We Talked to Jenna Dewan Tatum About Her Marriage Shortly Before She Announced Her Breakup
April 2 will go down in pop culture history as the day we mourned the separation of Jenna Dewan and Channing Tatum. We watched them fall in love on the set of their first major movie together, Step Up, and admired every lovey-dovey Instagram since then. But in a joint statement, the couple said, “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.”
And while news just broke, the couple has reportedly been separated for months, according to People. “This has been a long time coming,” an insider said. “Like any marriage, they’ve had their ups and downs over the years, but they really started to grow apart last year.”
In an interview for our March cover story, Dewan Tatum got candid about her marriage and uncertainty about expanding their family of three. Here’s what she had to say:
On her “perfect” marriage
“When people say you guys have such a perfect life, I want to scream and tell them no one’s perfect. I think there are such things as great fits. It is a great fit as long as you are growing together, and I think up until this point we’ve really grown together. Even if one starts to grow, the other catches up and vice versa. But I think a couple needs to be conscious and to want to do the work and be willing to look at the parts of you that need work. Both of us have been pretty aware and willing to do that. 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.”
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On finding time for intimacy
“We have not yet scheduled sex, but we do schedule time together, so maybe that is sort of scheduling sex. We will go away for a weekend to get time, but we have no real regimented schedule. I have friends who do this [schedule sex]; it’s on the calendar. We’ve never done that—it might actually be a good idea.”
On physical connection
“I’m a very sensual person, same with Chan. It is just how we’re made up, and it’s a big part of how we connect. There’s a real tangible physical connection. You know when Oprah asks, ‘What do you know for sure?’ The body does not lie. You can convince your mind of things, think you’re in love, but your body doesn’t lie. If your stomach is clenching or you feel attracted, that’s all for a reason. You can’t convince your body to feel something it doesn’t.”
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On expanding their family
“I haven’t yet made my decision, and I’m leaving it to the universe to show me the way. I love the idea of another child, and it might be in the cards, but I’ll know when I know. A lot of women I know plan it, and that’s their decision, they want it within three years, but that was not a possibility for us. It felt too overwhelming. I’m so thrilled with one child. If the desire [for another child] comes around, it will happen, that’s the way I look at it.”
