The Idina Menzel–Taye Diggs split, and 5 other breakups that hurt us more than it hurt them
They may have moved forward, but we certainly haven't
Another beloved Hollywood couple bites the dust. Idina Menzel and Taye Diggs, who had the ultimate meet-cute on the Broadway set of RENT, are separating after 10 years of marriage.
As hard as it must be for the couple, it looks like their fans are taking it even worse. Callie Beusman at Jezebel was one of the distraught admirers, writing, "I know that it's not my place to scream protestations at the sky over the dissolution of the marriage of two strangers — but NOOOOOO."
Sometimes, we love a couple so bad it hurts. Here is a list of the five couples who broke our hearts when they broke up.
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Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt, 2005
This was a big one. It was bad enough that we had just lost Friends a few months earlier (on which Pitt adorably guest-starred). They were the ultimate Hollywood golden couple. If two people this attractive were no longer attracted to each other, what hope was there for us mere mortals? And then when we found out about Angelina. That burned, Brad. That burned hard.
Sure, Brad and Jennifer are each in relationships with other people now, but part of us still hopes they'll get back together. With "I'll Be There for You" playing in the background, of course.
Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey, 2005
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Perhaps this breakup wasn't quite as painful as the Aniston-Pitt divorce, but it killed our storybook fantasies — or at least what little faith we had left in reality TV romances. From the moment Simpson asked whether tuna was chicken or fish, there was a sense that the couple could be in trouble. But the ’90s pop prince and princess were so darn perfect-looking for each other that we couldn't help watching them, and they even did a somewhat passable job hosting Saturday Night Live.
And come on, they were certainly more likable than Carmen Electra and Dave Navarro on Till Death Do Us Part.
Al and Tipper Gore, 2010
Hear me out on this one. I know you were probably grossed out by "The Kiss" at the 2000 Democratic National Convention, but there was a lot of passion in that marriage. Al and Tipper seemed like one of the happiest political couples, which admittedly wasn't too hard since they were being compared to the Clintons. Still, the couple had a storybook romance, meeting after their high school senior prom and marrying in 1970. Even a Beltway cynic would be sad to see that marriage end after four decades.
Amy Poehler and Will Arnett, 2012
This one is a little too soon to discuss without whipping out a box of Kleenex. When I heard the news, I was on line for a show at the Upright Citizens Brigade, which Poehler co-founded, and a chain of weeping howls was heard all the way into the theater. There was something about this incredibly funny and warm couple that made us want to be their next-door neighbors and babysit their cutely named Archie and Abel for free. This was harder than the Aniston-Pitt split because Poehler and Arnett each seemed so freakin' genuine and really fun to be married to.
Caity Weaver at Gawker said it all: "Amy Poehler and Will Arnett are separating so go home and break up with your boyfriend because 'love' is a lie." Too true.
Rhea Perlman and Danny Devito, 2012
This funny couple separated just about a month after Poehler and Arnett. Stars of two of the biggest sitcoms of the 1980s, Taxi and Cheers, Devito and Perlman seemed perfect for each other (okay, part of that was also that they were both pretty short, but whatever works). Heck, they even made Matilda together! Surviving a movie set is usually the ultimate test of a Hollywood marriage. The couple had been together since 1970 and married in 1982, so a breakup three decades later shook their fans to the core.
Thankfully, though, this couple seems to be on the mend. Earlier this year, Perlman and Devito reunited. Here's to keeping fingers crossed that there's hope for them all!
Emily Shire is chief researcher for The Week magazine. She has written about pop culture, religion, and women and gender issues at publications including Slate, The Forward, and Jewcy.
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