Actor Christine Taylor has opened up about her and Ben Stiller's decision to separate in 2017, and why they chose to reconcile during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During an appearance on "The Drew Barrymore" show Tuesday, Taylor admitted that she and Stiller "knew each other six months, got engaged, were married within a year," then had daughter Ella, now 20, the following year.
"Family was always a priority, but I think Ben and I both started to grow in different directions," Taylor said. "And when we made the decision to separate, it was not something we wanted to talk publicly about or took lightly."
Taylor admitted that when she and Stiller separated they were "at this impasse of, Let's figure this out — what's best at this chapter in our lives? That's going back three or four years. And that time apart, we got to know who we are."
"I think we have these growth spurts, even as adults. And we needed time to figure that out," Taylor said.
The couple announced their split in May 2017.
"With tremendous love and respect for each other, and the 18 years we spent together as a couple, we have made the decision to separate," they said in a statement to People. "Our priority will continue to be raising our children as devoted parents and the closest of friends. We kindly ask that the media respect our privacy at this time."
Nearly five years later, in an interview with Esquire, Stiller confirmed that they were back together.
"We were separated and got back together and we're happy about that," he told Esquire in February 2022. "It's been really wonderful for all of us. Unexpected, and one of the things that came out of the pandemic."
"We always stayed a family unit," Taylor told Barrymore on Tuesday's episode of her show. "So when the pandemic hit and we all had to figure out where to hunker down, we all ended up in our house together with two teenagers, and we found this way back.
"We had so much time to talk, there were no other distractions … it just happened organically."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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