Top 20 Most Shocking Celebrity Breakups of 2023
2023 left us all broken up. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the high-profile breakups and divorces that no one saw coming or were a little wild even by Hollywood standards.
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00:00 "Supposedly he saw something on the ring camera or heard something that was the catalyst for the divorce."
00:06 Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the high profile breakups
00:12 and divorces that no one saw coming or were a little wild even by Hollywood standards.
00:18 "Diabolical, demented, disgusting, subhuman."
00:24 Number 20. Drake Bell and Janet Von Schmeling. For a very brief period, the actor, musician,
00:31 and celebrity diver added "missing person" to his resume. On April 13, 2023, the legally embattled
00:39 former Nickelodeon star Drake Bell was reported missing in the Daytona Beach area amid concerns
00:44 about his well-being. "Revealing he was last seen driving a 2022 gray BMW on Wednesday around 9 p.m.,
00:52 somewhere near the area of Mainland High School." He was found the same day. Bell and his wife,
00:58 Janet Von Schmeling, had announced their separation back in January.
01:02 She filed for divorce a week after the April incident.
01:05 "I'm already the villain today, didn't you see?"
01:08 "Yeah, yeah, you woke up and decided to be the villain today."
01:13 To a casual observer, it seemed like something out of a mystery series for a minute.
01:17 Let's just say it wasn't the typical industry breakup.
01:21 "There's red flags. There's a ton of red flags."
01:25 Number 19. Maren Morris and Ryan Hurd. The way their romance began reads like a showbiz fairy
01:32 tale. Maren Morris and Ryan Hurd were country singer-songwriters collaborating on a song for
01:37 Tim McGraw in 2014. "Just like having that connection was really, really like strong and
01:44 intimate and special and for it to become something else. I feel like every single step
01:50 we've taken has been so natural." Soon after, they fell in love and were married in 2018.
01:55 Morris gave birth to their son in 2020 and credited Hurd's support with helping her
02:00 through her postpartum depression. However, Morris filed for divorce in October 2023.
02:06 "I know it's a matter of time 'til you walk, 'til you walk back out of my life."
02:12 It seems like it took many fans by surprise. Morris and Hurd seemed like a match made in
02:18 musical heaven. Their hit song, "Chasing After You," gave fans a glimpse of their
02:23 love story in the field that brought them together. "Leave me standing here lonely,
02:28 feeling like a fool." Number 18. Lucas Gage and Chris Appleton.
02:34 "I have my eyes on you. Okay, well, I will talk to you later."
02:42 The White Lotus actor made plenty of headlines with his coming out narrative,
02:46 and subsequent whirlwind romance and marriage to hairstylist Chris Appleton.
02:52 They announced their relationship, got engaged, got married, and filed for divorce all in the
02:57 same year. Though they teased their relationship with an Instagram photo shoot in February,
03:02 and didn't confirm anything until Appleton's appearance on the Drew Barrymore show, as you do.
03:08 "That's Lucas. Um, it's in Mexico, looking a little hot."
03:11 "Looking like an ad for something that I just want to be a part of."
03:17 With a marriage officiated by Kim Kardashian and a live performance by Shania Twain,
03:22 who would have thought they'd be done within months? Appleton filed for divorce in November
03:27 after only six months of marriage. "Everything just got a bit more than what it was and how
03:31 we imagined it. Should we change it? I'm like, let's just do it."
03:34 Number 17. Avril Lavigne and Mod Sun. Although the Canadian pop-punk rocker was a staple of
03:40 the 2000s, she still finds herself in the limelight for her music and her personal life
03:45 from time to time. "Tell me, why'd it have to go like things so complicated?"
03:51 Avril Lavigne's relationship with Mod Sun wasn't just romantic. They recorded a song together,
03:57 and he co-produced her album "Love Sucks." "I still burn for you, burn for you."
04:03 Their 2022 engagement made headlines, but reports of their breakup in February 2023
04:09 got a bit awkward. Mod Sun's spokesperson expressed confusion over the development,
04:14 saying the engagement was still on as far as they knew. Their breakup got even more coverage when
04:19 Lavigne was spotted with rapper Tyga around the same time, a relationship that ended within a
04:25 few months. "Chill out, what you yellin' for? Lay back, it's all been done before."
04:32 Number 16. Billy Porter and Adam Smith. The Pose star has never shied away from being open and
04:38 honest about his life. When Billy Porter sits down for an interview, you usually get bold.
04:43 But his amicable separation from longtime partner and husband Adam Smith was announced with a brief,
04:50 straightforward message. "Well, it's not gonna last. As a matter of fact, it's already over."
