Entertainment

Ben Stiller Credits The Pandemic For Reunion With Christine Taylor 5 Years After Separation

by Lauren Gordon
Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 02: Ben Stiller (L) and Christine Taylor attend the "Manus x Machina: Fashion In An Age Of Technology" Costume Institute Gala at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for People.com) *** Local Caption *** Ben Stiller; Christine Taylor

Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor are an item again after separating 5 years ago

We can all agree that these past two years have sucked, hard. While there has been an innumerable amount of tragedy of various kinds since 2020, it’s also good to remember that the pandemic was a boon in some ways. For Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor, it gave them a second chance at a happy marriage.

In an interview with Esquire, Stiller shared that at the beginning of the pandemic, he and Taylor decided it would be best for him to “temporarily” move back in so they could both be there for their two children, Ella and Quinlin. Though the kids are college aged and teenaged (respectively), Stiller and Taylor didn’t want to sacrifice time with them during lockdown and came up with the agreement where they would live together in the interim.

“Then, over the course of time, it evolved,” he explains to Esquire. “We were separated and got back together and we’re happy about that. It’s been really wonderful for all of us. Unexpected, and one of the things that came out of the pandemic.”

Stiller originally popped the question to Taylor in 1999 as he was in rehearsals for Meet the Parents after the actors originally met on the set of Heat Vision and Jack earlier in the year. The pair married in May of 2000 in Kauai, Hawaii, after each of them broke off engagements to other people in order for them to be together.

In 2017, after 17 years of marriage, the couple released a joint statement together to People announcing their separation. In it they noted that their priority was their children and that they wanted their privacy respected. Now, 5 years later, the couple has found themselves back in love.

“I think we have a respect for the ways that we’re similar and the ways we’re different. And I think accepting that, you can really appreciate someone more because you’re not trying to get them to change for you,” Stiller added regarding how he and Taylor’s rekindling happened over two years. So next time that you’re reflecting on the dumpster fire world we live in, largely caused by the pandemic, just whisper to yourself: “Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor are in love again.”