Have you ever heard of the expression “manic pixie dream girl?” It was coined in 2005
by film critic Nathan Rabin to describe fictional female characters “who exist to teach soulful
young men to embrace life and its infinity adventures”. In other words, it’s a collective
image of a bubbly, cheerful and incredibly wise woman that already knows all the secrets
the main character is still trying to figure out. She helps her man without pursuing her
own happiness, and also her character is thought to never grow up.
We guess you won’t be surprised by the fact that the “New Girl” and “500 Days of
Summer” star Zooey Deschanel is labeled as such more often than others. Besides the
fact that the 40-year-old actress is probably drinking from the fountain of eternal youth,
she has a lot of reasons to be associated with someone carefree, quirky and adventurous.
These qualities are common for nearly all the characters the actress has ever portrayed,
but what about the real-life Zooey?
Well, she’s the mother of two who was... Spotted with a new boyfriend a week after
she split from her then-husband. We know, we know… No one expected such a twist. Why
did she suddenly split from her second husband… Or it wasn’t actually sudden? Did she leave
him for another man? Let’s find out the answers to these questions together.
Zooey Deschanel and her second husband Jacob Pechenik met on the set of the Bill Murray
comedy “Rock the Kasbah”. They confirmed their engagement in January 2015 and got married
that summer. Around the same time, they welcomed their first child, daughter Elsie, and two
years later – their son Charlie. By the way, did you know that Zooey named her daughter
after the animal?
Speaking to “People” in March 2019, Deschanel opened up about her life as a mom. She noted
that she has never shown her kids any of her work and that she and Pechenik “don’t
do the TV thing” with them. Instead, the family used to listen to songs, dress up in
the costumes and read books altogether. Zooey also posted an inspiring story in her Instagram
account at the time – the story about her and Pechenik’s common “Farm Project”,
which is all about homegrown food.
So, Zooey’s family life seemed joyful and peaceful. There were no signs of trouble…
But then, all of a sudden, the actress and her producer husband announced their split.
It happened at the beginning of September 2019 – only six months after the “People”
interview and the Instagram post about family business were published. The end of their
four-year-long marriage was marked by the official joint statement:
"After much discussion and a long period of contemplation we have decided we are better
off as friends, business partners, and co-parents rather than life partners. We remain committed
to our business, our values and most of all our children."
Rumours swirled that they had been done months before the split announcement, but let’s
stick to the facts.
Just one week after the announcement, Deschanel (still married at the time) was spotted strolling
around Los Angeles hand-in-hand with the Canadian reality television personality Jonathan Scott.
Zooey and Jonathan had met a month before, in August 2019, while shooting an episode
of James Corden's "Carpool Karaoke" alongside their famous siblings.
At the end of September Deschanel and Scott attended the live taping of “Dancing With
The Stars”. The two were sitting at neighboring tables in the ballroom audience, with Deschanel
giggling as she and Jonathan whispered back and forth. An eyewitness told “Us Weekly”
that they looked very comfortable together and looked sweet. Although there was no official
information about Zooey and Jonathan being an item, the 41-year-old Jonathan made a hint
while speaking to the “Us Weekly” that same day:
“I am seeing someone. I'm a very private person, so I don't typically talk about that.
It’s definitely special for me because I am the guy who raises the bar in what I’m
looking for in a partner. I was caught a little off guard. It was definitely a pleasant surprise.”
And still, no one could have been sure whether Scott and Deschanel were having a thing together,
until… Zooey’s then-husband Jacob Pechenik officially filed for divorce from the actress.
In his filing, he listed "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the split.
It was mid-October. At the end of the month, Deschanel posted the first common photo with
Scott from Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights. After that, there were no doubts
left that the two were kindling a relationship. Apparently, Scott traveled from his home in
Las Vegas to spend time with Zooey in Los Angeles. In November the actress posted a
photo where she planted a kiss on Scott’s cheek. Deschanel seemed clearly smitten with
her new boyfriend, and so did he...
Honestly, we don't know if Scott was the main reason for
Deschanel's divorce. Have another think about it: they met each other only one month before
Deschanel-Pechenik split announcement. And still, you never can tell. Maybe it indeed
was love at first sight – love that appeared to be so strong that Zooey completely forgot
about her four-year-long marriage, two kids and family business. Or maybe it was what
it was. Maybe Zooey and Jacob indeed broke up because of "irreconcilable differences".
Maybe they were really better as business partners and friends than spouses.
Anyway, despite all the further development of the two exes love stories, what really
matters for them now is to find a balance in co-parenting while being apart. We believe
they will still be there for their two children, and we sincerely hope that Jacob Pechenik
will also find his dream-partner very soon.