Yahoo Lifestyle 15 Celebrity Couples Who Refused To Give Up On Their Partners, Despite Breaking Up, Separating, Or Divorcing First
1.SEPARATED: Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith have been separated for seven years. Earlier this month, in promotion for her memoir Worthy, Jada revealed that she and Will have been separated since 2016, living "completely separate lives."
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“Why [our marriage] fractured? That’s a lot of things," Jada said. "By the time we got to 2016, we were just exhausted with trying. I think we were both kind of just still stuck in our fantasy of what we thought the other person should be."
Today, they're currently working on their differences and have no desire to divorce.
Will and Jada have been married since 1997 and share two children together — Jaden, 25, and Willow, 22. Jada is also the stepmother to Will's oldest son, Trey, 30, who she playfully calls her "bonus son."
2.FILED FOR DIVORCE: Jillian Fink filed for divorce from Patrick Dempsey in 2015 after 15 years of marriage.
Patrick and Jillian wed in July 1999. The couple have three children together — Talula Fyfe, 21, and 16-year-old twin sons Sullivan Patrick and Darby Galen.
However, it only took a year for the two of them to reconcile. They officially called off their divorce in November 2016.
"Our marriage was not something I was prepared to let go of," Patrick told People. "I didn’t feel like we had done all the work. And we both wanted to do that work. That’s where it started.”
3.BROKE UP: Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck called off their wedding just days before they were supposed to walk down the aisle in September 2003.
Ben and Jennifer, or Bennifer as they were called, met in December 2001 on the set of their movie Gigli. The movie might've bombed at the box office, but their love soared...well, until January 2004, when they officially called it quits.
Fast-forward nearly two decades, a few marriages, several kids, and dozens of movies later, Bennifer 2.0 has officially arrived.
After being spotted together in April 2021, the two eventually became Instagram official in July 2021. Jen and Ben celebrated their Vegas wedding in July 2022, then married again in an intimate ceremony in August 2022.
4.FILED FOR DIVORCE: Cardi B filed for divorce from Offset in September 2020, citing "irreconcilable differences."
The rap duo married in September 2017 and welcomed their first child, daughter Kulture Kiari, in July 2018. But their marriage didn't come without its set of challenges. In 2019, Cardi B told Vogue that Offset cheated on her, but they were going to work through it...until September 2020, when Cardi ultimately filed for divorce.
Just two months after filing, Cardi called off the divorce. She admitted that she wanted to "teach him a lesson."
Offset and Cardi B are still going strong today. They share two children together — 5-year-old Kulture and 2-year-old Wave Set.
5.BROKE UP: Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel ended their relationship in March 2011, but a source claims there were "no hard feelings" and that it was "completely mutual."
Justin and Jessica were first spotted together in January 2007 on a group snowboarding trip in Park City, Utah, shortly after his breakup from Cameron Diaz. By May 2007, Justin was reportedly "in love."
In a July 2011 issue of Vanity Fair, Justin speaks effusively about his ex Jessica, and by August 2011, the two were spotted together in Toronto after seemingly reconciling.
Today, Justin and Jessica are still walking side-by-side. They tied the knot in October 2012 in southern Italy. They share two sons — 8-year-old Silas and 3-year-old Phineas. Since getting married, Justin and Jessica's relationship has made headlines quite a few times, including Justin's cheating allegation with his Palmer costar and ongoing revelations about his past relationship with Britney Spears.
6.BROKE UP: Ashanti and Nelly have always been coy about their relationship, as they both continued to push the narrative that they're just "good friends." But in 2015, they seemingly confirmed their split, despite breakup/infidelity rumors swirling around since 2013.
“I think sometimes when people have their own insecurities, it allows them to act out of character,” Ashanti told The Meredith Viera Show about their rumored breakup. “I’ve been betrayed. You just have to grow. You have to grow up. You have to accept responsibility for the things that you do. I’m not a big fan of people being cowards.”
Nelly and Ashanti were reportedly first romantically linked back in 2003 after meeting at a Grammy Awards press conference. But now, the two are back in each other's good graces!
In 2021, Nelly and Ashanti reunited for the first time during Ja Rule and Fat Joe's Verzuz battle. The music stars have been pictured together ever since, from walking red carpets together to singing romantic lyrics to each other online. Tired of being mysterious, Ashanti confirmed the two were back together after she showed up to the 2023 MTV VMAs in September rocking a clutch that featured the artists' first picture together.
7.BROKE UP: Dax Shepard ended things with Kristen Bell three months into their relationship in 2007, after Kristen had already fallen in love with him.
"We were dating for about three months," Bell told PopSugar. "He sat me down and said, 'I can't have this right now. I think you're wonderful, but I am still dating other people.' And then I, like, liquefied and fell to the ground, but I felt incredibly respected that he had the balls to tell me we weren't in the same place."
Dax had recently gotten out of a nine-year relationship and was also casually dating someone else at the time, so he wasn't sure if he was ready for anything serious. Well, that uncertainty didn't last long, because four days later he called Kristen back saying, "'I don't know what I was thinking. I was dating someone else but they're just not as interesting as you, and I don't know what I'm doing,' and he came back."
The two eventually got engaged in 2010 and waited to marry in October 2013, once same-sex marriage was legal in California. Dax and Kristen are the parents of two daughters — Lincoln, 10, and 8-year-old Delta.
