Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid
Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid attend the Givenchy show as part of Paris Fashion Week on Oct. 2, 2016, in Paris, France. Dominique Charriau/WireImage

KEY POINTS

  • Gigi Hadid said she and ex-boyfriend Zayn Malik prioritize their daughter Khai's "happiness"
  • Hadid and Malik called it quits in 2020
  • Hadid also opened up about her current dating life, revealing that it was hard to have a "normal dating experience"

Gigi Hadid got candid about co-parenting her now-2-year-old daughter Khai with her ex-boyfriend Zayn Malik.

In an interview with the U.K.'s The Sunday Times, the 27-year-old model opened up about motherhood and how she and the 30-year-old British singer navigate co-parenting together after going their separate ways two years ago.

"She has already given me so much," Hadid said of their daughter Khai. "I always wanted to be a mom, but I was never obsessive about it or [thought that] I was put on this Earth to be a mom."

"I've always been quite organized, so having Khai at the time that I did was a blessing," she continued, adding that she was "glad to be a young mom."

Hadid explained that she and Malik keep "the importance of the child's happiness at the forefront" of their co-parenting relationship.

"You have a long life alongside this person," she said, adding that she often schedules her modeling jobs and other business-related trips "when Khai is with her dad. That she can be with both parents makes me very happy."

Hadid also noted that Khai has inherited "little bits" of the former One Direction member's British mannerisms.

"She's clearly a child who was grown in my stomach eating a lot of British food — breakfast, beans, curries. And she still eats like that. She even says some words with a little [English] accent, which I love," the model shared.

Hadid and Malik had an on-again, off-again relationship for five years before officially calling it quits in 2021. They welcomed Khai in September 2020.

It is unclear what caused the split. But it came a week after TMZ reported that the model's mother, Yolanda Hadid, claimed that the "Dusk Till Dawn" singer "struck" her during an allegedly violent argument at the family's home in Pennsylvania.

In a statement to TMZ at the time, Malik denied striking Yolanda. He later pleaded no contest to four counts of harassment stemming from the Sept. 29, 2021, incident. The plea meant that Malik refused to admit guilt but accepted the punishment.

"As you all know I am a private person and I very much want to create a safe and private space for my daughter to grow up in. A place where private family matters aren't thrown on the world stage for all to poke and pick apart," he wrote in a statement via Twitter at the time.

The singer further explained that he opted not to "contest claims arising from an argument I had with a family member of my partner's who entered our home while my partner was away" in an effort to protect his daughter Khai. Malik added that it was a "private matter" and that he hopes that everyone involved can heal from "the harsh words shared."

Following her breakup with Malik, Hadid was romantically linked to Leonardo DiCaprio after the pair were spotted at the same hotel in France while attending Paris Fashion Week in September last year.

They were also seen hanging out at Circoloco's massive Halloween party at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and going out on a dinner date in New York the following month.

Unnamed sources told People and Us Weekly that the 48-year-old "Titanic" star was pursuing Hadid and that they were getting to know each other.

But last month, an unnamed insider close to the model said that they were no longer seeing each other.

"She hasn't seen him for a while. She just decided that she was done with him," the source told People. "They are at very different places in life. She prioritizes being a mom. It was never that serious anyway. It kind of just fizzled."

During her interview with The Sunday Times, Hadid revealed details about her dating life, seemingly hinting at the rumors surrounding her and DiCaprio as she discussed the difficulty of having and growing a relationship in the public eye.

"I don't know how anyone expects anybody they see in the public eye to have any sort of normal dating experience if you tie people [to one another] so quickly," she said, adding, "It's a bummer. I just stopped reading it."

Zayn Malik, Gigi Hadid
Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid have no problem organizing their busy schedules. Pictured: Malik and Hadid attend the MET Gala on May 2, 2016 in New York City. Getty Images/Mike Coppola for People.com