Remember when a life-size cutout of Ben Affleck’s ex was found in a dumpster outside his home?
Keep watching as we dive into every crazy detail of 2021’s most high-profile Hollywood
splits.
When Zayn Malik, formerly of One Direction, and Gigi Hadid, formerly of the Victoria's
Secret Fashion Show, got together in November of 2015, nothing could have seemed more natural.
They were both young, chic, and ridiculously attractive. Sadly, after six years, one temporary
breakup, and the birth of a child, Malik and Hadid called it quits for good near the close
of 2021, sources confirmed to People.
Hadid and Malik's breakup was one of the more troubling splits this year, coming after Hadid's
mother, Yolanda Hadid, reportedly considered filing a police report against Malik after
he allegedly struck her during an argument. Malik "adamantly [denied]" the claim in a
statement to TMZ, and in a statement posted to Twitter, the singer wrote,
"This was and still should be a private matter."
Shortly after his 60-day stay in rehab, sources confirmed to Page Six that comedian John Mulaney
was filing for divorce from his wife, Anna Marie Tendler. Soon after the divorce was
confirmed, news broke that Mulaney was dating Olivia Munn, who was also pregnant with his
child, per Us Weekly.
"She got to date me right out of recovery, which is what they call a reverse catch."
Then, just a few months later, rumors began to swirl that Mulaney and Munn had also broken
up. As of this video, a breakup has not been officially confirmed, though unnamed "friends"
of the couple told Us Weekly they don't see the two together long term.
But while Mulaney is still on his wild romantic ride, Tendler appears to be doing just fine
on her own.
We should have known that 2021 was going to be a rough year for celebrity breakups if
it began with the all-mighty Kimye. Of course we remember how the Kim Kardashian and Kanye
West romance began, as we watched it unfold on "Keeping Up With the Kardashians." But
after seven years of marriage, Page Six confirmed in January of 2021 that it was over. An unnamed
source told the outlet,
"They are keeping it low-key but they are done."
The split came on the heels of some very public mental health issues for West, whose erratic
tweeting and interviews had drawn concern from the public. He had even tweeted at one
point,
"I been trying to get divorced since Kim met with Meek at the [Waldorf] for 'prison reform.'"
Now, Kardashian has been drawing all the headlines for another relationship — with "SNL's"
Pete Davidson, per Us Weekly. We know, we haven't gotten used to the idea either.
We admit we were a little surprised when musician Grimes and spaceman Elon Musk first got together.
But after seeing their relationship unfold over three years, we grew to believe in their
unique brand of coupled-up weirdness.
Tragically, Page Six reported in September 2021 that Grimes and Musk had broken up. Sort
of. Musk told the outlet,
"We are semi-separated but still love each other, see each other frequently and are on
great terms."
In fact, the singer hadn't even moved out of the house. Musk added,
"It's mostly that my work at SpaceX and Tesla requires me to be primarily in Texas or traveling
overseas and her work is primarily in LA. She's staying with me now and Baby X is in
the adjacent room."
We always knew that La La and Carmelo Anthony had their ups and downs over the course of
their 16 years together, but that didn't make it any less of a downer when we read the news
that they had divorced for real in June of 2021. A source told Us Weekly,
"They have been separated for a while now and will remain friends. They both want to
make sure that the divorce goes as smoothly as possible for their son."
This split hits hard for a lot of reasons, and one of them is that fans — millennials
specifically — watched their relationship from the beginning, including their televised
wedding in 2010.
The billionaire couple announced in May that they would be getting a divorce, releasing
a joint statement on their individual Twitter accounts that read,
"After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the
decision to end our marriage. We continue to share a belief in that mission and will
continue our work together at the foundation."
The couple had been married for 27 years, according to CNN, and first met in 1987 when
Melinda joined Bill's company.
The divorce uncovered several previously unknown details about the couple. For one thing, per
The New York Times, it turns out the couple was possibly even more ridiculously wealthy
than we thought, but definitely more secretive about where, exactly, their assets were stowed.
Considering all the issues Jana Kramer and Mike Caussin had from the very beginning,
the fact that they're getting a divorce is probably best for everyone involved. As Us
Weekly reports, Kramer and Mike first got together in 2015, split up briefly after Caussin
cheated, then got back together and got married. But just a few years later, Us Weekly reported
that Caussin had had multiple affairs and was getting treatment for sex addiction.
