After almost four years together, Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake have broken up, the couple said in a statement Thursday.


Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake said:

It has always been our preference not to comment on the status of our relationship, but, out of respect for the time we've spent together, we feel compelled to do so now, in light of recent speculation and the number of inaccurate stories that are being reported by the media,

We have, in fact, ended our romantic relationship, and have done so mutually and as friends, with continued love and respect for one another

.


Cameron Diaz, 34, and Justin Timberlake, 25, met in April 2003 at the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, and by July, Diaz had joined her new boyfriend on the road as he toured with Christina Aguilera.


Justin Timberlake previously dated Britney Spears and Cameron Diaz had been in relationships with fellow movie stars Matt Dillon and Jared Leto.


In July 2004, Justin Timberlake filed a libel suit against the British tabloid News of the World after it claimed he'd cheated with model Lucy Clarkson, and in May 2005, Cameron Diaz sued U.K. tab The Sun for suggesting she'd had an affair with Shane Nickerson, the producer of her MTV adventure show Trippin'.