Is Kelly Ripa considering a divorce?
According to the beloved daytime host herself, the concept of a “gray divorce” has come up with her husband.
This isn’t a rumor. Kelly discussed it openly and in front of her audience.
Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos have been one of the hottest famous couples on the planet for decades. Is it the end of an era?
Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos attend the 2024 TIME100 Gala at Jazz at Lincoln Center on April 25, 2024. (Photo Credit: Cindy Ord/Getty Images for TIME)
Have Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos discussed divorce?
The answer is both yes and no.
During the October 11 episode of Live With Kelly and Mark, Kelly Ripa addressed gray divorce. And she mentioned how she’d brought up the topic with husband Mark Consuelos.
“I was reading this article, and I started talking to Mark about it, and Mark got very defensive,” Kelly recalled to her audience.
Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa attend the 96th Annual Academy Awards on March 10, 2024. (Photo Credit: Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
According to Kelly Ripa, when she brought up gray divorce, Mark Consuelos asked her: “‘Why are you reading that article?’”
As it turns out, it had come from reading a “fascinating” article that she read at the airport. Millions of people have read articles, books, and more that they otherwise wouldn’t have while occupying the liminal space at airports. There are entire industries devoted to helping people pass the time.
Ultimately, Mark joked that he knew that Kelly would always take care of him and change his “diapers.” In turn, Kelly joked that she was already doing so.
What is ‘gray divorce’ exactly?
As Kelly Ripa explained to her audience, gray divorce refers to divorces happening in couples where (usually both) spouses are over 50.
Though divorce rates have gone down among some age demographics (for example, Millennials tend to be more choosy than their parents and grandparents about marrying in the first place), the rate for over-50 divorces has quadrupled in the past 30 years.
Because of this phenomenon, there is a new interest in these divorces — and the term “gray divorce” has appeared as a label, even if most of those involves are not necessarily sporting gray hair just yet.
Champion Award Honorees Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa speak onstage during TrevorLIVE NY 2019 at Cipriani Wall Street on June 17, 2019. (Photo Credit: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for The Trevor Project)
Divorce in that demographic can have a lot of factors. Sometimes, couples stay together until their children go off to college. This ill-advised practice can have a number of consequences, including divorcing at an older age — on at which dating becomes more of a challenge.
As for why rates have increased … well, the people who are over 50 in 2024 are obviously different than they were in 1990. Though the people from 1990 have not gotten younger, someone who was a college student at that time is now middle-aged.
Different generations have different approaches to marriage. But … does 54-year-old Kelly Ripa want a divorce from her absurdly handsome 53-year-old husband?
Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos attend the Haute Living Celebrates Kelly Ripa And The Release Of “Live Wire” With Parfums de Marly And Telmont Champagne At Scarpetta at Scarpetta on September 27, 2022. (Photo Credit: Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images for Haute Living)
So, Is This The Ned?
Kelly Ripa said that the narrator’s voice was compelling and drew her into the audio — but that gray divorce itself is a “dark subject.” After all, divorcing at 35 is tough, but you’re probably both able to continue working and restart your life. That’s much harder a couple of decades later, especially if someone’s spent decades as a homemaker.
Incidentally, Kelly Ripa once admitted to Kyle Richards on the latter’s podcast that she and Mark Consuelos went to marriage counseling. It was a preventative measure, she explained, especially after they became empty nesters.
So, no. Kelly Ripa read an article on gray divorce, discussed it as a topic with her husband, and shared it with her audience. A little goofy, sure, but not a red flag that one of Hollywood’s hottest marriages is in its final days.
Kelly Ripa & ‘Defensive’ Mark Consuelos Discuss Divorce On … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.