Christina and Tarek El Moussa’s split may have shocked fans, but only because they kept their marital issues so private for much of the year.
The fact they’re apparently on such good terms, despite the issues that led to the demise of their marriage, also helped keep up appearances.
The Flip or Flop couple’s breakup was revealed earlier this week following a surprising report about a police incident dating back to May.
Tarek and Christina separated after an argument in which he stormed out of the house with a gun to “blow off steam” and she called 911.
Details of the 911 call El Moussa placed after this have been revealed – and confirmed by the couple, though they say it was a misunderstanding.
In any case, they haven’t begun divorce proceedings yet, and want to continue working together – both as parents and on their HGTV hit.
“We plan to continue working together in front of the camera,” they said. “We have been working towards this for the past five years.”
“As you can imagine, fame is a mixed bag. We decided to separate while we reevaluated the next steps in our married life.”
“We believed this was in the best interests of the children and the best way to determine a path forward,” the couple adds.
As for whether they will get back together someday?
Don’t bet on it, based on this candid assessment:
“We have both dated other people following the separation, but neither of us is ready to announce anything in terms of another relationship.”
The HGTV tandem also explained that Christina’s 911 call about Tarek’s alleged suicide attempt was not as bad as it sounds, saying:
“His intentions were misread. Once [police] were there it was determined that he had no negative intentions towards himself or anyone else.”
“There was no violence, no threat, no arrest.”
Christina had been “crying and shaking” when police arrived, which they didn’t explain, but sounds like a pretty bad argument happened.
In any case, the couple tried working out their issues through therapy and counseling, but was unsuccessful, and they ended up separating.
El Moussa family insiders revealed that while this may surprise fans, “in a lot of ways they just seemed wildly incompatible” in general.
“She has champagne tastes; he’s a beer-from-a-can kind of guy,” one source said, which worked fine when they could only afford the latter.
Working together to get by in a tough real estate market and to do the best with what they had, they were on the same page for awhile.
Then they started to make it big, and bigger still.
The source blames Flip or Flop, at least in part:
“She didn’t really expect to become a TV star, but she wants to enjoy their success and build their brand and really likes being out there.”
Basically, when one party likes the public aspect of their success more than the other, and starts to favor a different kind of lifestyle?
They’re neither the first, nor the last, to split for such reasons.
“Christina would be on board for plot lines producers came up with like freaking out over the wrong tile [or] finding a dead rodent in the corner.”
Tarek, conversely, “was always more reluctant” as a “star.”
“He’d pull it off, but he was never going to be a natural.”
Tarek, 35, and Christina, 33, are parents to daughter Taylor, 6, and son Brayden, 1, and say they are strongly committed to co-parenting.
At least outwardly, they seem to be doing well there. We wish them continued success figuring this out, whatever conclusion they reach.
