Inside The Family Drama From Ewan McGregor's Divorce
From the moment word got out actor Ewan McGregor and production designer Eve Mavrakis decided to separate after 22 years of marriage, it seemed safe to assume that this would not be the most amicable split in all of Hollywood. The former couple may not have been super open about all of the gritty details, but the reports regarding the end of their relationship included scandalous rumors, pointed social media comments, and more.
Suffice to say, there has been a lot of stuff going on with the Mavrakis-McGregor family ever since ... lots of very public and thorny stuff. After the actor officially filed for divorce, Mavrakis told The Sun, "It's disappointing and upsetting but my main concern is our four children are OK." Divorce is almost always going to be hard on kids, but throw in the constant stream of tabloid gossip and paparazzi photos related to your parents' personal lives that are making their way onto the virtual newsstands? That's understandably a lot to take on — and it sounds like multiple members of the family were not exactly cool with the way things went down.
Here's a look at the family drama stemming from Ewan McGregor and Eve Mavrakis' divorce.
Who could have seen Ewan McGregor's divorce coming?
Ewan McGregor and Eve Mavrakis' relationship started where so many showbiz romances do: on a set. During a 2012 appearance on The Graham Norton Show, the actor recalled meeting while working on the British crime series, Kavanagh QC, in the '90s, where Mavrakis worked as a production designer. "I truly fell in love with her," McGregor said. "I saw her and I knew right then, I thought, 'Oh my goodness, I really want to be with her.'" They wed in 1995 and went on to have four kids: Clara, Jamyan, Esther, and Anouk.
The Doctor Sleep star previously said of their relationship in a 2011 interview with the Daily Mail, "I didn't have a checklist for my ideal woman. I was very young when we met, and I just fell in love with her ... and I still want to be with her." However, as we all know, just a little over 20 years after walking down the aisle (er, walking through a sunflower field?), McGregor and Mavrakis separated.
The breakup news broke on Oct. 22, 2017, with a family source cited by People saying that the two actually split up that May. The same day that insider's scoop hit the internet, the Daily Mail released some pictures of Mavrakis out in Los Angeles without her wedding ring. But those snapshots would not be the only relevant photos to materialize that day...
Then Ewan McGregor's shocking PDA photos leaked
The news of Ewan McGregor and Eve Mavrakis' separation just so happened to break the same day The Sun shared photos of the Scot kissing his younger Fargo co-star, Mary Elizabeth Winstead (pictured, right). On Oct. 22, 2017, the pictures in question featured McGregor and Winstead out at a cafe in London, where they smooched, talked, and, according to an eyewitness, "sped off together" on the Star Wars actor's motorbike.
The following month, The Sun reported that McGregor had told Mavrakis that May that he had fallen in love with Winstead, but maintained he did not act on those feelings. "Eve is sure Ewan and Mary were together before he confessed his feelings for her," a source claimed. "It is hard for her to believe him."
It's still unclear whether McGregor actually had an alleged affair with his Birds of Prey co-star, but May 2017 just so happens to be when Winstead announced that she and her husband of seven years, Riley Stearns, were splitting up. "We've decided to move on from our marriage, but we will stay best friends and collaborators for all our days," she wrote on Instagram (via People). "We are still ride or die, just in a different way now. I love you always, Riley." Perhaps to stave off tabloid gossip about all three relationships, Winstead, as she said in a 2019 interview with Parade, is no longer on social media.
Ewan McGregor's family reportedly called his new relationship 'a mid-life crisis'
After the aforementioned headline-making PDA pictures were released, a source cited by The Sun claimed that Ewan McGregor's kids and estranged wife apparently believed "he might be having a mid-life crisis and that is why he is pursuing his relationship with [Mary Elizabeth Winstead] at the expense of his family." Yikes.
The insider also noted that while Eve Mavrakis was "doing her best to handle it with dignity," she had reportedly been "told [that] Mary Elizabeth had a teenage crush on Ewan." This only further complicated matters, considering Winstead reportedly went to the family's house and "met Eve and the kids over dinner" just before she and McGregor began filming Fargo. In another report by The Sun, a source claimed the whole "situation is extremely difficult for [Eve] and their four children."
For his part, McGregor never publicly commented on these reports, but he probably wouldn't agree to their assertions. When speaking to The Irish Times in 2018 about Christopher Robin, he addressed whether he related to the grown-up version of the Winnie-the-Pooh character. "I have been living a midlife crisis since my teens," he joked, before admitting that he doesn't "really believe in" calling something a mid-life crisis. "It's a label they put on something that's demeaning." McGregor claimed that if a person of a certain age takes up the drums or gets a sports car, it isn't cause for criticism, sharing, "I don't like that. It is something that maybe makes people happy."
Ewan McGregor and Eve Mavrakis' family began breaking their silence
A few weeks after The Sun released pictures of Ewan McGregor and Mary Elizabeth Winstead kissing outside of a London cafe, outlets such as Us Weekly shared photos of the two walking hand-in-hand around Los Angeles. Around that same time, Eve Mavrakis broke her silence on the split. In response to an Instagram follower's comment on her estranged husband's new relationship, the production designer simply replied (via The Sun), "What can I do?"
