Revisiting Taylor Swift and Sophie Turner’s Friendship Timeline Amid Those “Patient Zero” Inspo Rumors

For those of us who didn’t see Taylor Swift and Sophie Turner’s friendship coming...we should have. These two have been tight for years (like, Sophie showed up to support Tay at SNL back in 2021!), so obviously Taylor came through when Sophie split from their mutual ex Joe Jonas. And “came through” is an understatement—Tay straight-up loaned Sophie her house in NYC.That said, if you're wondering where these two stand now in 2026 (especially amid the rumors that one of Taylor’s bonus tracks from The Life of a Showgirl, “Patient Zero,” could be about Sophie and Joe), let’s take a lil walk through their full friendship timeline—starting with Sophie being a Taylor fan years before they met.Jump to:December 2017February 2018May 2019June 2019July 2020April 2021November 2021August 2022August 2023September 2023October 2023November 2023January 2024May 2024June 2024October 2025July 2026September 2026December 2017Sophie defends Taylor from people questioning her inclusion in TIME's 2017 Silence Breakers, writing "yes" to someone who tweeted, "Did we really need Taylor Swift in here though?" (The tweet was then deleted.)February 2018Sophie turns 22 and lip-syncs to—what else?—"22."May 2019 Taylor and Sophie meet IRL on The Graham Norton Show and compliment each other's accidentally-matching haircuts:Oh, and Taylor shouts Sophie out in her Instagram caption about the show:June 2019Sophie chats with Extra about seeing Taylor on Graham Norton, saying, “She’s a really sweet girl. We’ve met a couple of times before. We’re friends. She definitely wasn’t fan-girling over me. I fangirl over her.”July 2020Fans become convinced that Taylor sent Joe and Sophie a baby gift thanks to some very specific lyrics in "Invisible String." Ahem:April 2021Sophie has the perfect reaction to Taylor Swift writing a song about Joe:InstagramCasual reminder that lyrics to this song include: "Hello, Mr. ‘Casually cruel’ / Mr. ‘Everything revolves around you.'" 👀November 2021Sophie gets a Red package in the mail from Taylor!Later that month, Joe and Sophie are spotted walking into Saturday Night Live to support Taylor:Oh, and here's Sophie at the after-party:Gotham//Getty ImagesAugust 2022Sophie and Joe share their fave Taylor albums:August 2023Sophie wears a "Mr. Perfectly Fine" friendship bracelet to the Jonas Brothers’ first show on their tour.InstagramSeptember 2023News breaks that Sophie and Joe have gone their separate ways—and just a few weeks later, Taylor and Sophie are spotted leaving dinner at Via Carota in New York City. The joint appearance obviously causes the internet to completely melt down. (Reminder: Taylor dated Joe from July to October 2008, and Joe infamously ended things over the phone.)The following night, Sophie and Taylor are seen leaving dinner at Barrière Fouquet Hotel—just hours after TMZ reported that Sophie had filed legal docs in federal court over location issues.Not long after that, Page Six reports Sophie is living in Taylor's New York City home while she and Joe deal with their custody logistics. Per the outlet, Taylor specifically offered Sophie a Tribeca apartment she keeps as an investment property.Meanwhile, a source tells Entertainment Tonight that Sophie and Taylor "have always liked and respected each other" and "they are fans of each other and have been friends for a while. Sophie doesn't care that Taylor dated Joe. It was so long ago and in the past. Taylor has a good time when she's with Sophie and they enjoyed some fun girl time together last night."And to cap off the month: Sophie and Taylor are once again spotted at dinner—this time with Taylor's longtime bestie, Blake Lively:Robert Kamau//Getty ImagesOctober 2023Sophie joins Taylor and a fleet of other celebs to watch the Kansas City Chiefs play at MetLife Stadium:Elsa//Getty ImagesMeanwhile, a source tells Us Weekly that Taylor “instinctively wanted to reach out” when news of Joe and Sophie's split broke. And when it comes to the use of her apartment, “She’s letting Sophie stay there as long as she needs and is supporting her however she can.”Another source tells the outlet that “Sophie is free to stay at Taylor’s investment property in NY until the custody case with Joe has been finalized,” while an insider previously said that Taylor “doesn’t know all the details” of Sophie's split “because she doesn’t feel like it’s her place.”That said, “All she is concerned with is being there to support her friend."November 2023Taylor Swift casually assembles three of Joe Jonas’s exes in one place: herself, Sophie Turner, and Gigi Hadid. I mean, incredible.Gotham//Getty ImagesJanuary 2024Sophie drops a pic with Tay on Instagram, calling 2023 “the year of the girlies.” (See slide 3.)May 2024A few months after Sophie and Joe's divorce drama ensued, the Game of Thrones alum opens up about leaning on Taylor at the time during her British Vogue cover story interview."Taylor was an absolute hero to me this year," Sophie gushes. Although she’s known the Fearless singer for a decade, she reveals that she didn't feel "she was able to cultivate the friendship." She shares that when she was in New York last September, she reached out to Taylor, hoping she'd know someone who was renting—but she offered her own home to Sophie and her daughters for free."I've never been more grateful to anyone than I am for her because she took my children and me, and provided us with a home and a safe space. She really has a heart of gold," Sophie tells the outlet.June 2024Sophie and her boyfriend, Peregrine Pearson, are spotted partying with Taylor, Travis Kelce, and other celeb pals at Chiltern Firehouse following Tay's three sold-out shows at Wembley Stadium.October 2025Sophie hops on IG to give her thoughts on The Life of a Showgirl amid rumors that Taylor’s song “Cancelled!” could be about her. Her review? “My girl’s done it again.”@sophiet/InstagramJuly 2026Taylor and Travis tie the knot in front of 1,000 guests at Madison Square Garden...but strangely enough, Sophie isn’t photographed at the wedding. Neither Sophie nor Taylor has confirmed whether or not she was in attendance (or even received an invite), so it’s unclear what happened here!September 2026Amid questions about where Sophie and Taylor stand, Tay drops four bonus tracks as part of The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, including “Patient Zero,” which is seemingly inspired by Sophie and Taylor’s shared ex Joe. Iiiinteresting!!