There is no denying that Elizabeth Taylor and Michael Todd may have been high-profile divorcees, but these days, a celebrity split almost seems like old news.
In 2018, we saw more high-profile celebrity marriages that ended in divorce than we have in a long time, and it seems that the stigma surrounding the subject has diminished. The 2018 edition of the A-List Summer Movie brought us a number of celebrity splits, including Rachel Weisz and Daniel Craig, Sarah Hyland and Aubrey Moore, and of course, the megawatt power couple of Taylor and Todd. If these celebrities can go through such troubled times and remain together, then perhaps it’s time to ask: Is the ‘haters’ backlash’ getting to us all? What is responsible for the changing dynamics of celebrity divorces?
The Rise Of The Modern-Day Couple
For decades, Hollywood’s A-List couples put on a good show for the paparazzi. The glamour and sparkle of Tinseltown were on full display as the celebrities we know and love went about their daily lives. It wasn’t until the early 2000s that we started to see a shift in the way that our favorite stars behaved and carried themselves. The traditional ‘Hollywood’ couples of old started to disappear, to be replaced by a more modern iteration: The celebrity couple. Where once we might have seen a glamorous Angelina Jolie walking her dog or a barefoot, Blake Shelton strutting his stuff, today we’re more likely to see a Kris Jenner wearing an ‘I Love My Kids’ T-shirt.
Why the change? Celebrities no longer see marriage and family as something to be concealed from the public. They’ve embraced being a ‘modern-day couple,’ flaunting their commitment to each other and their kids in their Instagram stories and tweetstorms.
This new couple vibe doesn’t just pertain to celebrities. In a 2018 interview with Marie Claire, designer and Queen of Bohemianism, Rebecca Minkoff attributed the backlash against traditional families to “this idea that kids don’t need parents anymore, or parents need to be separate from kids.” Over the past year, we’ve seen a surge in celebrity single parents, with more and more people choosing to parent on their own rather than go through a traditional marriage and family structure.
The End Of The Stigma
It’s no secret that the public has a difficult time believing that a celebrity would put their reputation on the line by acting responsibly and ethically. After all, a movie star’s reputation can be their most prized possession. The truth is, as long as a celebrity is making a good faith effort to be a responsible parent and provide for their children, we as a society should accept it. More and more celebrities are taking advantage of the technological advancements available to them and creating life as they see fit, whether that means cloning or using a surrogate mother to carry their child or creating a family dynasty through in vitro fertilization.
In an effort to combat the stigma that still surrounds celebrity divorces, we need to stop vilifying these wealthy individuals for choosing to live their lives how they see fit. It’s not their fault that we as a society don’t approve of selfishness, greed, and ambition. These are the pillars that support our celebrity culture. Let’s embrace their glory and let them be the change we want to see. After all, we would not want to live in a world where these qualities do not exist, now would we?