Busy Philipps and Husband Marc Silverstein Have Been Separated for More Than Year: ‘It’s a Journey’

Busy Philipps and Marc Silverstein have separated after nearly 15 years of marriage, Philipps confirmed on the May 27 episode of her podcast, Busy Philipps Is Doing Her Best. “It’s been a really long time that Marc and I have been separated, and our kids know, our families know, our friends know,” she said.

“And we really discussed, like, how do I handled it sort of publicly. Because when we first separated, it was, like, February of last year,” said 42-year-old Philipps. “But the truth is, we, you know, there’s, like, a conventional idea of what a person in the public eye is supposed to do when their relationship ends, and it’s been very well established, right? Like, you make a statement, you’re committed to remaining friends, ‘please respect our privacy and our family’s privacy in this time,’ right? But the truth is, like, who made that rule up, that that’s how you do it? I’m serious.”

She added, “And if anything, the last several years has shown me it’s a little bit that, like, you can only do what’s right for you and your family, whether or not you have a public-facing life or you just post on Facebook or whatever. Because we all at this point have a public-facing life. You don’t have to follow a conventional idea just because it’s been done before. I really do believe that.”

The couple separated in February 2021, but Philipps waited over a year to share the news with the world in order to protect their family. She shared, “Marc and I talked about it, and when we first separated, we couldn’t even think about putting one of those statements out — it made us sick, both of us, truly ill.”

She concluded: “It’s a journey. Jour-ney. It’s been a journey,” noting that she and Silverstein wanted to “figure out” their own feelings on the situation before going public.” It was just a safer bet to not,” she said. Philipps added, choking up, “The surest way that Marc and I have been able to ensure the privacy of our kids that we love so f– much was by not involving the public.”

Co-host Caissie St. Onge commented, “If I may, you are the least separate separated people I’ve probably ever known. “Well, we love each other — very much!” Philipps responded. And we have these beautiful kids together. And there are a lot of things that really work about our relationship.”

Phillips and Silverstein, 50, married on June 16, 2007. They have two daughters, 13-year-old Birdie Leigh and 8-year-old Cricket Pearl. Philips has spoken on more than one occasion of almost divorcing Silverstein over disagreements and marital problems.

The Girls5eva star revealed in her 2018 memoir, This Will Only Hurt a Little, that she sought out emotional support from another man when her marriage to the producer became strained. “There was a man I was friends with, another dad. We’d been having lunch and stuff. Texting. Talking on the phone a lot,” Philipps wrote. “Honestly, I had a crush on him. I like him. Maybe I even loved him? He clearly liked me too.”

Phillips opened up to Harper’s Bazaar in 2019 about how their marriage had changed over time and why divorce was considered when she wasn’t happy with the division of parenting responsibilities. “Marc was like, ‘I’ll do anything.’ And I was like, ‘Okay, then do everything. Because I have done it all, all by myself, and I’m done, dude,’” the Freaks and Geeks alum recalled. “I was fully out the door. I wasn’t expecting anything from him, but what we ended up doing was creating our own system.”

After Philipps told Silverstein she wanted a divorce in 2016, he reacted in shock and asked for a second chance. Afterward, she confided in her best friend Michelle Williams, who advised her to “keep your family intact,” and her therapist and the couple began therapy again.”This time, Marc got his own therapist. And we started to work through it. But I also kept talking to my emotional boyfriend (for lack of a better term). I know. That part is so s—. I’m sorry. I really am. I really truly am,” Philipps wrote in her memoir.

“[In a partnership], you have to decide what works for you,” Philipps told Harpers Bazaar. “And you have to think about your children. I want everything for my girls, but the only way they’re going to believe it’s possible for them is if they see me have it.”