The Real Reason Jeremy Allen White & Addison Timlin Divorced—There Were ‘Trust Issues’

Just four months prior, he’d professed his love for her on stage after being awarded a Golden Globe for his role in The Bear, so the reason why Jeremy Allen White and Addison Timlin divorced was under intense speculation. After all, they seemed so happy not that long ago.

Related: Jeremy Allen White is Rumored to Be Dating His The Bear Co-sStar

The couple first when they were teenagers on the set of the 2008 film Afterschool and she hinted they were dating in 2013. They were married in 2019 and have since welcomed two daughters, whom he called his “best friends” per an interview with InStyle published in August 2022. “When I found out that my wife and I were pregnant … She called me because she wanted to just tell me right away. We had just moved into our house in Los Angeles, and I was sitting in the backyard to have a little rest,” he told the magazine, describing how he got a tattoo dedicated to his firstborn.

He continued: “And there was this really old tree sitting in the corner, with a hummingbird nest in it. The tree was dead, but the nest looked like it had been there for a long time. As my wife was telling me we were pregnant, my eyes were just on this hummingbird darting around the whole time. So, I got a little hummingbird for Ezer, our oldest daughter.” Their children will no doubt make a legal separation all the more complicated. Here’s what we know.

Why did Jeremy Allen White and Addison Timlin divorce?

We don’t know for sure, as when TMZ reported the divorce, they had no other information other than court documents to say she’d initiated the split on May 11, 2023. In those documents, Timlin, who asked for spousal support, listed her and Allen’s date of separation as September 1, 2022. In an interview with British GQ, he reflected on 2023: “It’s been insane,” White said. “A lot of high highs, a lot of terribly low lows.”

According to a source quoted by ET, she and White “were having trust issues during their relationship that ultimately led to their divorce.” The source added: “They were attempting to work things out, but things became increasingly difficult for them, and they decided to split.”

On the tabloids’ new fascination with his private life, he said of paparazzi: “They know where I live. There was a period where they were just chilling and when I would pull out [of the driveway], they would follow, and when I got home they were there,” he observed. “It’s such a weird aspect of this thing that I truly never thought I would ever deal with whatsoever. It’s not fun, and it’s not nice, and it’s really weird.”

They appear to be on good terms though. Page Six spotted the former couple in an affectionate embrace at their daughter’s soccer game. “It is unclear if White and Timlin have rekindled their romance or if the sweet embraces were merely platonic. The actor’s rep did not return Page Six’s request for comment,” the tabloid reported in July.

“They love their children and all spend time together. When she filed for divorce, she was upset. Things have settled a bit,” a source told People. The insider added that The Bear actor’s filming schedule makes things “difficult” for Timlin. “When Jeremy works, she feels emotionally drained. There is still a lot of love between them though.”

Timlin’s Instagram post celebrating Mother’s Day on May 14, 2023, took everyone by surprise when she revealed they’d actually been separated for longer, thanking “everyone that has helped me in these last 9 months.”

Online sleuths, according to DeuxMoi, suspected it could be a cheating scandal, but it’s important to remember that DeuxMoi herself—whoever she may be, her identity remains anonymous, but we do know she’s from New York City—has never claimed the rumors circulated by her account are accurate nor verified. “I’ve always stayed true to what I said from day one, which is that this information is not proven to be based in fact,” she told the New York Times in 2020. “I don’t do any additional research. I’m not a reporter.”

Per one tipster: “Brooklyn’s hottest dad who’s [sic] divorce just went public cheated on his wife with a PA [personal assistant] from his big show that has a second season coming out.” While another wrote submitted: “Anon please but I’ve been sitting on some wild tea for a few weeks and am inspired to share after seeing a certain TV actor still wearing his wedding ring on tonight’s award show. Said actor’s wife is currently cheating on him with an actor/writer/director whom she met through the female co-star of his latest film. not sure when it’s going to come to light, but I’ve heard both parties in the affair are planning on going public soon.”

According to a source quoted by Page Six in June 2023, cheating wasn’t involved with the split and cites his The Bear filming schedule as a reason for their marriage breakdown.

A single mom

On Mother’s Day, Timlin wrote: “Being a single mom is not how I pictured it. It is so f—ing hard. It is all out covered in s—t crying on the floor kick you in the shins screaming with no sound coming out hard. Its not the natural order of things. It can be exhausting but more than anything it can just be so lonely. when something magical happens and you have to tell yourself “don’t forget this” because theres no witness by your side. It’s so painful. But just like everything with motherhood the lows are demolished by the staggering heights. To live with young children is an eyes wide open, wondrous and joyful place to be, it’s to be surrounded by a daily expression of their authentic selves and I wonder if without their example I would have been able to do the same. My hope for all mothers is that the expansive, unconditional, without fear or judgement love we offer our children can be turned towards ourselves as much as possible. We need it. Knowing what is best for you is easy if you can get quiet enough- doing what is best for you can seem impossible- but it’s not. [sic]”

She continued: “Im feeling so peaceful today and so deeply in love with my children, being a mom is the only thing I’ve ever wanted and being theirs is just the luckiest most remarkable thing on the planet. Doing it alone has given me more strength and more empathy and more tears than anything else in my life ever has. So thank you to everyone that has helped me in these last 9 months, the moms who picked my kid up from school in an emergency, play dates that made weekends feel a little less like climbing a small mountain, crying in my car, urgent care centers, frozen 1 and 2, and my little man JJ, Kraft mac and cheese, dry shampoo, ice cream, lollipops, goldfish, pirates booty, pull ups, crocs, soap & water, neighbors, my friends, my family, and if you turned and said to me “I’ve got you” Oof. It feels good. Happy Mother’s Day ya’ll. [sic]”

Some fans questioned her use of “single mom” given that her children’s father was very much in the picture still. One comment said; “There is a difference between being a single mom and being a mom that is single,” so she changed the phrasing to read, “Co-parent is not how I pictured it.”

White was apparently taken aback by her posts, as a source told Page Six in an article published on June 22, 2023, that he was “blindsided” by the Mother’s Day post: “Addison changed her Instagram post because it wasn’t accurate, a lot of people were like ‘What are you talking about?” The source continued: “Jeremy had no control about where he was filming. He filmed The Bear in Chicago and any time he could, he came home. He is so involved in those girls’ lives, he adores his daughters.”

His Golden Globes speech

Just four months earlier, Allen White had gushed about his wife on stage at the Golden Globes: “Addison Timlin, I love you deep in my bones,” White said during his acceptance speech for Best TV Actor in a Musical or Comedy in January 2023. “Thank you for all you do. Thank you for everything you’ve done. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Afterward, Timlin made a lengthy tribute to her husband on Instagram, talking about his success and how they’ve grown together. “When we were 14 years old and I saw you perform for the first time in drama class, I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. When we’d run your lines for Shameless I’d be so tickled knowing before hand what everyone would get to witness the next day on set. When I watched the pilot for The Bear, I cried my fucking heart out,” she wrote. “I think somewhere I must’ve known how much life was about to change, but mostly I just knew that the world was about to discover what I’ve known all along. What a privilege it’s been to know first. I love this picture so much because you look 14 and 31 at the same time- watching you win on Tuesday was one of the most overwhelming dimension hopping moments of my whole life, watching you win last night while holding our two babies was pretty out of this world too. Daddy winned another trophy winners cup. We’re so proud.”