Back in April 2018, Jenna Dewan and Channing Tatum announced that they were separating after nine years of marriage. The news came as a huge shock to their fans but in a joint statement they told the world that they still had a lot of love for each other and their priority was to be 'loving, dedicated parents' to their six-year-old daughter, Everly.
While they didn't comment on the split at the time, Jenna has now revealed what really happened between them in her new memoir.
In an extract from Jenna's upcoming book, Gracefully You: How to Live Your Best Life Every Day, she speaks about their divorce and how the world's perception of their relationship put pressure on the pair when they decided to call it quits.
She writes that ending their relationship was 'never on my docket of dreams' and describes the break-up as 'a tumbling avalanche'.
'In the beginning of my separation, it felt as though I were in a dark closet, desperately trying to find the light or the way out,' she says.
'I was in a state of shock. One week I'd be doing really well and the next I was slammed with a whole new slew of emotions. The rumour mill was churning out story after story.
'There were many times I hid under the covers, wondering what was next. The pain hit me like a tumbling avalanche. I was completely overcome with fear and sadness. It took many moments of sitting alone with my grief to force me into surrendering to my roller coaster of a situation.'
Talking about why they decided to go their separate ways, Jenna adds: 'I'd come to realise the dynamic I was in wasn’t serving me nor was it serving my daughter. First and foremost, I had to accept the realisation this isn’t working and had moved into hurting.'
Jenna then explains that the reason they kept things under wraps before sharing the news was because of the pressure they felt from the public, who viewed their relationship in an 'idealised romanticised light'.
She continues: 'The public saw Channing and I in this idealised romanticised light. This made things difficult for me because I like being as honest and real as I can.'
Since the separation, the A-listers have remained amicable and insist that they remain 'best friends'.
