EXCLUSIVE: 'Cheating' CEO Andy Byron Could Drag Coldplay's Chris Martin To Court For 'Defamation Or Reputational Damage' Over Viral Kiss Cam Footage That Destroyed His Life, Marriage and Career
Ex-Astronomer CEO Andy Byron has some legal avenues he could explore in the wake of his cheating scandal.
July 25 2025, Published 7:00 p.m. ET
Disgraced former Astronomer CEO Andy Byron could bring a lawsuit against Coldplay frontman Chris Martin for exposing his alleged affair with a colleague, but he'd have to prove some key factors first, attorneys exclusively tell RadarOnline.com.
Married Byron was caught cuddling up to Astronomer's HR director, Kristin Cabot, at the band's concert outside Boston, where a kiss cam moment on the jumbotron showed the duo desperately trying to hide from the cameras.
Public Scandal Versus Private Reputation
Byron's wife removed her married name from her Facebook account following the cheating scandal.
Martin, 48, initially cooed, "Oh, look at these two," as Byron had his arms locked around smiling Cabot's chest. She quickly turned away and covered her face, while Byron slid out of the frame.
The Clocks singer assured the duo, "Alright. Come on. You're OK," before remarking, "Oh, what? Either they're having an affair or they're very shy" about the pair's sketchy reaction.
After the video surfaced, Byron's wife, Megan Kerrigan Byron, removed her married name from Facebook before deleting her account altogether.
"When public scandal and private reputation collide, the courtroom often becomes the unexpected stage, and in the case of Andy Byron and Chris Martin, there’s more than just bad press at play," attorney Elizabeth Rozin-Golinder exclusively told RadarOnline.com.
"If the allegations surrounding this scandal are false and have been widely circulated in a way that injures Andy Byron’s reputation, he may have viable claims for defamation, particularly if there is evidence that Chris Martin, or anyone in his circle, knowingly spread false information or acted with reckless disregard for the truth," she explained.
"In celebrity-adjacent cases, actual malice becomes the legal buzzword. And if Byron is considered a public figure by association, he'd need to prove just that."
The Harsh 'Reality'
Martin correctly guessed that Byron and Kristin Cabot had something to hide.
"But defamation isn’t the only potential legal avenue," Rozin-Golinder continued, noting that Byron could claim "tortious interference with prospective economic advantage" if the scandal costs the former CEO "any business opportunities, endorsements, or professional relationships."
"Think of it this way: if Byron’s phone stops ringing because someone sabotaged his image without basis, the law may allow him to recover for that fallout," she explained.
Rozin-Golinder thinks Byron might have trouble with the fact that he voluntarily attended a large concert with his alleged mistress, where they packed on plenty of PDA in full view of other audience members.
"In legal terms, that makes it difficult to argue he had a reasonable expectation of privacy. The law doesn’t protect you from the consequences of your own stupidity," she noted about the fact that what Byron and Cabot did was in plain sight.
"Unless Byron can prove that someone, Chris Martin or his team, intentionally orchestrated a setup, directed cameras to him with the intent to shame, or spread false narratives, any defamation claim would likely fall flat," Rozin-Golinder added. "Being filmed at a concert you willingly attended with someone controversial isn’t defamatory, it’s reality."
A 'Challenging' Road Ahead
Byron resigned from his CEO position at Astronomer in the wake of his scandal.
Attorney Marjorie Mesidor, known as "The Harassment Slayer," also exclusively told RadarOnline.com that Byron's path to suing Coldplay "remains highly improbable." However, the widespread media attention he received because of a Coldplay fan's viral TikTok video could work in Byron's favor.
Both Byron and Cabot were placed on leave by Astronomer after the video set social media ablaze, while an interim CEO was appointed.
Several days later, Byron tendered his resignation to the data infrastructure company's board of directors.
"Byron's legal team would likely be scrutinizing the broader landscape of media coverage and social media dissemination for provably false statements of fact that directly and maliciously damaged his reputation, as well as the terms of his separation from Astronomer," Mesidor said.
She noted that while the "financial and personal toll of such a public scandal is immense," there are legal avenues that can still be explored, even though they will be "challenging."
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Kristin Cabot Resigned As Well
Cabot resigned from Astronomer five days after Byron.
After Byron resigned, Astronomer released a statement on July 19 that read: “Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met.”
Chief people officer Cabot resigned from the company on Thursday, July 24.
Astronomer's interim CEO Pete DeJoy looked at the positive side by trying to find a silver lining for his company following the cheating scandal.
"The spotlight has been unusual and surreal for our team and, while I would never have wished for it to happen like this, Astronomer is now a household name," he wrote on LinkedIn.
