Sad Details About Hallmark Star Autumn Reeser's Personal Life
Hallmark star Autumn Reeser has built a career in bringing swoon-worthy love stories to life on the small screen. Unfortunately, she hasn't had as much luck in real life. Fans will be bummed (and perhaps surprised) to know that "The Wedding Veil" actor is one of several Hallmark stars whose relationships sadly failed. In 2014, she filed for divorce from her husband, Jesse Warren, after five years of marriage. It proved to be a difficult time, especially as the couple had a three-year-old and one-year-old to consider.
But as the actor told the "Out of Line" podcast in 2018, the split taught her some valuable, if harsh, lessons. "I think I'm a lot less afraid in life at this point because I feel like I've already gone through something that was my worst nightmare and survived," she revealed. "That is the gift of going through something difficult and coming out the other side is you realize your own strength." Divorce became a revealing journey for her, uncovering her true self, highlighting her genuine friends, and even sparking artistic inspiration.
Which isn't to say it was easy. Reeser and Warren's relationship began like a Hallmark-worthy plot but proved far from a fairytale. Making things more heartbreaking was the fact that Reeser initially thought she had to stick with it, even if it meant completely losing herself in the process. These are the sad details about Autumn Reeser's personal life — and how she's doing today.
Inside Autumn Reeser's failed marriage
Autumn Reeser's meet-cute with writer-director Jesse Warren reads like a Hallmark script. They were introduced by a mutual friend at a film screening in 2000 while they were both attending UCLA. There was a spark, but it would take Warren two years to ask said friend for Reeser's number, at which point his buddy cheekily gave it to him inside an engagement ring box. That move proved to be foretelling, as the couple tied the knot in 2009 in a romantic ceremony underneath a 200-year-old oak tree at California's Ojai Valley Inn. "It was an incredible day, filled with so much love and joy," Reeser gushed to People after the nuptials. "It surpassed all my expectations."
The pair soon grew their family — Finneus James was born in 2011, followed by Dashiell Ford in 2013 — but it wasn't meant to be. Reeser filed for divorce in 2014. While her rep assured Us Weekly the split was "completely amicable," the reality was a bit messier. While the actor hasn't spoken about their issues outright, she did hint at them in 2022 when Style Girlfriend asked about the top relationship lesson she hopes to teach her sons. "Mutual respect is key," Reeser said. "Nobody gets along all the time, so the way you treat each other in times of anger and stress is incredibly important." As it turns out, the Hallmark star gave up much of what she wanted to make her union work before she finally realized that just wasn't fair.
Autumn Reeser lost herself in marriage
Autumn Reeser was only 29 when she said "I do," and she's learned some valuable romantic lessons since. Joining the "Some Kind of Mystic" podcast in 2023, she was asked what advice she'd give her 29-year-old self, and the answer will tug at your heartstrings. "Speak up about all the things that are not working," she began. "I wasn't sure if I had the right to feel what I felt, want what I wanted [and] I was afraid that if I said, like, 'Oh hey, I need you to be an equal partner in this way' that I would be seen as selfish." It wasn't until she began seeing a therapist nearly two years into her marriage that she realized her feelings were valid, but it was too late. "I think by the time I did speak up, it was so far established in the relationship as the norm that it was very hard to change," she shared.
While there's no turning back the clock, she now knows her feelings weren't selfish, and she wasn't to blame. "I look back and I'm like, 'That is just a normal, healthy relationship that you're asking for,'" she said. Plus, she's learned what to look for in the future. As she told Style Girlfriend in 2022, she's since realized it's OK to love on your terms. "It's entirely possible that whoever I end up dating will have to be cool with seeing each other only once a week," the busy mama and actor mused.