The Real Reason Channing Tatum And Jenna Dewan Split

One of Hollywood's most admired couples, Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan Tatum, dropped a bombshell on social media on April 2, 2018. "We have lovingly chosen to separate as a couple. We fell deeply in love so many years ago and have had a magical journey together. Absolutely nothing has changed about how much we love one another, but love is a beautiful adventure that is taking us on different paths for now," their joint statement read.

Fans immediately assumed the announcement was nothing more than a cruel, belated April Fool's joke, but sadly, they were wrong. And now we're all left to wonder where the heck things went wrong. It seems like only yesterday the couple was dancing their way into each other's hearts in the 2006 film Step Up. A 2009 wedding in Malibu, Calif. soon followed, and they welcomed their daughter, Everly, into the world in 2013. Things seemed to be going perfectly behind the scenes ... or so we thought.

We've uncovered some clues that things were less than peachy-keen between these two. Perhaps the writing was on the wall long before they made their heartbreaking announcement. From cheating allegations to her unconventional views on marriage, here are some of the real reasons why Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan Tatum split.

When Channing and Jenna met on the set of Step Up, they had both just gotten out of relationships, but she was ready to give commitment a try with her co-star. He, on the other hand, was a bit hesitant to get serious.

While chatting with talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, Jenna explained that she gave Channing the freedom to date other women until he figured out whether he wanted to be with her or not. After a few days of playing the field, the former stripper went out and enjoyed a "wild tequila night" before stumbling his way to her hotel room.

Wearing nothing but a sombrero, underwear, and a pair of Ugg boots, "He said he had the chance 'to be free' and he couldn't stop thinking about me," she recalled.

It was at that moment they went from co-stars to boyfriend and girlfriend. However, now that their troubled marriage has become tabloid fodder, maybe we have to blame the tequila for things going sour. If liquid courage wasn't involved on the night he agreed to be her bae, maybe there's a chance these two would've never become an item in the first place. So, in a roundabout way, we're totally blaming their failed marriage on the alcohol. 

During happier times, he was the lime to her tequila. You rarely saw these two hit up an industry event solo dolo, so you can only imagine how surprised everyone was when the World of Dance host attended the 2018 Vanity Fair Oscars after-party without her guy. 

Jenna still managed to turn heads while wearing a skimpy, fire engine red gown, but the press didn't even care enough to ask, "Who are you wearing?" They were more curious as to why her beefcake spouse had been seemingly been replaced for the night by her close pal, Canadian film actress Emmanuelle Chriqui.

The Witches of East End star attempted to downplay Channing's absence. "He is so happy to have a night off, yes," she told Entertainment Tonight when asked if he was at home with their daughter. Chiquiri chimed in with, "I took his place tonight."

Although we really wanted to believe Mr. Tatum was on daddy duty and far too busy to accompany his wifey to the event, this turned out to be one of the many signs that there were some major cracks in their union.

Jenna Dewan Tatum dropped some hints that all wasn't well in their household in various interviews, including a February 2018 piece published by Health magazine. When asked how she was able to keep her marriage solid, the actress and dancer answered, "When people say you guys have such a perfect life, I want to scream and tell them no one's perfect."

As hearts around the world crumbled at the mere thought of their marriage being anything but #realtionshipgoals, Jenna shoved yet another dagger deep into our chests. "We've always had the same values. But we're not perfect! Are you kidding? We fight like other couples, we disagree about things, we have days where we don't really like each other," she said. 

Come to find out, at the time the article was published, the couple may have already been living apart, but we'll get into that in a bit because BRB, going to go cry into a tub of Ben & Jerry's.

A source told In Touch Weekly in October 2017 that the couple was "working on baby No. 2." According to the insider, "Channing has been begging Jenna for years to give Everly a little brother, and Jenna is finally ready." The source also claimed Jenna had a "limit" to the number of children she wanted, while Channing had his heart set on having "a dozen kids."

