Details about Mary-Kate Olsen's ongoing divorce from French banker Olivier Sarkozy keep spilling out, and they get uglier by the minute. Yesterday, several sources claimed that one reason Mary-Kate is leaving Olivier is that she wanted to have children and, at age 50, Olivier was finished. Now insiders have added another reason for the surprise split to the pile: Olivier reportedly wanted Mary-Kate to commit to being a stay-at-home wife.
If you're confused, don't worry: You're not alone. Mary-Kate and her sister, Ashley, have been working since they were babies, and the two have gone on to launch two highly successful and lucrative fashion labels. Basically, girlfriend was already on the career path well before she met Olivier, and the only person who can decide that she should stop is her.
A source told People that Mary-Kate is very into work. "Mary-Kate is extremely hard working and focused on her business. Her work schedule is beyond disciplined. She is the type of person who would never complain about a 12 hour work day."
Apparently, this always kind of puzzled her soon-to-be ex-husband. "Olivier never understood her drive and passion. He would have loved to have a stay-at-home wife."
Olivier has also reportedly been upset that Mary-Kate didn't like to travel too often, as the source says that the banker enjoys "traveling to tropical places with his French friends."
The same source also added that Olivier traveled with his friends, and notably without Mary-Kate, several times. So if they were both comfortable with that arrangement before, why is it different now?
One possibility could be that Olivier believed a common relationship fallacy: that over time, he could change Mary-Kate to become someone that she isn't.
If he did believe that, he wouldn't be alone. "Don't try to change your partner" is something that nearly everyone in a relationship will hear at some point or another. Marriage.com even broke down the most common things that people try to change about their significant others:
- Religious beliefs
- Political beliefs
- Where they live
- Plans for kids
The site also says that the No. 1 reason you shouldn't try to change who your partner is comes down to respect:
“The presence of respect in a relationship both partners feel safe. Respect indicates that your feelings will always be considered, that your happiness and welfare are important to your partner, and promotes a feeling of trust, appreciation, and empathy.
"Putting yourself on a mission to change your spouse is highly disrespectful to them and to your relationship. There are many habits that are healthy to break such as smoking or overeating but trying to change your partner's personality isn't one of them."
Of course, we don't know for sure that this is what happened between Mary-Kate and Olivier, but as reports keep coming out about the downfall of their marriage, it sounds increasingly like believing that they could each change who the other is contributed to their split at least a little bit.
For her part, Mary-Kate has consistently cited immediate concerns, such as not having a place to live and losing her belongings in their shared apartment, as the reason she filed for an emergency divorce. That filing was denied on the basis that her request was not "essential." Mary-Kate has kept quiet about what she might do next.
But in terms of her career, Mary-Kate is doing just fine. People noted that "it was reported that their clothing brand The Row has sales of between $100 million and $200 million a year, while their other brand Elizabeth and James rakes in $89 million. The sisters have also won five prestigious CFDA awards including the 2019 award for Accessory Designer of the Year."
Yesterday, news surfaced that Mary-Kate had changed in one way: While she didn't think she wanted to have children of her own at the beginning of her marriage, her thoughts on the topic had shifted. Olivier, however, is reportedly not interested in having any more children.
Olivier already has two kids who are fully grown adults. Their mom is his ex-wife, Charlotte Bernard. It seems that while Mary-Kate may have realized that motherhood is something she'd like to explore, Olivier already knew that his days of raising young children were behind him.
Tellingly, many of the details that have been shared about the split seem to be coming from a very pro-Mary-Kate angle. It's safe to assume that she's unlikely to directly comment on the matter at all, given that she and her sister lead really private lives. However, she seems to definitely have found a way to tell her side of the story, and interested parties will have to wait and see how this continues to play out.
