Insiders share what went wrong with the couple, who are splitting up after a decade. Photo / AP

It has come to the surface that Reese Witherspoon and Jim Toth are in fact two very different people who have, over time, grown apart.

A close source to Witherspoon revealed that it was “very difficult” for the Legally Blonde actress to accept the reality of the situation. Making the decision to separate after more than a decade together was not an easy feat, according to People.

“They’ve been spending less and less time together while she was working,” says the insider, adding that the star, who fittingly named her first production company Type A Films, is “headstrong and focused”.

While Toth is also motivated and driven - climbing the ladder from the mail room at LA’s tops talent agency CAA to becoming one of the company’s executives - a source suggests that Witherspoon’s husband is more ”laid-back” than the Oscar-winning actress.

Lately, the couple have realised that they have “fewer interests in common”, according to a film insider. In 2022 alone, Witherspoon set up shop in Nashville, where she produced singing competition My Kind of Country for Apple TV and flipped a home for nearly twice as much as she paid for it. In between these projects, the multi-faceted star produced television shows such as Daisy Jones & the Six and filmed the third season of The Morning Show.

On the other hand, Toth has been on tech company Flowcode’s board of directors since leaving CAA in 2019 for the now-inoperative streaming service Quibi.

A close source reflected on their differences: “She has her hand in a lot of pots; he prefers less frenzy.”

The source close to Witherspoon says that the couple “worked on” their problems but, at the end of the day, decided to close the book on their marriage. The conclusion “took a long time”, says an insider. “They didn’t come to the decision to divorce easily and hastily. This is so hard for both of them.”

The couple announced that they were getting a divorce in a joint statement on March 24, just two days before their 12 year anniversary.

“It is with a great deal of care and consideration that we have made the difficult decision to divorce,” they wrote in an Instagram post.

“We have enjoyed so many wonderful years together and are moving forward with deep love, kindness and mutual respect for everything we have created together.”

“Our biggest priority is our son and our entire family as we navigate this next chapter,” they added. “These matters are never easy and are extremely personal. We truly appreciate everyone’s respect for our family’s privacy at this time.”

A source added, “They really are the best of friends and this is such an amicable decision. They are so committed to co-parenting together. They are invested in their whole family and making this as smooth as possible for everyone.”

This is Witherspoon’s second divorce after she first separated from Ryan Phillippe in 2006.

The two married in 1999 and share two children together, Ava Phillippe, 23, and Deacon Phillippe, 19.

Following the split, the two both recall it being a hard time with People Magazine reporting Phillippe said it was “the worst time of my life” while Witherspoon told 60 Minutes in 2014 that it was a “tough year”.

She also said she suffered personal and professional struggles at the time of her first separation.

“I was just kind of floundering career-wise. I wasn’t making things I was passionate about ... And it was really clear that audiences weren’t responding to anything I was putting out there.”