Marion Cotillard and Guillaume Canet have called it quits after almost two decades together.
The Inception actress, 49, and French film director, 52, announced their separation via a joint statement made by their reps to the Agence France-Presse news agency on Friday, June 27.
“After 18 years together, Marion Cotillard and Guillaume Canet have decided to separate by mutual agreement,” the couple shared in a translated statement to the French outlet. “This decision was made with mutual goodwill.”
The statement explained that Cotillard and Canet, who share son Marcel, 13, and daughter Louise, 8, were making the public announcement “in order to avoid all speculation, rumors and risky interpretations.”
“By demonstrating transparency through this press release, Marion Cotillard and Guillaume Canet also express their desire that their private lives, especially those of their two children, be respected,” the statement continued.
Cotillard and Canet began dating in 2007 after being friends for more than a decade prior to things between them turning romantic. They starred together in the 2003 dramatic comedy Love Me If You Dare and 2009’s The Last Flight. (Prior to dating Cotillard, Canet was married to Diane Kruger from 2001 to 2006.)
Canet gushed over Cotillard in an interview with The Guardian in 2011, revealing he saw the actress as The One.
“One moment you’re moving in a particular direction with a person, then one day you wake up and say: ‘She’s the love of my life.’ I never saw it coming,” Canet told the outlet at the time. “For me, I need to be with someone who is searching, who is wide awake.”
In 2016, Cotillard was caught up in unfounded rumors of an affair with her Allied costar, Brad Pitt, when he split from then-wife Angelina Jolie.
Hitting back at the affair speculation, Cotillard spoke about how in love she was with Canet.
“I am not used to commenting on things like this nor taking them seriously but as this situation is spiraling and affecting people I love, I have to speak up. Firstly, many years ago, I met the man of my life, father of our son and of the baby we are expecting. He is my love, my best friend, the only one that I need,” she wrote via a lengthy Instagram post in September, 2016.
“Secondly, to those who have indicated that I am devastated, I am very well thank you. This crafted conversation isn’t distressing,” she continued. “And to all the media and the haters who are quick to pass judgment, I sincerely wish you a swift recovery. Finally, I do very much wish that Angelina and Brad, both whom I deeply respect, will find peace in this very tumultuous moment. With all my love, Marion.”
Canet had his wife’s back during the saga, writing his own Instagram statement at the time shooting down the rumors as well as crediting Cotillard with staying “strong and intelligent in the face of all these stupid and unfounded accusations.”
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