Alan Ritchson, the American actor best known for playing Jack Reacher in the hit action series “Reacher,” and his wife, Catherine Ritchson, have announced the end of their marriage after 20 years together, sharing the news in a joint statement posted to Instagram.
The 43-year-old actor and his wife released the statement on Saturday, September 12, telling followers: “After twenty years together, Cat and I have decided to end our marriage and continue alongside one another in a different way.” The couple, who married in May 2006, share three sons; Calem, 13, Edan, 12, and Amory, 10.
In the statement, the pair reflected on their long relationship, writing that they had grown up and built a life and family together, and stressed that their sons would always remain “the center of our world.” They added that nothing could diminish what their years together had meant to them, or the love and respect they said they would continue to share.
The couple said their focus going forward would be on co-parenting, describing friendship, grace and a shared commitment to raising their sons as their priority, while also wanting to give each other room to grow individually. They closed the statement by asking for privacy and compassion as their family moves through the transition, saying change was difficult enough without public scrutiny, and thanked followers for their continued support.
While Saturday’s statement marked the couple’s first public acknowledgment of the split, legal filings reviewed by entertainment outlets indicate the process began months earlier. According to court documents, Ritchson filed for divorce in December, before the couple reconciled in March. Saturday’s announcement suggests that reconciliation ultimately did not hold, with the pair now moving forward with separating permanently.
Ritchson and Catherine’s relationship dates back to their teenage years in Florida, where the two met in a ballet class at ages 17 and 16, respectively. Speaking previously about their early relationship, Ritchson recalled being unsure whether to approach Catherine, having initially assumed she was older than him, before the two struck up a conversation and later appeared in a play together that summer.
The pair broke up after their first summer together, with Ritchson later attributing the split partly to the distance between them and, by his own account, being unable to afford petrol to see her. They reconnected years later while Catherine was studying at the University of Florida and Ritchson was in town for a modelling assignment, rekindling their relationship before marrying in May 2006. The couple went on to have three sons together, born between 2012 and 2015.
Ritchson has built a prominent Hollywood career in recent years, most notably starring as the title character in Amazon’s “Reacher,” based on Lee Child’s bestselling novel series, a role that has significantly raised his profile since the show’s debut. He is also known for earlier roles in projects including “Titans” and “Ordinary Angels,” and is set to appear in the upcoming Nicholas Sparks adaptation “Counting Miracles.”
As of the time of this report, neither Ritchson nor Catherine had disclosed the specific reasons behind the decision to end their marriage, with both requesting privacy for the sake of their children as they navigate the separation.