Unsurprisingly, the separation being so public was not easy for the actor's family. In January 2018, McGregor and Mavrakis' then-15-year-old daughter, Esther McGregor, shared a clip on Instagram of a song she wrote that — as the Daily Mail pointed out — seemed to reference her dad's reported fling. At one point, Esther sings, "I read some dumb s**t that I found online / Seeing those pictures / They're making me cry," making it nearly impossible not to assume that the lyrics were commentary on the leaked photos of Ewan and Winstead kissing a few months prior.
That said, Esther was not trying to drag Ewan's name through the mud. As Elle Australia noted, she later took to her Instagram Stories to state that the "song was not a slam" against her famous father, but rather "a way of expressing my feelings with what I love most. Music."
Ewan McGregor thanked his estranged wife at the Golden Globes
At the 75th Golden Globe Awards, which took place on Jan. 7, 2018, Ewan McGregor was awarded best actor in a limited series for his portrayals of Ray and Emmett Stussy during Season 3 of Fargo. In his acceptance speech, he mentioned his children and Eve Mavrakis: "I want to take a moment to say thank you to Eve, who always stood by me for 22 years, and my four children: Clara, Esther, Jamyan, and Anouk. I love you." It's worth noting that McGregor's new girlfriend and Fargo co-star also got a shout-out, as McGregor later said, "And there wouldn't have been any Ray without Mary Elizabeth Winstead." Awkward.
Evidently, this gesture did not go over well with McGregor's estranged wife, who was not moved by his words on the Beverly Hilton stage that evening. When the Daily Mail asked Mavrakis about this Golden Globes moment, she bluntly replied, "No, I did not like his speech." Pushed further, Mavrakis revealed she wasn't into the acceptance speech "for the same reasons you are here asking me about it. I am not going to say any more."
Given the timing of the acceptance speech, as well as the nods to both McGregor's ex and his current significant other, we feel like Mavrakis' reaction checks out.
Ewan McGregor set the divorce wheels in motion
Just weeks after he publicly thanked Eve Mavrakis for standing by him for over two decades, Ewan McGregor took their split a step further. On Jan. 19, 2018, TMZ reported that the Trainspotting actor had officially filed for divorce from Mavrakis, citing "irreconcilable differences."
In court documents, which listed their official date of separation as May 28, 2017, McGregor requested joint custody of the former couple's three youngest kids; however, Mavrakis wanted sole physical custody while allowing McGregor visitation rights. With no prenup to take into consideration, their assets were expected to be divided up evenly. But was money an issue?
Later that year, People obtained court documents that reportedly showed McGregor and Mavrakis in a dispute over how much money the actor was "voluntarily contributing to living expenses" for his ex and their minor children. While McGregor reportedly wanted "reimbursement" because he believed the financial support he had given "exceeds what would've been his support obligation," Mavrakis allegedly argued that the amount was "less than what her support payments should have been." Hm.
It should be noted that in the same report, McGregor's lawyer claimed that this was "absolutely not true." Stating that "Ewan and Eve are not fighting with one another about anything, including money," he added that the estranged couple planned to "deal with money issues later on." Well, okay then!
There were rumors of another split amid Ewan McGregor's divorce
In February 2018, rumors of yet another breakup bubbled up when Star magazine (via the Daily Mail) reported that Mary Elizabeth Winstead supposedly called things off with Ewan McGregor because she "hated being labelled a home wrecker."
When The Sun asked Eve Mavrakis to confirm, she simply said, "I haven't spoken to Ewan at all, so I don't actually know whether they are together or not." Adding that, as far as she knew, her divorce from McGregor was still moving forward, the production designer emphatically noted, "I don't care what he is doing." Around this time, E! News reported that Winstead and McGregor did not split up after all, and the two were still together as of June 2020.
Despite his very public divorce, McGregor expressed that he felt a sense of ease. When a Men's Journal reporter observed that the Scottish actor seemed "lighter" than when they met several years prior, McGregor replied during his 2019 interview, "I am better. I am happier. I think that's true." Winstead also appeared to feel the same. Regarding her divorce from Riley Stearns, she told Glamour UK in January 2020 that she felt like she was "really starting new as an adult for the first time," adding that "being OK with changing, accepting that change is a good thing and that it's OK not to know where that change is going to take you" was a "big turning point."
Ewan McGregor took time off of work during his divorce
Just a few months shy of a year after Ewan McGregor and Eve Mavrakis released their separation news to the public, the Moulin Rouge actor decided to hit the pause button on his professional life for a little while — and he got into the reason why during an August 2018 interview with Good Morning Britain (via the Daily Mail).
Explaining that he had not worked since wrapping on Christopher Robin in November 2017, McGregor said that he took a break to do things he "wasn't having any time to do" like "riding [his] old bike and tinkering with old cars." He explained, "I just took this time off. I needed to, and I wanted to," adding, "I've spent a lot of time with my kids."
