2023 has claimed yet another celebrity relationship, with Jodie Turner-Smith filing for divorce from Joshua Jackson after four years of marriage.
In documents obtained by Page Six, the Sex Education actress cited “irreconcilable differences” as cause for the split.
The documents also requested joint custody of the couple’s daughter, Juno Rose Diana Jackson, 3, and withdrew the option for spousal support in place of their prenuptial agreement.
While neither Jackson nor Turner-Smith have commented on the divorce, an inside source has claimed that Jackson is “heartbroken” by the filing.
“Joshua is heartbroken over the impending divorce, he always thought that he would be married and grow old with his family, and everything would be happily ever after,’ the source told Daily Mail.
“He had the dream scenario in his mind, and Jodie was his person and the person he thought he would be with forever.
“He never wanted this for their daughter,” the source added.
“They both are great parents and will continue to be, he just hates that they won’t be together as a couple for their daughter anymore. They will always be connected through her.”
“He would have loved nothing more than to still be with Jodie and in a perfect world would probably even take her back if she were to stop the divorce, but now that they have got to this place, he is going to have to accept it
“Nothing horrible happened between the two like infidelity, the relationship just went its course, and it is just a sad time. Joshua isn’t thrilled about it, but as we all know, life doesn’t always work out the way you’d like it to work out.”
Documents indicate that their separation took place on 13 September, 2023, with eagle-eyed fans being been quick to note that, on this day, Turner-Smith shared a series of snaps to Instagram of her birthday party, however none of the images included Jackson.
She captioned the post: “As I embark on another new year, I can’t help but meditate on love and its many manifestations. Love is not some lofty unattainable thing. Love is a gesture, a look, an intention. Love is community. Love is showing up.”
According to Entertainment Tonight, Jackson was in attendance at the birthday party, however the duo arrived and left separately.
Turner-Smith and Dawson’s Creek star Jackson met at Usher’s 40th birthday party in 2018, and were engaged less than a year later.
According to Jackson the duo bucked tradition, with Turner-Smith actually proposing to him.
Appearing on The Tonight Show, the actor said, “We were in Nicaragua. It was very beautiful, incredibly romantic. We were walking down the beach, and she asked me to marry her.”
“This is the best choice I’ve ever made,” he added at the time.
News of their marriage leaked in 2019 after the pair were spotted obtaining a marriage licence in LA.
Then, in 2020, a representative for the couple told Page Six that they had welcomed daughter Juno via home birth, telling the publication the newborn was “happy and healthy.”
Jackson and Turner-Smith have so-far raised Juno out of the spotlight, however in March 2023, Turner-Smith opened up about parenting to People.
“I feel that to be fulfilled is being my best self for my child. And I try to involve her in my life, not let work be this thing that exists outside of her, but that she also gets to be a part of. And so that she sees me being a working mother and being fulfilled and wanting to mother at the same time,” she said.
Two years earlier, Jackson also got candid about fathering his then-one-year-old, telling Mr Porter Magazine it had changed his life in “every possible way.”
“It’s 100 percent changed how I approach my work and my life. That has been made so clear to me in this past year. For me to feel good about what I’m doing day to day, my family has to be the central focus,” he explained.
“There are plenty of things left for me to do, but now the thing that gets me excited is experiencing the world through my daughter’s eyes,” he added. “I can’t wait to take her scuba diving. I can’t wait to take her skiing. I can’t wait to read a great book with her.”