Jessica Simpson and her husband Eric Johnson separate after 10 years of marriage.
“Eric and I have been living apart through a painful situation in our marriage,” the “I Wanna Love You Forever” singer said in a statement to the Times on Tuesday.
Simpson and the former NFL tight end got engaged in 2010 after six months of dating and then tied the knot in Santa Barbara in 2014 after welcoming their first two children together. They have three children: Maxwell “Maxi” Drew, 12 years old; Ace Knute, 11; and Birdie Mae, 5.
“Our children come first and we focus on what is best for them. “We are grateful for all the love and support you have received and appreciate the privacy at this time while we work on this as a family,” the fashion designer said.
It is unclear whether there are plans to file for divorce and a representative for the singer declined to comment further. People first reported the split on Monday.
Both Simpson and Johnson were married once before. The “Irresistible” and “I Think I'm in Love With You” singer was previously married to singer Nick Lachey from 2002 to 2006. Johnson, who played for the San Francisco 49ers and the New Orleans Saints, was married to the teacher Keri D' Ángel from 2005 to 2010.
The split comes as breakup rumors ramped up in November after Simpson and Johnson were spotted without their wedding rings. Simpson also teased a “return” in November, confirming that he was back in a studio in Nashville.
“This return is personal, it is an apology to me for enduring everything I did not deserve,” the author of “Open Book” wrote on Instagram at the time.
Last week, Simpson was among thousands of Angelenos whose homes were evacuated during the historic wildfires that devastated Los Angeles County.
“We stayed as long as we could,” she wrote on Instagram Thursday, accompanying the post with a photo of her Hidden Hills home with smoke from the Kenneth fire billowing behind it. Simpson purchased the 11,000-square-foot home, which features six bedrooms and 10 bathrooms, from Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne for $11.5 million in 2013.
The Kenneth Fire, which burned just over 1,000 acres in the foothills north of Calabasas, was completely contained over the weekend. A 33-year-old man was arrested last week by LAPD officers after he was seen trying to start a fire in the same neighborhood.
