THE END OF a long-term relationship can be rife with all kinds of conflicting emotions. Grief, resentment, and heartbreak are all to be expected, but a breakup or divorce can also feel like a new beginning.
Even in this day and age, divorce still carries something of a social stigma, and so often media coverage of high-profile splits tends to veer towards a negative lens. For women, perception of their return to singlehood is marred by ageism and misogyny, while many men, Elon Musk chief among them, are ridiculed for their “divorced energy.”
However, regardless of the cause behind a separation, the decision to move on from a relationship that no longer serves both partners is a brave one, and leads to boundless new opportunities—as evidenced by several famous, newly single men who are experiencing a come-up in 2023, eschewing the deadbeat divorced dad stereotype and building something new.
When Tom Brady and his wife of 13 years Gisele Bündchen announced in October 2022 that they were getting divorced, rumors swirled about the causes behind the split and who might be at fault—but they reportedly remain on good terms as they continue to co-parent their children. If anything, Brady appears to have taken this paradigm shift as an opportunity to reflect on his life as a whole.
Just a few months after dissolving the marriage, he retired from the NFL (“for good,” he assures us) and has been seemingly living his best life ever since. He’s spent quality time with his kids, partied on a billionaire’s yacht with his good pal Leonardo DiCaprio, continued to build his activewear brand, and as of July, is getting back out on the dating scene. First there were the reports that he and Kim Kardashian were an item, and now the seven-time Super Bowl champion appears to be dating model Irina Shayk.
A few weeks ago, Ricky Martin shared that he and his husband Jwan Yosef were ending their marriage after six years “with love, respect and dignity.” Maybe making the decision mutually eases the pain, because Martin has seemed on fine form as he tours the world performing, not to mention being an absolute vibe while chilling shirtless on a yacht, abs bared to the breeze. La vida loca, it seems, hits different when you’re back on the market.
Similarly, something seemed to shift for actor Jeremy Allen White after his marriage to Addison Timlin ended. Divorce papers were filed in May, and since then he’s received an Emmy nomination and widespread critical acclaim for his leading performance in the second season of The Bear. Most recently, the actor went semi-viral thanks to photos of him taking a shirtless hike in the L.A. heat with his muscular physique on full display.
Then there’s the perpetually swole Imagine Dragons frontman Dan Reynolds, who separated from Aja Volkman in September last year. When he isn’t flaunting that famously chiseled physique while performing on-stage and taking his band to new heights (a live documentary just dropped on Hulu), he’s living it up at Taylor Swift’s Eras tour and wooing actress Minka Kelly.
What unites these guys isn’t just the fact that they each appear to be in possibly the best shape of their lives (there are worse ways to cope with the pain of a divorce than by hitting the gym). They also all seem to be looking forwards, rather than backwards, and making positive, intentional changes rather than wallowing.
Even Kevin Costner, who is currently mired in one of the messier divorces Hollywood has seen in a while, appears to be embracing impermanence and leaning into his next chapter. In addition to recording new music with his band, Kevin Costner & Modern West, he will be departing the hugely popular Western series Yellowstone after Season 5 in order to focus on his passion project, a four-film series about the Civil War entitled Horizon: An American Saga.
Of course, appearances aren’t everything, and it is likely that each of these men is still processing their separations when away from the public eye. But seeing them throw themselves into their second act with such gusto is a refreshing change from our usual cultural narratives surrounding divorce.
It is also worth noting that you don’t need to walk away from a marriage in order to make some major, much-needed changes in your life. In March, Backstreet Boy AJ McLean revealed that he and his wife Rochelle were taking some time apart, but that they had no plans to divorce: rather, they wanted to work on becoming better versions of themselves and then reunite “with the hope of building a stronger future.”
Marriage is great. Being single is fun too. But the most important relationship is the lifelong one you have with yourself, and doing the work to become the best person you can be—for your partner, for your kids, for your friends—is the ultimate glow up.
Philip Ellis is News Editor at Men’s Health, covering fitness, pop culture, sex and relationships, and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV, and he is the author of Love & Other Scams.
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