How long were Will Arnett and Amy Poehler married? Relationship explored as Jason Bateman asks comedian about split from podcast cohost

Amy Poehler was the surprise guest on the latest episode of the podcast Smartless, which is hosted by her ex-husband Will Arnett alongside Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes.

Amy Poehler and Will Arnett were married for almost a decade before they divorced. Poehler married Arnett in 2003, according to Vanity Fair. The former couple, who had two children together over their 9-year-long marriage, split in 2012. After being separated from Arnett for a couple of years, Poehler filed for divorce in 2014. According to US Magazine, Arnett and Poehler’s divorce was finalized in 2016.

Amy Poehler surprises Will Arnett on his Smartless podcast

Amy Poehler’s appearance on Smartless took her former partner by surprise. As per the format of the show, one of the co-hosts gets a chance to invite a new guest each week. The secret guest’s identity, which is hidden from the other hosts, is revealed during the podcast. For the yet unreleased April 21 episode of Smartless, the secret guest was none other than comedian and actress, as well as co-host Arnett’s ex-wife, Amy Poehler. She had been invited secretly to the show by Sean Hayes.

Even though Arnett was taken aback when he realized his ex-wife was the surprise guest of the podcast, the former couple did not betray any awkwardness while they were on the show.

Arnett revealed that the two are in touch with each other and have remained good friends. However, he was pleasantly surprised to see Poehler on the show as the two had talked on text message the night before. Poehler revealed that she had made extra effort to keep her appearance a secret from her ex-husband. As per US Magazine, she shared:

“Our youngest saw my schedule on the kitchen table and said, ‘You’re doing ‘Smartless?’ Does Dad know?’ And I said, ‘No, don’t say anything.’”

Co-host Jason Bateman could not resist his curiosity. He asked Sean Hayes whether the latter had run the idea of inviting Poehler past Arnett, to which Poehler reacted:

“What are you guys talking about? Why do you have to float anything past anybody? Guys, nice, by the way, great welcome. Nice to see you all…I mean Jesus, you’re all talking about how weird it is that I’m here. Hi, I’m your guest. Nice to see you. Happy to be here.”

According to US Magazine, Bateman asked the former couple the million dollar question: About how their marriage started to break, much to the amusement of the podcast hosts and Poehler. He jokingly prodded:

“We’re going to get into it. When did it first start to fracture?”

Amy Poehler and Will Arnett’s relationship explored

Amy Poehler and Will Arnett first met in 1996, but they started dating in 2000, when they were reintroduced through mutual friends. Recalling his first encounter with Poehler in 1996, Arnett told the People magazine:

“I went with my then-girlfriend, and she was like, 'You have a crush on that girl!’... Amy did stick out. She was fantastic and obviously really cute.”

The couple made their fist public appearance together in 2002, when they arrived for the the screening of the film, Insomnia. They got married in 2003.

A few months later, Anrett’s popular show Arrested Development started airing on television. It was also on Arrested Development that the couple appeared together onscreen for the first time. Poehler guest-starred in five episodes of the hit show.

In 2007, the couple appeared together again on Blades of Glory, a show about figure-skating, in which the two played siblings. Arnett, while speaking to the People about acting with his wife on the show had said:

“It was a lot of fun, and obviously, to play brother and sister was kind of… creepy”

The couple welcomed their first child in 2008, and in 2010 they became parents again.

About Amy Poehler and Will Arnett’s split

Both Amy Poehler and Will Arnett have tried to keep the matter of their divorce private.

However, in an interview with The Guardian, Arnett had revealed that his divorce from Poehler had been emotionally shattering for him. Arnett was shooting for Arrested Development’s revival at the time. When the makers decided to revive the show, Arnett was going through his separation, and although he was excited to be back on Arrested Development, Arnett shared that he was emotionally fragile at the time. He said:

“Just brutal, brutal, brutal. I was driving to the set one day and I pulled over to the side of the road and cried for an hour.”

Similarly, Poehler echoed Arnett’s feelings, when she revealed her thoughts on the breakup of her marriage with Arnett. As per Vanity Fair, Poehler, in her memoir, Yes Please, wrote:

“I will say a few things. I am proud of how my ex-husband, Will, and I have been taking care of our children; I am beyond grateful he is their father; and I don’t think a [nearly] 10-year marriage constitutes failure. That being said, getting a divorce really sucks.”

After their divorce, the former couple have been co-parenting their two children. Per US Magazine, Arnett spoke about his and Peohler’s decision to co-parent during the latest episode of Smartless, and shared:

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“I’m also very proud of, certainly as parents, what we’ve been able to do. That has been really important to both of us. I’m really, really lucky to have her as a partner in this way”

Meanwhile, Will Arnett welcomed his third child along with girlfriend Alessandra Brawn in 2020, eight years after his split from Amy Poehler. As per Vanity Fair, Amy Poehler would date Nike Kroll for two years between 2013 and 2015.

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