04:55 Given what little we had seen of their relationship, Porter and Smith seemed like a
04:59 great match. Porter credited Smith with co-creating his iconic "geek chic" look for his Kinky Boots
05:05 era. "That's why people know who I am. I've been in the eyewear industry since 2004." The pair
05:11 created an eyewear brand together at one point. Porter insists that he'll always love his ex,
05:17 but is excited to start his next chapter. "Been through so many trials and tribulations,
05:24 but I thank you." Number 15. Reese Witherspoon and Jim Toth. "I don't even know what else to say,
05:33 but I'm sorry." This couple first met in 2010, and after less than a year of dating, they married.
05:40 Just shy of their 12th anniversary, they released a joint statement that they'd made the, quote,
05:46 "difficult decision to divorce." The statement continued, "We have enjoyed so many wonderful
05:51 years together and are moving forward with deep love, kindness, and mutual respect for everything
05:57 we have created together." There was no drama, just two people who'd reached the end of the road
06:02 and decided to take separate paths while doing what's best for their family. Witherspoon,
06:06 who's previously divorced, told Harper's Bazaar that she felt more in control of the narrative
06:12 this time, as she and Toth could share the news in a way that suited them. She also said that
06:17 using her voice helped her feel more connected to others in the same boat. "There's only one way to
06:22 be in life, you know? Kind and throw love at things and really try to understand everybody's
06:27 point of view." Number 14. Kiki Palmer and Darius Jackson. The beloved actress and host began
06:34 dating Darius Jackson in 2021, and the two had a child together in February 2023.
06:40 "Isn't he lovely, made from love?"
06:46 All seemed well until Jackson publicly shamed Palmer's outfit at an Usher concert in July,
06:52 arguing that she's a mother and shouldn't dress in such a manner. It created a firestorm,
06:57 the likes of which are actually pretty common on Twitter, but it was a very public sign that
07:02 all was not well. "I'm a mother, after all." A month later, the two broke up. Palmer would later
07:10 be granted full custody of their child and a temporary restraining order against Jackson,
07:16 amid allegations of abuse. "For now, Jackson does not have visitation with his son Palmer,
07:22 and Jackson are scheduled to be in court December 5th."
07:25 Number 13. Tina Knowles and Richard Lawson. Richard Lawson is a steady character actor in
07:31 film and television, having appeared in some of the biggest shows of the past 50 years.
07:37 Tina Knowles is an icon in her own right. "She's a businesswoman, a fashion designer,
07:42 and a mother to many, including some of the best in pop music today." She shepherded her daughter's
07:49 singing careers before launching her own brand. The businesswoman and fashion designer began
07:54 dating the poltergeist actor in 2013, though they had known each other for many years.
07:59 "I moved to a new city, got a new land, a new life, and it is possible."
08:04 They married in 2015, but announced their divorce eight years later in July 2023.
08:10 The story took a weird, if hilarious, turn when Lawson's not-safe-for-work Twitter likes
08:16 were uncovered. While it probably had little to do with the divorce, the timing was not ideal.
08:21 "We ate ice cream all night. They let me feel sorry for myself for a short period of time,
08:27 and then they were like, 'Mama, you a bad girl.'"
08:30 Number 12. Ricky Martin and Jawan Yosef. Mid-2023, the singer announced that he and his husband,
08:37 Jawan Yosef, had decided to go their separate ways after six years of marriage.
08:42 "And the silence falls between us, as the shadows steal the light."
08:49 Like many modern-day love stories, the couple's relationship began on social media in 2015,
08:55 and they went on to get married in 2018. While their split was a shock to many,
09:00 the couple had reportedly already decided to separate before the COVID-19 pandemic.
09:06 "We look into each other's eyes and smile and hug each other and we go through the ups and downs
09:13 and we cry together and we laugh together." Of course, this meant that the exes were able
09:18 to process this change in their family dynamic away from the public eye. They later released
09:23 a joint statement voicing their commitment to continue co-parenting their kids.
09:35 Number 11. Antony Porowski and Kevin Harrington.
09:39 The engagement between the queer eye star and an advertising executive made headlines in 2022.
09:45 Their many coupley posts and thirst traps took the internet by storm. However, as of November 2023,
10:00 Antony Porowski and Kevin Harrington had halted wedding plans and were announcing a parting of
10:05 ways. "Where's the white tux? Okay, where's the tux?" A representative for Porowski,
10:11 whose culinary creations on the Netflix reboot made him a household name,
10:15 said that the wedding planning actually made the pair realize their unsuitability.
10:20 Some say living together is a true test of a relationship, but maybe surviving the wedding
10:24 planning is the real deciding factor. "There was a lot of attention from the get-go and when you
10:31 get a lot of positive attention, it's bound to sort of like go down the way that waves sort of work."
10:36 Number 10. Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umansky. "Tonight's Beverly Hills premiere began with a
10:43 montage about headlines about Kyle's marriage. Right now I'm sending her an immediate request
10:48 for comment on everything going on in her life." Unlike many of the couples on this list, so far
10:53 at least, these two have had to withstand the gauntlet of a separation on reality TV.