As you might have guessed, that didn't seem to take, and Kramer filed for divorce in 2021
after almost six years of marriage. Writing to her fans on Instagram, the singer explained,
"I've fought y'all. I've loved hard. I've forgiven. I've put the work in. I've given
everything I have, and now I have nothing else to give [...] I just can't fight any
longer. It's time to heal. Thank you for all the love, heart, and support.”
Much as we might have loved the poetic symmetry of their nicknames, we have to stand by our
girl Jennifer Lopez in her decision to end her engagement to Alex Rodriguez. In their
official joint statement, the couple announced,
"We have realized we are better as friends and look forward to remaining so. We will
continue to work together and support each other on our shared businesses and projects."
"Like, whatever's happened to me over the last year, I'm so grateful for it. I mean
I had five years of an incredible life and partnership."
People later reported that multiple sources confirmed that it was Lopez who initiated
the breakup, and a lot of it had to do with trust. An unnamed friend said,
"She insisted on it. There are too many issues that are unresolved."
Another claimed, "Whether or not he has cheated doesn't matter.
She won't tolerate the fear of it in the air between them."
Breaking up may be hard to do, but Lopez at least seems to have come out on top, reuniting
with her ex-fiancé Ben Affleck and igniting a thousand celebrity blogs.
We're definitely not taking joy in Ben Affleck's pain when he and actor Ana de Armas ended
their one-year-ish relationship. However, we are human and as such we simply could not
help laughing just a teensy little bit when an Ana de Armas stan Instagram account caught
someone throwing a life-sized Ana de Armas cardboard cut-out in a dumpster outside Ben
Affleck's home.
When it comes to why the couple broke up, we do have a little more information. Affleck
and de Armas first met in early 2020 while filming "Deep Water," according to People,
and broke up in January of 2021 because of boring old, stages-in-life reasons. A source
told People,
"She broke it off. Their relationship was complicated. Ana doesn't want to be Los Angeles
based and Ben obviously has to since his kids live in Los Angeles."
The unnamed insider said they were simply at different points in their lives.
It appears that Kody Brown of "Sister Wives" is down by one wife, as Christine Brown announced
in November she was leaving the marriage. She explained on Instagram,
"After more than 25 years together, Kody and I have grown apart and I have made the difficult
decision to leave. We will continue to be a strong presence in each other's lives as
we parent our beautiful children and support our wonderful family."
Though trouble in paradise had already been teased on the show, most of us assumed first
wife Meri would be the first to officially leave, so it was shocking. According to an
unnamed source speaking to Us Weekly, Christine's decision to leave inspired the others to "reevaluate"
their own relationships with Kody. Could this mean that Kody might find himself single in
a few years?
Does this one come as a surprise? When Scott Disick and Amelia Hamlin started dating, he
was 37-years-old and still not over Kourtney Kardashian, while Hamlin was 19-years-old
and still at the beginning of her modeling career. Her mom, "Real Housewives of Beverly
Hills" star Lisa Rinna, was obviously not a fan of the relationship, saying on the show
that she believed it was just a, quote, "phase." In another episode, she even joked,
"Like, why can't it be Harry Styles? Why the f--- is it Scott Disick?"
Luckily for Rinna, the relationship was not meant to be. The couple broke up after Kardashian's
other ex, Younes Bendjima, leaked some DMs sent by Disick, trashing Kourt, per BuzzFeed.
"In my head, like, seeing you around any guy bothers me."
Though they technically broke up over the summer of 2020, Elliot Page didn't file for
divorce from his wife Emma Portner until late January. In the joint statement, the former
couple wrote,
"After much thought and careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to divorce
following our separation last summer."
Page and Portner may no longer be "in love," but that doesn't mean there isn't still love
between them, which there clearly is. After Page came out as transgender, Portner wrote
in a now-deleted Instagram post,
"Trans, queer and non-binary people are a gift to this world. I also ask for patience
& privacy but that you join me in the fervent support of trans life every single day. Elliot's
existence is a gift in and of itself. Shine on sweet E. Love you so much"
That one was a real tear-jerker.
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