Just a few months after that In Touch piece, Health magazine asked Jenna about their baby-making plans. "I haven't yet made my decision," she said, "and I'm leaving it to the universe to show me the way." She went on to say she was "thrilled with one child," while adding, "If the desire [for another child] comes around, it will happen, that's the way I look at it."

Let's recap: Channing was supposedly down to have a football team worth of little ones, while Jenna seemed content as a family of three. Perhaps it was their mismatched ideas on expanding their family that caused their marriage to crash and burn. 

How did we not see their separation announcement coming from a mile away? 

The real reason for their split may be uncovered within Jenna's Instagram feed. In the months prior to the couple's shocking separation announcement, she made a few cryptic posts that pointed towards their marriage being in shambles

In March 2018, she shared a quote that read: "Wine is strong, a king is stronger, women are even stronger. But the truth will conquer all." If that wasn't ominous enough, in February of that same year, the Supergirl star posted these words: "Give it time ... The weak in character always get tired of pretending. Their true colors will show."

Her posts really have us side-eyeing this portion of their splitsville announcement: "There are no secrets nor salacious events at the root of our decision — just two best-friends realizing it's time to take some space and help each other live the most joyous, fulfilled lives as possible." 

Hmm... Jenna's Instagram account seems to tell a different story, and it sounds like she's itching to spill the deets about the real cause of their marriage's demise. Go on, girl, we're all ears.

According to a source who spoke to Page Six, "the pressure of work" was another reason these two put the kibosh on their marriage. "Channing has been working non-stop, with four movies announced for 2018 alone. It is hard on a marriage to be apart so much, especially when you have a young child," the insider dished. "Plus Jenna is in pre-production for the movie, Berlin I Love You."

The source continued, "Both Channing and Jenna are devoted to their daughter and have worked hard to spend as much happy family time together, despite the problems in their relationship that the distance has seemed to magnify."

The couple appeared to be making their marriage a priority in mid-March 2018, when the actor posted an Insta photo alongside Jenna with both of their faces covered in colorful paint. "This is what it looks like when a little tyrant fairy artist holds you down and makes your face look better,'" he captioned the photo. Alas, it would take much more than a family face painting session to keep their marriage afloat. 

Since the beginning of time, movie sets have been the go-to spot for celebrities to hook up with each other. Channing and Jenna found out how filming on location can lead to fireworks when they met on the set of Step Up in 2006. 

Since they both are well aware of what could potentially go down behind the scenes, we can understand how jealousy about their respective careers could've played a major factor in their doomed marriage. At one point, there were even dirty rumors that Channing was being naughty with his Magic Mike XXL co-star Amber Heard in 2014. And, yes, this was during the time Heard was engaged to her then-fiancé, Johnny Depp.

A source told OK! Magazine that Channing and Heard were "noticeably flirty on set," and Jenna allegedly wasn't happy about the obvious bond he had with his on-screen love interest.

Did something inappropriate go on between those two? We may never know, but where there's smoke, there's fire...

In an interview with Harper's Bazaar,  Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke revealed, "I was at a Golden Globes after-party and Channing F*****g Tatum came up to me, and his stunning missus, Jenna. And they said, 'We call each other 'moon of my life' and 'my sun and stars' and all that.' And I was like, 'I cannot contain this. Please, can we all have something sexual together? You're both beautiful, even just a hug.'"

After hearing about Clarke's fantasy, Channing was reportedly ready to pounce. During an interview with the Howard Stern XM radio show (via Entertainment Tonight), the Magic Mike star was asked what he thought about Clarke's confession, and he answered rhetorically, "What guy in their right mind [wouldn't be into it]?"

But he took things a step further by rambling about his plans to incorporate Clarke's Game of Thrones character, Daenerys Targaryen, into the action. "I would put on some loincloths and some swords or whatever to make it happen. Look, I'll go find a dragon if you guys really want me to. Like, I'll figure it out," he said.

