by Marriage troubles and the terrible twos, if there’s anything that could sum up the recent discord looming over Tori Spelling and Dean McDermott’s marriage this would be it. According to insider sources, their family is “not exactly in a healthy place” and has gotten worse over the years so much so that the two cannot even stand to be together in the same room.
Tori Spelling, daughter of legendary producer Aaron Spelling and a co-star in the hit teen soap, Beverly Hills, 90210 was spotted by the paparazzi without her wedding band in the summer of 2021. Around the same time Dean McDermott, actor and reality TV star, was spotted without his band, that too by friends at the golf course. When interrogated about the same, the actor gave a half-hearted reply about he must have lost it at the game and shook off “needless” speculations about a possible divorce or estrangement from his wife. At the same time, he excused Spelling’s disbandment as she “simply forgot to put hers back on after washing her hands.”
So exactly what happened to the happy couple which pushed their marriage of 14 years over the rocks? Here’s a quick timeline.
Both Spelling and McDermott were married previously; the Slasher star was previously married to fellow actress Mary Jo Eustace with whom he has a son Jack. Tori Spelling on the other hand was married to writer Charlie Shanian, only for 15 months before the couple called it quits. The two met while filming for the Lifetime movie Mind Over Murder, and what started as an extramarital affair ended up in them getting divorced from their respective partners and tying the knot in Wakaya, Fiji, in May 2006. Soon after they welcomed two sons, Liam and Finn, and two daughters, Stella and Hattie. In 2007, the family started appearing in their own reality show Tori & Dean: Inn Love that aired on the OXYGEN network where the couple ran their own bed and breakfast. In 2008, they created another spin-off to this show, this time called Tori & Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood and so far everything seemed like a fairy-tale for the two.
However soon word got around regarding McDermott’s infidelity in their marriage. The pair worked through the aftermath of the affair on a Lifetime series titled True Tori. Tori on her part cleared the air regarding their doomed marriage and financial woes as “We communicate now, I have a voice,” and “He probably hears too much of it but he [is so] good at listening. Women like to talk and over-explain.” They appeared stronger than ever, as reported by insiders to US Weekly but in 2021 their marriage again seemed to be falling apart especially when the couple started sleeping in separate bedrooms.
Later months saw the actress leaving her attorney’s place with what could have possibly been divorce documents and child custody agreements, this time also without the wedding band. According to sources, they are yet putting up a strong front and sticking to the relationship for the sake of the kids. A source exclusively told Us that the Hollywood stars were “having major issues for over a year,” adding, “The end could be very near.”
The financial distress of the couple further deepened their cracks on a happy married life. It was found out Tori has been paying her husband’s alimony to his ex-wife, but then again in 2020 they shared a happy anniversary post with McDermott praising and gushing over his wife to mark their 14 years of togetherness. Until recently, however, reports confirmed that the actress felt trapped in their loveless marriage and wanted to pull the plug. Even on Halloween, she was spotted having a moms’ night out with a couple of her girlfriends and no McDermott in sight.
Could this spell the beginning of an end to the tinsel town’s one of the most controversial couples? Only time will tell.
