The circle of life, nature's way of taking and giving back life to the earth, is surely nothing without a celebrity breakups. As much as we thrive on the excitement of a blossoming A-list romance, so do we, perhaps, live for the schadenfreude as they come to a sad end.
There have certainly been more of the latter in 2023. As we move just over halfway through the year, A-list relationships are dropping like Gucci-clad flies. The most recent is the news that Ariana Grande and her husband Dalton Gomez have filed for divorce - leaving fans of true love in utter shock. The couple parted ways after two years of marriage earlier this year, according to reports. It has even been reported that the pair are 'surprised' that their split is only being talked about now, because they actually split in January. What have we been doing with the past seven months? Clearly, not paying close enough attention (and perhaps too distracted by the growing excitement for the Wicked Movie in which Ariana stars as Glinda The Good Witch). And the celebrity breakups don't end there: Ariana and Dalton were merely two more names in a long list of relationships which have ended in 2023.
Why did Ariana Grande and Dalton Gomez split up?
According to the Daily Mail, changes in their relationship after the pandemic led to the breakdown of the couple. They were said to have been 'everything' for one another during the pandemic lockdown, but once the COVID restrictions were lifted, their fundamental differences started to become more apparent. A source added, 'Gomez was said to be taken aback by Grande's celebrity, having never dealt with her schedule and paparazzi while in lockdown.' Their marriage supposedly began to unravel even more when the pop star headed to the UK to begin filming Wicked.
Just 24 hours after this news broke, we were hit by another divorce bombshell: Sofía Vergara and her husband Joe Manganiello announced that they have also parted ways. The pair, who were together for eight years, made a joint statement, revealing, 'We have made the difficult decision to divorce.As two people that love and care for one another very much, we politely ask for respect for our privacy at this time as we navigate this new phase of our lives.'
The split announcement comes just days after Manganiello's birthday tribute to Vergara came under major scrutiny from fans who labeled it as 'cold' leading many fans to wonder about their relationship status. He simply wrote,'¡¡¡Feliz Cumpleaños Sofía!!!' alongside an image of her. Once again, the TikTok sleuthers have proven their detective work chops.
Why did Sofía Vergara and Joe Mangeniello break up?
Whilst the couple haven't expanded on their decision, according to gossip site Page Six, they simply grew apart. The source said, 'Sofía and Joe have been growing apart for a while now and are taking some distance from each other to contemplate their future.' The former couple met at the 2014 White House Correspondents’ Dinner and reconnected after Vergara’s Modern Family co-star Jesse Tyler Ferguson introduced them.
The rumbling of celebrity divorces don't stop there. Long term couple Rami Malek and Lucy Boynton have been reported to part ways (though neither has commented on the matter). Elle Fanning shared that she broke up with her boyfriend Max Minghella in an April 2023 interview with Harper's Bazaar. She told the publication said that she is 'recently single.' Reese Witherspoon and husband Jim Toth announced their divorce in March 2023. Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn parted ways the following month, after six years together. Kevin Costner and wife of 18 years, Christine Baumgartner, filed for divorce in May with Costner admitting publicly that he was blindsided by the filing. His rep told the tabloids, 'It is with great sadness that circumstances beyond his control have transpired which have resulted in Mr. Costner having to participate in a dissolution of marriage action.' Almost every element of separation has played out in the tabloids.
It's a fact that celebrities find it hard to go the distance. Statistics have revealed that divorce rates among celebs are considerably higher than that of the general population. According to a study out of UK-based organisation Marriage Foundation, celebrities have a divorce rate of around 40% within a ten-year period. The divorce rate for the same ten-year period is approximately 20% in the UK and 30% in the U.S. The Marriage Foundation studied 572 celebrity marriages since 2000 to come to the conclusion, 'Despite all the comforts and advantages of fame and wealth, these celebrities divorce at twice the rate of the UK population.'
Taylor Swift's recent, short-lived, relationship with Matty Healy, while not a divorce, is a microscopic look at the rise and fall of a celebrity relationship. After initial excitement about their blossoming romance, their relationship was quickly criticised, and ultimatelytorn to shreds- they reportedly split because of it in June.
Why a celebrity partnership ends is as nuanced and personal as any other relationship. But we certainly hear a lot more - often from the stars themselves - about why things didn't work out. After her divorce from Kanye West, Kim Kardashian started dating comedian Pete Davidson, however, they split in August last year. A source told Entertainment Tonight at the time that their busy schedules contributed to the break-up. During a recent episode of The Kardashians Kim commented on their split. She said, 'It's obviously sad ... [Nine months] is a long time,' she continued, adding that she and the actor 'had talks and talks' and 'both of us communicated really well about it.' Kim later admitted that she felt 'a lot of guilt' after their split since Pete 'went through a lot because of my relationship [with Kanye].'
Celebrity break up announcement posts have become an art form in themselves (and you often find yourself reading between the lines as they gush about 'the journey' they've been on together). We blame Gwyneth and Chris's 'conscious uncoupling'.
Reese Witherspoon and Jim Toth said they were moving forward with 'deep love, kindness and mutual respect for everything we have created together'. Sofía and Joe said, ' As two people that love and care for one another very much, we politely ask for respect of our privacy at this time as we navigate this new phase of our lives.'
Celebrity relationships as we know them are falling apart in real time, and it almost feels like no one is safe. Is love really dead? We hope not.