10:58 They're far from the first couple to go through this, but their breakup is one of the saddest.
11:03 "And it's very hard to go through this, to be quite honest with you, with so much eyeballs and
11:08 so much speculation and everybody wondering." As featured on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,
11:14 Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umansky seemed to have a pretty solid relationship. They complimented
11:19 each other well, even when they caught strays from castmates and random psychics at dinner parties.
11:25 But when allegations of infidelity and relentless gossip that Kyle was in a relationship with singer
11:31 Morgan Wade after appearing in Wade's music video made a heartbreaking situation even messier.
11:37 "It originated from me, I'd say. Yes." "It did."
11:41 Number 9. Ariana Grande and Dalton Gomez. In May of 2021, Grande announced her marriage
11:48 with adorable Instagram photos. However, to paraphrase the singer,
11:52 "We thought she'd end up with Dalton, but he wasn't a match."
11:56 Rumors swirled that the relationship was over when Grande was spotted at Wimbledon without her
12:07 wedding ring. Some speculated that she had already begun romancing her Wicked co-star Ethan Slater,
12:13 while others claim the rumors are unfounded.
12:16 "There is a wealth of MTA security footage somewhere of you standing on a platform."
12:21 "I'm sure I'm not alone though. Actors do a lot of things on the subway."
12:24 When it comes to the reason for Grande's separation with Gomez,
12:28 some pointed to their vastly different lifestyles as the source of tension.
12:32 Grande is a global superstar, while Gomez lives a more low-key life as a real estate agent.
12:38 It's possible they simply realized they weren't compatible long-term. Whatever the reason,
12:43 after just two years of marriage, they filed for divorce.
12:46 Number 8. Kim Zolciak and Kroy Bierman. Reality couples come and go, but this Atlanta housewife
13:00 and the former NFL player's entire early love story played out before the cameras on Bravo.
13:06 "We have an amazing relationship." "We sure do. We click."
13:09 "I don't think that it's work. You know, a lot of people say that marriage is work.
13:12 Ours really isn't work, and it's really nice."
13:14 The only bumps their romance experienced seemed to come courtesy of Zolciak's
13:19 Real Housewives co-stars. However, in May 2023, the two announced their separation
13:25 after 11 years of marriage. "So they can't quite comprehend it,
13:28 probably more so than the average person, but, um, I mean, I don't think anybody truly understands it."
13:33 But the drama didn't stop there. With headline after headline, the couple made each other's
13:38 behavior public knowledge. Despite this war in the press and an incident that involved police
13:44 intervention, the couple announced the divorce was off in July. Then Bierman refiled in August.
13:50 The whiplash is real. "I sure hope y'all agree on this one, cuz."
13:54 Number 7. Meryl Streep and Don Gummer. "And then when we get back to New York, we need to contact,
14:01 um, Leslie. See what she can do to minimize the press on all this."
14:10 We see Hollywood romances come and go. Some burn brightly and flame out quickly.
14:16 This one was so established, it was hard to imagine it would ever end.
14:19 "She held up her hand to shake hands with him, and he went down and kissed her hand,
14:25 and there was a little tiny spark that became, I believe, the great love affair of the 20th century."
14:32 Meryl Streep and her husband of over 40 years,
14:35 sculptor Don Gummer, were a stalwart presence in Hollywood. They were such a low-key,
14:41 tabloid-avoidant couple that many of us didn't even notice the two were last publicly seen
14:45 together at the 2018 Academy Awards. However, the couple dropped a bombshell on us in October
14:52 when she revealed that she and Gummer had separated six years ago.
14:55 "Well, their relationship wasn't a very public relationship, so I sort of get why it just went..."
15:00 "Why they didn't feel like they needed to try to be..."
15:03 Number 6. Britney Spears and Sam Asghari.
15:06 Britney first met model and actor Sam Asghari on the Slumber Party music video set. The couple
15:18 went public in 2017, announced their engagement in 2021, and married in June 2022. But by summer
15:26 2023, it was all over. "Loneliness up ahead, emptiness behind."
15:36 Asghari was the first to publicly address the split, asking the public to be, quote,
15:41 "kind and thoughtful." Later, Britney also took to social media to acknowledge the news and ask
15:46 for privacy. There have been many rumors about when things turned sour, why, and who's at fault.
15:53 In addition, it's been said that the couple has barely spoken since their separation.
15:57 Number 5. Hugh Jackman and Debra Lee Jackman.
16:08 Say it isn't so. The shockwaves hit hard when this once-golden couple dropped the bombshell
16:14 of their separation in September 2023. "I really can't sit here and be with you. This is really
16:19 just too strange." They'd been together for 27 years, often appearing side-by-side at public
16:25 events and gushing over the love and strength of their relationship. Their journey began on the
16:30 set of the 1995 Australian TV miniseries Corelli, and from then on, they seemed inseparable.
