Amy Poehler and Will Arnett separate: Why we're so bummed

Brace yourselves, sitcom fans: We've got some pretty terrible news for you. Amy Poehler and Will Arnett still love you very much... but they've decided to separate after nine years of marriage.

News of the surprise split came as a real gut-punch to us here at Yahoo! TV. Sure, Hollywood marriages flame out all the time (hi, Kim K.!), but we innocently thought that Poehler and Arnett had a real shot at making it. After all, their union seemed like it was made in TV comedy heaven.

Sparks first flew between the pair when Poehler was casually dating a friend of Arnett's, before she joined the cast of "Saturday Night Live" and he landed his breakout role as slimy magician (sorry, "illusionist") Gob Bluth on "Arrested Development." Arnett later told People he "immediately had a talent crush" on Poehler: "The first time I saw her on stage, I said, 'I'm gonna marry that girl.'" And Poehler once said of her marriage to Arnett, "He makes me feel very safe. You can have a lot of adventures when you have someone at your side." (Awww!)

The couple married in 2003 and frequently co-starred together in film and TV projects, most memorably as the incestuous brother-sister skating duo in the Will Ferrell comedy "Blades of Glory." And they're both starring on Thursday night NBC comedies this fall: Poehler on the still-underrated "Parks and Recreation" (entering Season 5), and Arnett alongside Christina Applegate on the sophomore sitcom "Up All Night."


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No word on why they're separating has leaked out yet; a source tells Us Weekly the split is "very amicable," and they do have two young sons -- 3-year-old Archie and 2-year-old Abel -- to think of, so we're not expecting a bitter tabloid battle. But we're still a little crushed to discover that our fantasy of Poehler and Arnett making each other laugh all night long in their marital home is over. (Does this mean we can't come over for game night?) 

And things could get really awkward in a couple of weeks at this year's Emmys ceremony, where both Poehler and Arnett are nominated for awards. Do they arrive together, or separately? If she wins, will she thank him? If he wins, will he thank her? We've always wanted Poehler to win for her peerless work as go-getter politician Leslie Knope on "Parks and Rec," but now it seems like it would just be bittersweet. Ugh... say it ain't so, guys.

Amy Poehler reminisces with Jimmy Fallon about her wedding in this "Late Night" clip: