relaWorkplace romance is something that is frowned upon… for a good reason. Because when it fails, the fallout is often awkward for both parties, especially when they have to work together.
Because breakups are tough, even if it’s celebrities. And they’re even tougher when they have to see your ex every day at work. Because of contract obligations, sometimes celebrity couples split up, and have to work together. For years even!
Even though the split was amicable, working together has been difficult. The couple has been together for a long time, and they have a lot of history. They are trying to make things work for the sake of their careers, but it is not easy.
But to be fair… some of these couples are so professional, you’ll hardly notice they have broken up. Their work relationship is still very strong, which makes their joint project successful.
So which couples split but still have to work together? Here’re 20 for you.
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The pair met on the set of X-Men: First Class in 2011 and then worked on X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014). They parted up after two years of dating, then resumed their romance in late 2013, only to split up again a year later in 2014. Following their breakup, the two worked together on the 2016 film X-Men: Apocalypse.
#2 Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, 2009–13
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While filming the Twilight films in 2009, the on-screen and off-screen pair began dating. They split up for real in 2013, right before the debut of the last Twilight chapter, Breaking Dawn Part 2. They had been dating for several years and had a short break up in 2012.
#3 Gwyneth Paltrow and Ben Affleck, 1997–2000
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During the filming of Shakespeare in Love in 1998, Paltrow and Affleck's affair was heating up—she portrayed the protagonist, Viola de Lesseps, and he played actor Ned Allen. The pair split up in 2000, the same year their romantic comedy Bounce was in the theater.
#4 Kaley Cuoco and Johnny Galecki, 2007–09
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When The Big Bang Theory co-stars Cuoco and Galecki began dating in real life as their characters Penny and Leonard were dating on-screen. In 2009, after a two-year romance, they chose to return to being friends.
#5 Rachel Bilson and Adam Brody, 2003–06
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Bilson and Brody's professional relationship turns romantic while filming The O.C. Fans expected their epic romance to last forever, but the two
celebrities.split up after three years, in 2006, and continued to work together until the show's ending in 2007.
#6 Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder, 2010–13
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Elena Gilbert may have had to choose between the Salvatore brothers on The Vampire Diaries, but Dobrev was all Somerhalder for three years. When they split up in 2013, they continued to work together on TVD until Dobrev departed the show in 2015.
#7 Diane Keaton and Al Pacino, 1972–89
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During the 1970s and 1980s, Keaton and Pacino had an on-again, off-again love while co-starring in the Godfather trilogy. She allegedly wanted to settle down, but Pacino wasn't ready, so they separated. Nonetheless, they worked together for almost 20 years and maintained their professional connection.
#8 Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, 2004–14
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Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony were one of Latin music's power couples, but after a decade together, they discovered they worked better as musical colleagues and co-parents. They collaborated on Lopez's Spanish-language album and have twin daughters, Max and Emme.
#9 Charlize Theron and Sean Penn, 2014–15
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Theron participated in Penn's film The Last Face, and the two were even thought to be engaged before she called it quits in June 2015. They had to meet a year later when promoting the film at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.
#10 Jennifer Morrison and Jesse Spencer, 2004–06
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The House co-stars took their on-screen relationship off-screen and married. While their real-life romance ended in 2007, the co-stars had to work together still, as their characters married in the season five finale.
#11 Blake Lively and Penn Badgley, 2007–10
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Lively and Badgley dated for three years while also working together on Gossip Girl. Their romance ended in 2010, so it must have been difficult for them to not only continue working together but also get married on the program during the final season in 2012.
#12 Sophia Bush and Chad Michael Murray, 2005–06
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Sophia Bush and Chad Michael Murray, like their One Tree Hill characters, were not meant to be together. The former co-stars married in 2005, only to divorce five months later. Following their divorce, the former couple continued to work on the program until the series concluded in 2012.
#13 Jennifer Garner and Michael Vartan, 2003–04
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Garner and Vartan starred as a couple in the ABC spy program Alias, and they actually dated for a few months. After splitting up in 2004, the co-stars remained friends while also proving they could maintain a professional connection while playing their Alias characters.
#14 Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson, 1998
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During the late 1990s, Holmes and Jackson had a quiet but significant relationship while filming Dawson's Creek. While their romance was short, the actors continued to work together until the program ended in 2009.
#15 Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter, 2008–11
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The Dexter siblings had chemistry on screen, and they went on to date in real life. After getting married in 2008, the couple divorced in 2011. But they had to put it aside and preserve their contracts by working together till the program ended in 2013.
#16 Drew Barrymore and Justin Long, 2007–08
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Drew Barrymore and Justin Long began dating after meeting on the set of He's Just Not That Into You in 2007. They were only together for a year before splitting up in 2008. Despite their divorce, the couple revived their onscreen romance by filming the 2010 film Going the Distance.
#17 Hayden Panettiere and Milo Ventimiglia, 2007–09
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Panettiere played the niece of Ventimiglia's character Peter Petrelli in Heroes, but the co-stars had an off-screen affair. They began dating when the actress was only 18 years old, and the age difference—Ventimiglia was 12 years older at the time—caused them to split up in 2009. A year later, the show's final episode aired.
#18 Lily Collins and Taylor Lautner, 2010–11
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As the co-stars worked on the film Abduction, rumors of Collins and Lautner dating began to spread. However, the romance ended just months before they were to embark on a press tour in anticipation of the premiere of Abduction.
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Diaz and Timberlake began dating in 2003 and ended their relationship in 2007. Soon later, Timberlake began dating now-wife Jessica Biel, but they reunited for the comedy Bad Teacher, in which they had a love scene.
#20 Camila Mendes and Charles Melton, 2018-19
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Mendes and Melton made their Instagram relationship public in 2018, however, the couple confirmed their breakup in December 2019. The co-stars have promised fans that their breakup would not interfere with their professional relationship, and both are currently filming the final season of the program.