James Marsden's 2011 Divorce Pushed Him To Confront His 'Easy' Life & Changed Him For The Better

James Marsden hadn't known what it felt like to have his world upside down until his marriage to Lisa Linde came to an end, forcing him to take a long, hard look at his life. He and Linde decided to mutually call it quits in 2011 after being married for 11 years; together, they have two kids, Jack and Mary, who were 10 and 6, respectively, when the breakup happened. In 2018, Marsden appeared on the cover of Men's Health and opened up about the divorce for the very first time. It was, according to him, "by far the hardest thing" he's had to endure in life.

"A lot of sh** went well for me my whole life and came easy to me," Marsden said. "Being a white male, you're born with certain unearned privileges. My life hasn't been filled with sorrow and deep struggle." That is, until that point. "When the divorce happened, it was the first time I felt I lost my equilibrium," the "27 Dresses" actor confessed.

The first few weeks were the hardest. Marsden worried about what the split would mean for his family in the future, particularly the impact it would have on his children's well-being. Being a son of divorce himself, he feared he was repeating the same cycle he had witnessed from his parents during his own childhood (he was 9 when they separated).

Looking back, though, Marsden realized why it had been necessary. He came to view the divorce as sort of a wake-up call for him. "I needed to focus on what was important. So that's who I am now because of that," Marsden gushed. "I know regrets can be catalysts for good things. Not to talk like a Hallmark card, but it's true."

Fortunately, it wasn't a bad breakup. James Marsden and Lisa Linde continued to operate as a family with the shared intention of fostering a loving and positive environment for their kids. Then came the news: In 2012, it was revealed that Marsden had fathered a son, William, with Brazilian model Rose Costa, whom he briefly dated shortly after splitting from Linde. Through it all, he and Linde remained friends — in fact, they would even go on holidays together alongside their kids and Marsden's then-girlfriend, the singer Edei, which he understood wasn't the norm.

"I'm very lucky. Someone on the outside looking in is like what is this weird, hippie-dippy commune?" the actor said in his Men's Health interview. But he's proud of his blended family. "When you have people who care about each other and care about these kids and just want to give love, how can you not welcome that?" Marsden shrugged.

Sadly, things didn't work out between him and Edei (whose real name is Emma Deigman); she and Marsden split sometime in 2022 after dating for roughly seven years. He's since been linked to several other (and often younger) women, most recently the Dutch model Frederique Brons, but has otherwise remained one of Hollywood's hottest single dads.

He adores his children. "My kids got me wrapped!" Marsden exclaimed in a Father's Day Instagram tribute in 2019. "My favorite holiday of the year celebrates what I am proud of most in life. Being a father." His son, Jack, has grown up to be his twin and is now a budding artist and record producer. "I'm so proud of him," Marsden told Men's Health. "Is it weird to say my son is the person I wish I was more like?"