Splitsville central: Charlize and Stuart
After almost a decade together, Charlize Theron and Stuart Townsend have called it quits on their relationship!
Image: Getty Images
After a nine-year romance, it seems like Charlize and Stuart have split. Either the actress lost the commitment ring Stuart gave her, or the commitment is off. "Stuart gave it to me as a sign of our commitment to each other," Theron has said in the past. "I never take it off."
But the commitment ring was nowhere in sight at George Clooney's "Hope for Haiti" telethon last week. The antique ring remained absent when Charlize celebrated her mother's birthday at Spago in L.A. later in the week.
The news came as a surprise to Hollywood insiders as the couple has been one of the strongest in Tinseltown.
"I didn't do a church wedding or anything but we consider ourselves husband and wife," Stuart said in 2007. "We love each other and we want to spend our lives together."
But why?
Charlize reportedly decided to break up with the Irish actor after they spent the Christmas holidays in Mexico.
"Stuart is gutted but Charlize said that she realised during the Mexican holiday that the relationship was over. They had become more like brother and sister than lovers," a friend of the actress said. "It was she who ended it."
When asked about the split by a reporter at her Hollywood Hills home, Charlize snapped, saying: "That's crazy".
Charlize Theron and Stuart Townsend met in 2001 on the set of thriller "Trapped" and were considered one of Hollywood's most stable unions. While a representative for Stuart has not respond to calls for comment, the representative for Charlize has released a statement saying, "I never comment on her personal life."
The South African star is set to remain in the couple's Hollywood Hills home while Stuart has moved into their Malibu beach abode.
If Charlize and Stuart had been married, do you think they would have had a better chance at lasting?