8.BROKE UP: Adam Levine began dating Behati Prinsloo in May 2012, shortly after breaking up with her close friend and fellow Victoria's Secret model Anne Vyalitsyna a month before. Adam and Behati dated for a year but called it quits in May 2013.
But in July 2013, just two months later, Behati and Adam rekindled their relationship. They tied the knot in July 2014 in Mexico, with Jonah Hill as the officiant.
Their whirlwind romance didn't come without its challenges, though. After announcing they were expecting baby number three in September 2022, a string of women accused Adam of sending flirty/salacious messages to them, including model Sumner Stroh, who said she engaged in a yearlong affair with Adam.
Behati and Adam celebrated their ninth wedding anniversary this year and have three children together — 7-year-old Dusty Rose, 5-year-old Gio Grace, and a third child born in January 2023.
9.BROKE UP: Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade began dating in 2009 and took a break in early 2013 due to their busy work schedules (Gabrielle was filming back-to-back projects and Dwyane was in the NBA playoffs). During their brief split, Dwyane had a baby with another woman.
"It should go without saying that we were not in a good place at the time that child was conceived," Gabrielle said. "But we were doing much better when he finally told me about the pregnancy. To say I was devastated is to pick a word on a low shelf for convenience. There are people — strangers I will never meet — who have been upset that I have not previously talked about that trauma. I have not had words, and even after untold amounts of therapy, I am not sure I have them now."
Despite the unexpected birth, Gabrielle and Dwyane weren't willing to give up on each other just yet. They married in 2014 and welcomed their first child together, Kaavia James, in November 2018.
The couple is still going strong today and have collaborated on several business ventures together.
Dwyane also shares two children with his ex-wife Siovaughn Funches — 21-year-old Zaire and 16-year-old Zaya. He is also the legal guardian of his 21-year-old nephew, Dahveon Morris.
10.SEPARATED: Pink and Carey Hart wed in 2006 in Costa Rica, but in 2008 they decided to separate. Their split actually inspired a few of Pink's singles, like "So What" and "I Don't Believe You."
Pink and Carey met in 2001 at the Summer X Games in Philadelphia. They broke up in 2003 but reunited in 2004.
Their separation only lasted a year, because in 2009 they revealed they were working on their marriage. "We're rebuilding. Sometimes you have to take a couple of steps backwards to move forward."
This year marks 17 years of marriage for Pink and Carey. They share two children together — their daughter, Willow Sage, 12, and their 6-year-old son Jameson Moon.
11.BROKE UP: Prince William and Kate Middleton met while attending the University of Saint Andrews and officially began dating in 2003. They decided to call it quits in spring 2007.
“We were both very young,” William said. “We were both finding ourselves and such and being different characters and such.”
After a year apart, the two rekindled their relationship in March 2008. Fast-forward to April 2011, when they tied the knot in one of the most publicized ceremonies in the world, aka the Royal Wedding 2011, which generated more than 1 billion views.
William and Kate share three children together — Prince George, 10, 8-year-old Princess Charlotte, and 5-year-old Prince Louis.
12.BROKE UP: Nick Lachey and Vanessa Lachey began dating in 2006 after connecting multiples times on TRL and later starring in his music video "What's Left of Me." Three years later, in June 2009, they decided to take some time apart from each other.
Vanessa's rep told People, “They have amicably split but remain good friends who still greatly care for one another,” while a source noted they're “still friends” and “it was the right thing for both of them to do.”
But that time was brief, because by October 2009 they were back in each other's arms. They tied the knot in July 2011 and share three children together — Camden John, 11, their 8-year-old daughter Brooklyn Elisabeth, and their 6-year-old son Phoenix Robert. Nowadays, you can catch them hosting the popular Netflix dating series The Ultimatum.
Vanessa actually confessed to giving Nick an ultimatum: “We dated for five years. So I finally said, ‘What are we doing?’ I have now moved in with him, I renovated his entire bachelor pad; there was a bar in the pool. I’m like, ‘Whatever you want!’ Now I’m like, ‘Okay, well, I want to put kids in the pool.’”
13.BROKE UP: Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom were first spotted together being flirty at a 2016 Golden Globes afterparty in January. They became Instagram official in May 2016. But in February 2017, Katy called things off with Orlando.
“Katy pulled the plug," a source told E!. "It was a few events that happened over the past few months. They both still love each other very much, though, and getting back together could happen once they have some space. Katy has built a really strong connection with [Orlando's son] Flynn. It's sad but it will work out how it's supposed to.”
After being spotted together in August 2017, Katy revealed she and Orlando were officially dating again in May 2018. By February 2019, the two were engaged, and today, they're the proud parents of a 3-year-old girl named Daisy Dove.
Orlando's son Flynn, who he shares with his ex-wife, Victoria's Secret model Miranda Kerr, is now 12.
14.Rose Leslie and Kit Harington fell in love while filming Season 2 of Game of Thrones in 2011, but by August 2013, the former costars called it quits.
But they couldn't stay away from each other for too long, which is why they were seen in July 2014 getting cozy at LAX. By 2016, Rose and Kit confirmed they were officially an item again. The two walked down the aisle in June 2018 during a beautiful ceremony in Scotland.
Rose and Kit share two children together — a 2-year-old son and a 3-month-old daughter.
15.Kyle Kuzma shot his shot in Winnie Harlow's DMs in early 2020, and by April 2020, they were officially a duo. They reportedly took a quick break in 2021.
The couple quickly proved they were back on after being spotted at dinner and later celebrating Valentine's Day together.
You can check out their relationship test for more details on the couple.
