A year and a half before Brittany Cartwright filed for divorce, Jax Taylor revealed that he wasn’t considering a legal divorce as an option.
Valley star, 45, addressed the ups and downs of their marriage — which included overcoming infidelity scandals to co-parenting — in a March 2023 interview with PEOPLE.
“I don’t believe in divorce. My parents didn’t divorce,” Taylor said at the time. “I don’t believe that. Marriage is work. I’m not saying every day is amazing.”
From left: Jax Taylor and Brittany Cartwright.
Noam Galai/Bravo via Getty
Jax Taylor and Brittany Cartwright Relationship Timeline
“There are good days and bad days, but that’s marriage and that’s what makes your relationship stronger,” he continued. “We love hard. We fight hard. It’s amazing.”
Taylor said the two were “best friends” and that his wife was “the only one” who could “put up with him”. “We have a lot of fun with each other. I honestly can’t imagine my life with anyone else. Like I said, she’s ying mom yang, kind of,” he explained.
“I’m hard to be around, so it takes a certain person to deal with my shit,” he continued. “Even through all of this, and even though my life is so much better now, I’m still hard to deal with. I think she’s the only one who can really put up with me.”
Brittany Cartwright wonders what she was thinking staying with estranged husband Jax Taylor ‘this long’
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From left: Jax Taylor and Brittany Cartwright at the Los Angeles Special Screening of Lionsgate’s “Midnight in the Switchgrass” at Regal LA Live on July 19, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.
Kevin Winter/Getty
Almost a year later, Cartwright, 35, announced the couple’s decision to separate in February 2024.
“I know I alluded to in my last podcast that a lot of marriages go through hard times,” she said at the time. “Yes, marriages in general are very difficult, and I had a particularly difficult year last year. Jax and I took some time and I made the decision to move into another home to take some space for my mental health.”
Brittany Cartwright steps out without her wedding ring in LA amid Jax Taylor divorce
The mother and reality star — who shares a son with Taylor, 3-year-old son Cruz Michael Cauchi — said on the podcast that the breakup is “still very hard to talk about” and that she’s “taking it one day at a time.” She added, “I don’t know what the future holds, but right now I’m focused on being the best mom to Cruz.”
Nearly six months later, Cartwright filed for divorce from Taylor on Tuesday, Aug. 27, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE. In the submission, the date of separation is stated as January 24, and “irreconcilable differences” are cited as the reason for the divorce.
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Cartwright sought legal and physical custody of Cruz, but asked the court to grant Taylor visitation rights. Cartwright also asked the court to end spousal support for both parties.
The news of the divorce comes days after Taylor completed a 30-day stint in a mental health facility.
Earlier this month, a source told PEOPLE that Taylor would return to film the second season Valley — who also star colleagues VPR alum Kristen Doute as well as newcomers Luke Broderick, Jesse Lally, Danny Booko, Nia Booko, Michelle Lally, Jason Caperna and Janet Caperna — following the completion of his mental health treatment.
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Source: HIS Education