Why Did Meryl Streep & Her Husband Split? The Reason They Separated After 45 Years
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After multiple reports confirmed that they’ve been separated for over six years, many are now wondering why Meryl Streep and Don Gummer split in the first place.
The Mamma Mia actress and her husband celebrated 45 years of marriage in September 2023. But just one a month later, a representative for Streep revealed to People that the pair had ended their romantic relationship several years prior. “Don Gummer and Meryl Streep have been separated for more than 6 years, and while they will always care for each other, they have chosen lives apart,” the rep shared in a statement at the time.
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Streep and Gummer, a sculptor from Louisville, Kentucky, met each other through the Only Murder in the Buildings star’s brother in 1978. The pair hit it off instantly, and were married within six months of meeting each other. Over the years, they welcomed four children together: son Henry and daughters Mamie, Grace, and Louisa. The duo have since become grandparents of five.
While Streep and Gummer hadn’t made any public appearances together since the 2018 Oscars, Streep was still spotted wearing her wedding ring one day before news broke of their separation, according to People. This makes news of their split all the more surprising for some, and has left many questioning why Meryl Streep and Don Gummer split after so many years together.
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For everything we know so far about what led to Meryl Streep and Don Gummer’s separation, keep on reading below.
Why did Meryl Streep and Don Gummer separate?
So, why did Meryl Streep and Don Gummer split? At the time of writing, it appears Streep and Gummer’s separation hasn’t been linked to any reports of infidelity or drama over the course of their marriage. However, that doesn’t mean there weren’t possible signs of trouble leading up to their split.
Streep and Gummer’s relationship began under difficult circumstances. When the couple met in 1978, Streep was actively grieving the death of her late boyfriend, John Cazale, who died from lung cancer earlier that year. The pair were together for two years, and Streep remained by his side as his condition worsened.
In a letter to her former drama teacher, Streep hinted at the emotional toll that Cazale’s deteriorating health had taken on her. “My beau is terribly ill and sometimes, as now, in the hospital,” Streep wrote, per The New York Post. “He has very wonderful care and I try not to stand around wringing my hands, but I am worried all the time and pretending to be cheery all the time, which is more exhausting mentally physically emotionally than any work I’ve ever done.”
After Cazale’s death, Streep’s brother came over to help her move out from the apartment she shared with him. He also brought along his friend, Don Gummer. In the midst of her grief, Streep and Gummer struck up a whirlwind romance. They were married within six months, leading some in her family to wonder if their relationship was a rebound for the Kramer vs. Kramer star.
Even Streep admitted that she was still processing her late boyfriend’s death as her new relationship continued to blossom. “The death is still very much with me,” she told People a year after Cazale’s death. “It has forced me to confront my own mortality, and once you do that, you look at things differently.”
While Streep and Gummer’s marriage went on to last for over four decades, it doesn’t mean everything was perfect. In the past, Streep has also opened up about the struggles of balancing her career with her family life. Speaking to Vogue in 2002, Streep revealed her secret to a long marriage: “Goodwill and willingness to bend — and to shut up every once in a while.”
She added at the time, “There’s no road map on how to raise a family; it’s always an enormous negotiation. But I have a holistic need to work and to have huge ties of love in my life. I can’t imagine eschewing one for the other.”
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