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Courtney Ford Files for Divorce From ‘Superman Returns’ Star Brandon Routh After 17 Years of Marriage
New year, new split. Actress Courtney Ford filed for divorce from fellow actor Brandon Routh on Wednesday, January 8, Life & Style confirmed through court documents filed with the Los Angeles Superior Court. The duo had been married for 17 years.
Courtney, 46, cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for her split from the Superman Returns star, 45.
The former couple share one child, son Leo, for whom Courtney requested joint legal and physical custody. The Dexter alum also requested spousal support from Brandon.
Courtney and Brandon confirmed the news in a joint statement shared via Instagram on Friday, January 10.
“To everyone who has loved and supported us, we have some personal news to share. After 21 years together, and 17 years of marriage, we have decided to begin a new journey, and enter this next chapter of life as friends and co-parents,” the statement read. “We are now and forever rooting for each other as we move through this wild adventure called life. Our son is, and will always be, our highest priority, and we appreciate your understanding as we navigate this transition.”
In the caption, Courtney added that they were previously preoccupied with evacuating their home due to the California wildfires and said it “felt ridiculous” to post the news amid the devastation in her area.
The pair started dating in 2003 while Brandon was working at the bowling alley hotspot Lucky Strike. “I was a bartender. And her brother was having his [wedding] rehearsal dinner party there,” he told People in January 2006 while attending the Golden Globes. Courtney added, “He met my whole family the day he met me” as a result.
In June 2006, Brandon gushed to the outlet about Courtney, “She brings me to my knees.”
Two months later, the couple got engaged. Brandon and Courtney tied the knot in November 2007 at the El Capitan Ranch in Santa Barbara, California, in a private ceremony attended by family and friends.
The duo starred together in the 2006 short film Denial. Brandon and Courtney worked together again on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. He starred on the show as Ray Palmer when it debuted on the CW in 2016, while Courtney joined the cast in season 3. They both exited the series in season 5.
“Getting to work together, the two of us, and do the comedy and play off each other has been really amazing and just keeps building and building,” he told People in 2019 about working with his then-wife on the show, as they played a couple on the series as well.
During a 2019 appearance on Live With Kelly and Ryan, Brandon revealed both he and Courtney forgot their 12th wedding anniversary, which they had just celebrated. He explained that they were both in Oakland, California, for fan conventions when a friend wished them a happy anniversary. Brandon said he and Courtney looked at each other and said, “Oh, its that time.”
He went on to explain that they were in the midst of moving back to Los Angeles from Vancouver, British Columbia, where they had been working.
The former couple’s son Leo was born on August 10, 2012. Brandon and Courtney rarely posted about each other on social media, and their final posts involved praising each other as parents.
“She’s a ride-or-die friend, and a mom who’s all in. I’m so grateful that Leo has @courtneyfordhere, who jumps feet first into living, giving him permission and unconditional love to be fully himself,” Brandon wrote in a May 14, 2023, Instagram post in honor of Mother’s Day. He shared an outtake from a professional photoshoot showing Courtney and Leo jumping in the air together.
Courtney’s last post about Brandon was on June 18, 2023, where she simply wished her then-husband, “Happy Father’s Day.”
Professionally, Brandon last appeared in the 2024 horror film Ick, while Courtney was last seen on ABC’s The Rookie: Feds as Tracy Chiles on the show’s first and only season in 2022.
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