ article [here](http://www.gq.com/story/tom-hiddleston-cover-profile "undefined"). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4663739/tom-hiddleston-on-taylor-swift-interview/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4663739/tom-hiddleston-on-taylor-swift-interview/"},"headline":"Tom Hiddleston Breaks Silence on His Shirt at Taylor Swift's Fourth of July Party At Last","datePublished":"2017-02-08T16:48:20.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:40:54.987Z","description":"There's more than meets the eye","url":"https://time.com/4663739/tom-hiddleston-on-taylor-swift-interview/","keywords":["Newsfeed","celebrities","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8dc8963d105091cd/6988b93dcf40a8c6a4c46642/tom-hiddleston-taylor-swift-truth.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8dc8963d105091cd/6988b93dcf40a8c6a4c46642/tom-hiddleston-taylor-swift-truth.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"AMC Networks' 68th Primetime Emmy Awards After-Party Celebration - Arrivals","caption":"Actor Tom Hiddleston arrives at the AMC Networks' 68th Primetime Emmy Awards After-Party Celebration at BOA Steakhouse on September 18, 2016 in West Hollywood, California.","creditText":"Amanda Edwards—WireImage/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4663739/tom-hiddleston-on-taylor-swift-interview/","name":"Tom Hiddleston Breaks Silence on His Shirt at Taylor Swift's Fourth of July Party At Last"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The Internet Goes Crazy Over Taylor Swift and Tom Hiddleston's Break Up!","description":"Taylor Swift and Tom Hiddleston have breaken up after 3 months together","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/eBgKCPta/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2016-09-07T14:23:28.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/eBgKCPta.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4663739/tom-hiddleston-on-taylor-swift-interview/","duration":"PT1M3S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4663739/tom-hiddleston-on-taylor-swift-interview/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```