Zooey Deschanel's Estranged Husband Jacob Pechenik Files for Divorce
Zooey Deschanel‘s estranged husband has filed for divorce.
On Friday, Oct. 18, Jacob Pechenik signed his divorce petition, which was filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County, according to court records obtained by PEOPLE.
Pechenik cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reasoning for his filing against Deschanel, 39. The date of separation is listed as Jan. 8, 2019.
The New Girl star and the producer had been married for almost four years and share two children together: daughter Elsie, 4, and son Charlie, 2.
According to the divorce filing, Pechenik has requested joint legal and physical custody of their kids.
Deschanel, 39, and Pechenik, 47, met on set of the Bill Murray comedy Rock the Kasbah. They confirmed their engagement in January 2015 and got married that summer, around the same time they welcomed their first child, Elsie, in July 2015.
In early September, the former couple announced their split, explaining in a joint statement that they are “better off as friends.”
“After much discussion and a long period of contemplation we have decided we are better off as friends, business partners and co-parents rather than life partners,” a rep for the couple told PEOPLE. “We remain committed to our business, our values and most of all our children. Thank you for respecting our privacy at this time.”
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Although the pair revealed the news of their split nearly two months ago, they had been separated several months prior to the announcement, a friend of the couple told PEOPLE.
“They are both very involved parents,” the source said. “They have been separated for several months. They are very private and are excellent parents and love their kids so much and want this to be smooth for them.”
The source added that both will “remain involved” in their company, The Farm Project.
“It’s all amicable, and they just want to be great parents for their kids,” the source said.
One week after the 500 Days of Summer star announced her split from Pechenik, a source confirmed to PEOPLE that Deschanel and Property Brothers star Jonathan Scott were dating after they were seen walking hand in hand in Silver Lake, California. (Another source previously told PEOPLE that Deschanel was drawn to Scott’s “great sense of humor” while appearing together on Car Pool Karaoke.)
Later that month, the two were spotted sharing several sweet smooches while seated front row during a taping of Dancing with the Stars.
Over the weekend, Deschanel and Scott made their relationship Instagram official after going on a double date with Scott’s twin brother, Drew Scott, and Drew’s wife, Linda Phan, to Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights.
Both Deschanel and Scott shared photos of the couples’ date night where they were surrounded by a group of haunted figures with terrifying masks and bloody chainsaws.
“Still processing how scared I was of these people dressed in spooky masks. @unistudios @horrornights#UniversalHHN,” the actress wrote on Instagram alongside the photo, in which her boyfriend holds her in his arms.
“So much fun last night. That high pitched scream totally wasn’t me! 😳 @UniStudios@HorrorNights #UniversalHHN,” Scott captioned the same photo. “Also happy to report….nobody got punched!”