Like all good things, this recess from work would not last forever, and McGregor was soon back to a full filming schedule, telling Good Morning Britain that he was "about to start something in September." The movie star continued, "I look back now and think, 'What have I done?' And I've done nothing really! But I've been really busy doing nothing!" Hey, sometimes keeping busy by doing a whole lot of nothing is just what the Doctor Sleep ordered.
Ewan McGregor's eldest kid spoke out about against his girlfriend
In July 2018, a number of outlets reported that Ewan McGregor and Eve Mavrakis' eldest daughter, Clara McGregor, went on a Mary Elizabeth Winstead fan Instagram account and left a comment that offered a glimpse into the family drama that was happening behind the scenes — and oof, did she fire shots. According to People, Clara wrote in response to one of the fan account's posts, "Most beautiful and talented woman on earth? Oh man y'all are delusional. This girl is a piece of trash." Yikes.
About a month later, Clara admitted to The Times that her comment "wasn't the most mature way to go about things," but noted that she "was angry and upset." The fan account's post had wound up on her radar because people kept tagging her in it, and when she looked at it, she saw some hurtful remarks in the comments section. "I was seeing negative things about my mom," Clara continued. When asked about her dad's new relationship, she offered, "I wish them all the best, but I'm staying out of that, for sure."
While Clara also expressed that the situation "definitely brought all the women in [her] family much closer," she had not severed ties with her famous father in the wake of the split. "We are incredibly close and despite me strongly disagreeing with how he's gone about things, I'll always love him," she said. "And I hope he's happy, you know?" That's nice, albeit bittersweet.
Another one of Clara McGregor's Instagram comments raised eyebrows
When Clara McGregor posted a photo of her bikini-clad mom at the beach on Instagram in January 2019, someone wrote in the comments, "Good to know you have the smoke show genes ... keep her away from your boyfriends" (via Entertainment Tonight). To which Clara responded alongside a smiley emoticon, "Nah I keep her away from a**hole men who leave my goddess of a mother."
Unsurprisingly, many suspected this comment was a jab at dad Ewan McGregor, leading Clara to shed more light on things via her Instagram Stories. According to Entertainment Tonight, she wrote, "Let's make one thing clear. I was not attacking my dad or calling him [an] a**hole. I was simply saying she deserves someone who isn't one." Clara also removed the comment.
A few months after the "a**hole men" comment made headlines, Clara posted a throwback photo on Instagram of herself with her dad on the set of Down with Love, which she captioned with, "Happy Birthday pops, I love you." In August 2019, she shared some pictures she took alongside Ewan while behind the scenes of The Birthday Cake, a movie in which the father-daughter duo both have roles. And when Father's Day 2020 rolled around, Clara posted a more current snapshot of the two, and wrote, "Happy Father's Day, I love you." They've had some public drama, but it looks like Clara and Ewan are doing just fine.
Ewan McGregor sought bifurcation amid his divorce
Ahead of his divorce from Eve Mavrakis being finalized, Ewan McGregor reportedly took steps to try to make them both legally single. According to People, McGregor requested bifurcation in November 2019, saying in court documents "that a termination of the status of our marriage at this time will assist in [the] resolution of the balance of this matter."
What does this mean, exactly? Let us turn to a resource that knows a thing or two about legal definitions. As Law.com's legal dictionary puts it, bifurcating a marriage refers to "the order or ruling of a judge that one issue in a case can be tried to a conclusion or a judgment given on one phase of the case without trying all aspects of the matter." This motion allows the members of a to-be-divorced couple to be "free of each other promptly while still fighting over other issues at their leisure." Basically, a bifurcated married pair is declared legally single, but still has to deal with the other unresolved legal matters that come with terminating a marriage.
Over a year after their split was made public, McGregor apparently wanted to expedite the process of his divorce being granted, so he called bifurcation up to the plate.
Ewan McGregor's divorce from Eve Mavrakis was finalized
The road to get to this point was a long and seemingly tumultuous one, but the legal chapter of this celebrity Splitsville saga has officially reached its end: in early June 2020, The Blast reported that Ewan McGregor and Eve Mavrakis' divorce was officially finalized. According to the media outlet, McGregor and Mavrakis mapped out the ins and outs of their financial settlement in a judgment packet that they provided to the court. This development arrived about two and a half years after McGregor first filed for divorce.
All the way back in a 2018 interview with The Times, their firstborn, Clara McGregor, expressed that the changes to their family unit had been difficult "for everyone," but emphasized that even after all of the public fallout, she is "still very close" to her dad. That said, she remains in total and complete support of her mother: "It's always been clear, and always will be, that I have my mom's back in this — fully."
The last few years of the 2010s were undeniably messy for this family, and while Ewan and his estranged ex have remained pretty mum on the matter, it looks like the Mavrakis-McGregors aren't going to let this period tear them down. As Clara said in her aforementioned interview with The Times, "You have to move forward." Now that Ewan and Mavrakis' divorce is finalized once and for all, perhaps their family can do just that.