16:37 "No, Conzer, Deb has completely changed who I am in many, many ways. Deb demands every day,
16:43 is, 'This was the best day.' And I say, 'Wasn't it yesterday?' 'Yes, it was good, but today was great.'"
16:50 But here's the twist. Reportedly beneath what the public saw, cracks had quietly emerged during the
16:56 pandemic, and deepened amidst the ongoing Hollywood writers' strike. In their statement,
17:02 Jackman and Furness asked for privacy and vowed to prioritize their family. Who could
17:08 have foreseen this chapter in their story? "It's the one time I was wrong." "The only time ever."
17:14 Number four, Sofia Vergara and Joe Manganiello. It's apparently thanks to Jesse Tyler Ferguson
17:21 that these two met. "And I said, 'Jesse, I want her number. Get me her number.' And Jesse did,
17:26 and I called her up and I said, 'Hey, let's go out.'"
17:30 It was a whirlwind romance, with the couple dating for a year and tying the knot in 2015.
17:36 Throughout their relationship, they seemed inseparable, often appearing on red carpets
17:40 together and gushing about each other in interviews. "Like, he's a great guy, super fun,
17:45 super normal. And we have, like, we click, like, it's super easy to hang out with him."
17:52 But alas, what we see in public isn't always the case behind closed doors.
17:56 After seven years of marriage, the couple released a joint statement announcing their divorce.
18:02 Reports cited, quote, "different attitudes" for their split, and said they eventually simply,
18:07 quote, "stopped wanting to be together." "Yeah, Joe, I don't think I've ever driven you anywhere."
18:14 Both parties have since been spotted without their wedding rings.
18:17 Number 3. Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner.
18:21 "There's his side, her side, and the truth. I don't know what the truth is here."
18:26 Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner's fairy tale romance ended, on the surface,
18:30 rather abruptly in September of 2023, following a four-year marriage. The couple, together since
18:37 2016, wed in a surprise Las Vegas ceremony in 2019, and have two daughters together.
18:44 Their Hollywood-shaking separation fueled rampant speculation, but ultimately, all we have are
18:49 rumors. "At the end of the day, we don't know what's going on between them or what's happening."
18:53 Turner's subsequent custody filings to have her children returned to England made their amicable
18:59 divorce appear to be just a little more complicated than it initially seemed. As of November,
19:05 they've reached a temporary joint custody agreement, but the split has left tons of
19:09 invested fans heartbroken. "Yeah, I hate you, but I don't know if I'd call that a fan encounter."
19:16 Number 2. Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn.
19:20 "Cold was the steel of my axe to grind for the boys who broke my heart."
19:24 Swift's love life and heartache have always been very public,
19:29 partly because it's inspired a fair share of her music. Still, she decided to keep her
19:33 relationship with British actor Joe Alwyn mostly away from the spotlight, making fans root for
19:39 this love story. However, news broke in April 2023 that the two had split up. Some speculated that it
19:46 had been over two weeks earlier when Swift replaced the hopeful "Invisible String" with
19:51 the gut-wrenching "The One" during her ERAs World Tour. "If my wishes came true, it would've been you."
20:00 Swift's brief relationship with the 1975 frontman Maddie Healy also drew headlines before she and
20:08 Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce began dating around September.
20:13 "Travis Kelce gained almost 900,000 new followers on Instagram this past week,
20:18 and according to Fanatics, there's been a 400% spike in Kelce jersey sales."
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20:38 Number 1. Ariana Madix and Tom Sandoval. Every gritty detail of this Vanderpump Rules cheating
20:47 scandal was broadcast, combed over, analyzed, commented on, and criticized. "Watching you
20:53 talk to Ariana about her intimacy issues with Tom, it seems, looking back on it,
21:01 diabolical." For several seasons, Ariana Madix and Tom Sandoval were the show's most talked about
21:08 couple. During filming for the show's 10th season, when Sandoval's affair with Madix's friend and
21:14 castmate Raquel Levis was revealed, the whole thing spilled out on camera. "We would be separated all
21:20 the time. You go your way, I go my way. We had no sex life. I lost all my mojo." Given just how much
21:28 lying, backstabbing, and drama was involved, it's hard to believe it was real. The ensuing scandal,
21:34 dubbed "Scandaval," and the backlash that followed had us all absolutely glued to our screens.
21:41 "Never seen anything like that before." "I've never seen anything like it. What was it like for
21:45 you looking back, watching those scenes?" "Oh God, it was so hard for me to watch."
21:50 Which of these celebrity breakups truly surprised you? Sound off in the comments.
21:56 "Party's over, is it?" Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from Ms.
22:01 Mojo, and be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.
22:06 -end-