Is Mary-Kate Olsen rekindling her romance with former NHL star Sean Avery?
The 37-year-old fashion designer was spotted enjoying time with Avery, 44, in New York’s Hamptons over Memorial Day weekend, in photos posted by DeuxMoi. The duo stopped by the new The Row store in Amagansett (Olsen runs The Row, a luxury fashion line, with her twin sister Ashley) and later visited their friend Andy Cohen. Olsen wore a red tunic and a brown jacket for the outing. She also added a scarf and a hat and added a pair of sunglasses. Avery kept it casual in gray joggers, a black hoodie and a backwards baseball cap.
While their weekend in the Hamptons fueled romance rumors, an insider confirms to PEOPLE that Olsen and Avery are just friends. “Mary Kate and Sean have known each other for years,” a source tells PEOPLE. “They’ve been in the same social circles in NYC and share a lot of mutual friends.” The insider added, “They spend their summers in the Hamptons and hang out with the same crowd.”
Olsen and Avery were romantically involved in 2007, but never confirmed the relationship. However, the two remained friends, and the last time they were photographed together was in 2011 at an event in New York.
Sean Avery and Mary-Kate Olsen at the 2011 Style Wars event.
Jason Kempin/Getty
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Avery retired from the NHL in 2012 after playing left wing for teams such as the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers. The Canadian former athlete also has several acting credits — including an appearance as a forecaster in the 2023 Oscars biopic. Oppenheimer.
Olsen, who lives a very private life, filed for an emergency divorce in 2020 from her then-husband, French banker Olivier Sarkozy, whom she started dating in 2012 and married in 2015. They were divorced in 2021.
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In 2022, Avery’s then-wife Hilary Rhoda filed for divorce citing “irreconcilable differences,” according to TMZ. (The couple began dating in 2010 and married in October 2015; they welcomed son Nash in 2020.) In July 2023 Party tonight reported that Rhoda had a restraining order against Avery that was filed in October 2022 and extended until September 2023, which included allegations of emotional and physical abuse. A representative for Avery did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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