Anyone that's been watching Selling Sunset on Netflix is likely obsessed with the drama surrounding Chrishell Stause's split from Justin Hartley. While the couple once seemed perfect for one another, Hartley apparently blindsided Stause when he filed for divorce out of the blue in November 2019.
Here's everything we know so far about Chrishell Stause and Justin Hartley's divorce.
Chrishell has declared herself "completely single" following the couple's split.
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Stause said that potential suitors have been sliding into her DMs and that she's beginning to enjoy the single life again.
"I have to say I have had a few, yes. Yeah it's been—I don't know how to answer that, I feel so weird. But yes, that has been a nice surprise," she told the outlet in regard to people beginning to contact her. "There's a few [people you might know], but I'm not going to tell you who."
"I'm completely single and because of COVID, I haven't done much mingling," added the Selling Sunset star. "I'm excited to mingle."
Chrishell Stause and Justin Hartley disagree about their separation date.
When Hartley filed for divorce on November 22, 2019, Stause was not expecting it. As noted by TMZ, "Justin lists the date of separation as July 8, 2019," but the couple had attended a slew of public events together in the intervening months. In fact, just a week before Hartley filed, the pair attended The Hollywood Reporter and Moet & Chandon Golden Globes party, and Stause even shared several photos taken with her former beau on Instagram, suggesting that they were very much still together.
They also attended the Emmy Awards together in September 2019, and the Los Angeles Veuve Clicquot Polo Match in October.
TMZ soon reported that Stause was "privately calling BS on the date of separation Justin listed in his divorce filing," with sources suggesting the disagreement over when they split might be linked to money.
They'd reportedly been having problems for some time.
According to an Us Weekly source, "Justin had been having problems with the marriage for a while." However, the very same source also said, "the divorce filing was a big surprise to everyone around Justin and Chrishell in terms of their friends."
Stause's Selling Sunset costar, Christine Quinn, found herself in hot water after discussing the divorce in an interview. Quinn told Page Six, "We all just thought maybe they were having communication problems for a while... We heard that they were in therapy, so obviously there were some issues going on with them."
Stause was quick to dispute Quinn's version of events and tweeted in response, "I just learned Christine is giving press 'information' about my divorce. Let me be VERY clear. She knows absolutely nothing about the situation and is obviously desperate to gain attention by doing so. Anything from her is either a complete lie or total conjecture on her part."
"It’s so frustrating and unfortunate that someone would use someone’s personal painful situation to get press for themselves," she continued. "I can’t say I am surprised, but please check the source. She has absolutely zero knowledge of the marriage we had."
Chrishell found out about the divorce via text.
As detailed in Season 3 of Selling Sunset, Hartley sent a text to Stause telling her that he had filed for divorce. During an emotional episode, Stause spoke with fellow Selling Sunset star Mary Fitzgerald about how the split went down. Fitzgerald asked her, "How did you find out? Did he, like, just come talk to you out of the blue, or what?"
Crying, Stause replied, "I found out because he text me … that we were filed." She elaborated, "Forty-five minutes later, the world knew." Without a doubt, this seems like a seriously brutal way to find out your spouse is divorcing you.
Justin is dating a former costar.
It looks as though a reconciliation between Hartley and Stause is most definitely not on the cards, as the This Is Us star is already dating someone else. In fact, Hartley has moved on with his former The Young and the Restless costar, Sofia Pernas. As noted by The U.S. Sun, Pernas and Stause were also friends having costarred in The Young and the Restless together, and the pair regularly commented on each other's Instagram photos.
Us Weekly also alleged that Stause had liked a tweet suggesting that Hartley may have connected with Pernas prior to filing for divorce. "@justinhartley filmed a movie in Canada at the same time his new gf @SofiaPernas was filming the summer before they split," the tweet reportedly said. "The timing seems like he probably cheated on @Chrishell7 and took a coward’s way out to avoid spousal support and gaslight her." However, a source told the publication that any suggestion of impropriety is "absolutely false."
Justin is apparently irritated by Selling Sunset's coverage of his divorce.
While Hartley allegedly hasn't been keeping up with Selling Sunset on Netflix, he isn't all that thrilled that his divorce is streaming on the service. A source alleged to Us Weekly, "He’s irritated that she’s airing their private information publicly and knows there is more to the story than is being told. His close friends and family know what really happened, as does Chrishell, so ultimately it’s her choice of what is put out there."
To make matters worse, Hartley's friends are reportedly happy that he is divorcing Stause. A source told Us Weekly, "Justin’s friends are glad that Chrishell is no longer in his life and that he can move on... He is doing well right now, and while it’s been disappointing that he is being dragged into story lines on reality TV, he knew that he should expect this."
Regardless of how Hartley feels about Selling Sunset, viewers will likely agree that Stause's heartbreak in Season 3 was extremely visceral. Watching Stause deal with the split as it happened was heartbreaking, and it seemed clear that she was both shocked and devastated by the break up.
Luckily, she's now looking ahead to the future, and discussed the Season 3 finale in an interview with The Los Angeles Times. The episode ended with Stause in her new home in the Hollywood Hills, waiting for her new life to start. As the real estate agent told the publication, "It symbolizes so much, and I think that viewers will be able to see that as well. I’m wondering, ‘What’s out there? What’s this going to turn into?’ I don’t know what the future holds, but there are endless possibilities now that my plan has completely changed." To be very clear, I'm 100% Team Chrishell.
Amy Mackelden is a freelance writer, editor, and disability activist. Her bylines include Harper's BAZAAR, Nicki Swift, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, ELLE, The Independent, Bustle, Healthline, and HelloGiggles. She co-edited The Emma Press Anthology of Illness, and previously spent all of her money on Kylie Cosmetics.
