Update, March 8, 2024:
After 11 years of marriage, Natalie Portman and Benjamin Millepied are officially divorced.
In an article from People published on March 8, the outlet confirmed the news with a rep for the actress. Natalie filed for divorce in July 2023, after unconfirmed rumors of her husband engaging in an extramarital affair. The divorce filing took place in Benjamin's native country of France, with the proceedings for the former couple (who share son Aleph and daughter Amalia) finalized in February 2024.
"It was initially really tough for her, but her friends rallied around her and helped get her through the worst of it," a friend of the couple told People. "Natalie is coming out of a really tough and painful year but she's come out the other side of it stronger and is finding joy in her family, friends and work."
The news of Natalie's marital status comes to light as her film May December is nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the 2024 Oscars. She is also busy working with her soccer team, Angel City and upcoming AppleTV+ limited series, Lady in the Lake.
Original, July 9, 2022:
It's been almost thirty years since Natalie Portman burst onto the Hollywood scene, and she's still cranking out blockbusters like Marvel's Thor: Love and Thunder. While she has spent the majority of her career working on major projects and being a philanthropist, Natalie has had a supportive person by her side: her husband of 10 years, Benjamin Millepied.
Like most Hollywood couples, the Star Wars actress and the French dancer's love story started out on a film set. The two first met in 2009, while on set for 2010's Black Swan. Natalie starred as prima ballerina Nina Sayers while Benjamin was hired to choreograph the iconic ballet sequences for the film. Though the two fell for each other, it took a little bit before Natalie felt secure in her newfound romance.
“I met my husband on [the set of Black Swan], so I think I was in, like, dreamland," Natalie told Today host Hoda Kotb about that moment in a 2018 SiriusXM interview. "He was teaching me how to dance ... It was definitely exciting and fun. It was beautiful, but I don’t know about instant [connection]. I really got to know him and then that is when it seemed, ‘Oh, right, this is the person.’”
After Black Swan premiered on December 3, 2010, Natalie and the former director of the Paris Opera Ballet had some big news to announce. On December 27, the couple revealed that they hadn't only gotten engaged, but she was also pregnant with their first child. The actress even publicly acknowledged her new fiancé for the first time in February 2011, during her Best Actress Oscar acceptance speech. "[To] my beautiful love, Benjamin Millepied, who choreographed the film and has now given me my most important role of my life,” Natalie said onstage.
In June 14, 2011, Natalie welcomed the couple's first child, a son named Aleph. The next year, in August 2012, the actress and dancer tied the knot in an intimate wedding ceremony in Big Sur, California. Fast forward, on February 22, 2017, the Jackie star gave birth to a daughter named Amalia, completing their family.
While Natalie and Benjamin primarily keep their personal lives out of the limelight, she has given little glimpses into what things are like at home. He's not only been her biggest supporter, but the dancer knows how to work with his wife on whatever role she decides to pursue.
"He knows how to make me look my best, work with my strengths and avoid the weaknesses, of which there are many," she told USA Today in 2018 about what she loves most about Benjamin. Similarly, the Closer actress is also her husband's no. 1 fan, as he told E! News the same year. "I think it’s wonderful to have my wife support my precious endeavor,” he told the outlet.
As they've continued to support each other's career strides through the past decade, Natalie and Benjamin have prioritized their kids as well. And it seems we can thank their children for Natalie's return to the big Marvel screen.
As she told Variety in July 2022, “I feel like it’s the phase of my career where I’m really trying to just impress my kids ... My 5-year-old and my 10-year-old were so enthralled by this process, getting to visit the set and see me dressed up in a cape. It made it really cool. You know, it’s very rare that my kids are like, ‘Please go to work!’ Usually, it’s quite the opposite.”
As the entertainment and news associate editor for Good Housekeeping, Adrianna (she/her) writes about everything TV, movies, music and pop culture. She graduated from Yeshiva University with a B.A. in journalism and a minor in business management. She covers shows like The Rookie, 9-1-1 and Grey's Anatomy, though when she’s not watching the latest show on Netflix, she’s taking martial arts or drinking way too much coffee.
