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Reese Witherspoon ‘Stepped Up’ to Support Natalie Portman Amid Divorce From Benjamin Millepied
Natalie Portman and Reese Witherspoon have a friendship that goes way back, and a source exclusively tells Life & Style the Legally Blonde alum has been a rock of support for her friend Natalie as she continues to recover and rebuild following her heartbreaking split from husband Benjamin Millepied.
“You sometimes hear Natalie make these remarks about how hard it is to create lasting friendships in Hollywood and how competitive being a leading lady in your forties can be,” says a longtime friend of Natalie’s. “It’s a bit self-pitying though, because Natalie has made a lot of actress friends over the years and especially in the last five years, Reese has been someone putting in work to coax Natalie out of her shell a little bit, just because they have so much in common.”
The supportive relationship between the two was on full display after the Star Wars actress, 43, took to Instagram to thank her friends and family for keeping her spirits high on her birthday in June, writing, “This year, on my birthday, I want to celebrate my gratitude for my friends who lift me up again and again.”
After she posted, Reese, 48, rushed to comment, “Happy Birthday, you incredible diamond of a human! I love you.”
The insider says, “Natalie would not be recommending books on social media without Reese’s encouragement and the example of Reese’s own super-successful book club,” referencing the Big Little Lies actress’ book sales club run through her company, Hello Sunshine. “It’s also been a weird coincidence that their marriages fell apart basically during the same time period, and when the writing was on the wall for Natalie that she and Ben were through, Reese is one of the people who stepped up to be supportive of Natalie behind the scenes, helping her navigate some uncharted waters.”
The Black Swan star first got with now-ex, Benjamin, 47, a French choreographer and dancer in 2009 while working on the film. They share two children – Aleph, now 13 – and Amalia, 7.
After news of Benjamin’s infidelity broke in May 2023, the couple split, ultimately finalizing their divorce in February 2024. Reese likewise split from her ex Jim Toth in March 2023 after 11 years of marriage.
While that certainly provides space to bond, the source adds, “there’s reams of common ground between them beyond just their divorces: they were both star students and child actors; they both are super-involved moms; and they are both incredibly close to their extended families outside of show business.”
“It’s tempting to think that Reese forged this friendship with her producer hat on in the hopes of luring Natalie into one of her Hello Sunshine productions, but I believe these two would be even closer friends if they were just suburban housewives and didn’t have these hot, long-lasting careers,” the pal says.
“Natalie has recently gotten back into producing after a long hiatus and you can chalk that up, at least in part, to the incredible run Reese has had since Big Little Lies. She’s shown Natalie a way forward in this business that has made a real difference for her!”
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