In the end, Jenna seemed to play it cool, but she pumped the brakes on a ménage à trois. "Jenna's a pro," Channing said. "She's just like, 'Oh yeah, let's do it!' And then it never happens."

If he was so quick to accept Clarke's offer, does it put more validity on the aforementioned cheating allegations involving Heard?

There was once a time when Jenna Dewan Tatum was a strong proponent of marriage, and that was evident when Channing played an evil trick to throw her off his tracks as he planned their 2008 proposal. 

"I told her, 'I don't believe in the institution of marriage and I don't think I ever want to get married.' She basically broke down crying," he recalled during an interview on The Breakfast Show with Nick Grimshaw (via E! News).

Those tears turned into tears of joy when they wed in 2009, but almost a decade after saying "I do," she expressed some real doubts about the sanctity of marriage, and unlike Channing's prank, her comments weren't said in jest. "I don't think there should be any expectation, any sort of 'You're bonded to me for the rest of your life,' thick and thin," she told Health magazine (via People). "I think that's an older generational thought."

While the rest of the world was still reeling over news of their separation, E! News was apparently digging through crates of old celebrity interviews to twist the knife a bit deeper into our wounds. The outlet uncovered a never-released September 2017 interview during a red carpet event for the premiere of Jenna's show, World of Dance. E! debuted that footage on the day the stars announced they were going their separate ways. Ugh, so petty spaghetti.

In the on-camera interview, Dewan — who appears solo once again — is asked to share her secret to having a successful marriage. "I think the secret is that I don't know the secret. Because if I knew the secret, maybe it would work," she says. 

Yes, Jenna really said this almost seven whole months before she and Channing announced they were done-zo!

Thumb your way through the countless photos posted to Channing Tatum's Instagram account and it's obvious he was madly in love with his wife. However, his posting habits did a pivot in the months leading up to their separation. 

He posted a solo shot of Jenna in December 2017 to celebrate her birthday, along with a caption that read: "This creature is one more year beautiful. The transformation she invoked this year has been something they only write about in books of fairytale and magic. Your strength and grace ever evolving. By doing so you make everything around you grow — everything. And i am so very grateful for your lessons." Okay, who's cutting onions in here? Please, pass us a tissue!

As heartfelt as the post was, it was one of the last mushy declarations he made in her honor. She followed suit by refraining from making any public posts about Channing. The last one was a picture of the couple celebrating Halloween together in 2017 with Jenna dressed as Sally and Channing channeling his inner Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas.

How could we have been so oblivious? Their marriage was falling apart at the seams right before our eyes, and unbeknownst to us, their Instagram accounts were spilling all the tea.

After news broke that the couple's marriage had imploded, a source confirmed to People magazine that Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan Tatum had been "separated for months" and he had already moved out of their Los Angeles home. 

"This has been a long time coming," the source alleged. "Like any marriage, they've had their ups and downs over the years but they really started to grow apart within the last year."

In their simultaneously posted separation announcements, the stars stressed that they were "still a family" and wouldn't let anything get in the way of them being "loving dedicated parents" to their daughter. Naturally, this makes us wonder if they tried to iron out the kinks in their union before Channing packed his bags, or were things so bad that they didn't even bother to try to repair the damage? 

Either way, we still ship these two despite their marriage being on the skids.

Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan Tatum began dating when they were both in their mid-20s, so it's no surprise that they've grown up and matured over time. However, maybe it was her personality doing a 180 that attributed to their marriage stalling out before they could hit the 10-year mark.

While speaking with Redbook magazine in April 2017, she was asked what the biggest challenge was in her relationship. "Communication. You change when you're together from 25 to 35," she said. "I think maybe in my early 20s, I might have tiptoed around issues or didn't want to make too many waves. Now it's like, 'This is how I'm feeling.'"

Did her newfound voice and her confidence to speak up in her marriage cause things to go south? Possibly.

All reasons aside, we, along with the rest of the world, are heartbroken that love is officially dead and the Tatums are no more. Despite our sadness that they couldn't make things work, we wish the best for their family.