John Stamos and Rebecca Romijn got married in the late ’90s, but they separated after six years and contentiously finalized their divorce in 2005.
The actress and model went on to marry Jerry O’Connell in 2007, and they share twin daughters, Charlie Tamara Tulip and Dolly Rebecca Rose, who were born in 2008.
Meanwhile, the “Full House” actor went on to marry Caitlin McHugh in February 2018 and they welcomed their first child, a son named Billy, two months later.
Despite Stamos and Romijn moving on from their failed marriage with new spouses, they have had quite a lot to say about each other over the years.
X-woman
Before announcing their separation in 2004, Stamos showed up to support Romijn at the premiere of “X-Men 2” in May 2003.
Stamos later revealed during a 2006 interview with Howard Stern that they had ended their relationship several months before the premiere.
“We went to that together, but we had already been split up for like 6 months,” he admitted. “I just couldn’t say anything.”
Down in the dumps
Five years after their separation, Stamos reflected on the public’s perception of their failed marriage.
“Everybody thought that she dumped me [because] her career was on fire and mine wasn’t,” he told People in 2009. “But that wasn’t the case. We just both woke up one day and it had run its course.”
He also shut down rumors that his partying played a role in their breakup.
“I don’t think it contributed to it. I was lost there for a while. I think I needed to be on my own to be me again,” he said.
Out of Sight, Out of Mind
Romijn wasn’t keeping tabs on Stamos after their breakup.
“I have no idea what is going on with him these days,” she told Us Weekly in November 2013.
That same year, she told Redbook magazine that some people still referred to her as “Rebecca Romijn-Stamos” despite divorcing eight years prior.
Full Spouse
Stamos shared that Romijn’s husband is a good sport when it comes to the former couple’s past on Justin Long’s “Life Is Short” podcast in 2021.
“Well, we sort of moved near them, but I haven’t seen or talked to [Rebecca],” Stamos said. But [Jerry] is funny about [it]. I’ve seen some stuff — he said his kids watched ‘Full House’ and said I was their dad or something.”
Stamos continued, “But he’s a funny guy — that’s a guy who works hard. I’m happy for them. That’s it. Just letting go, and — ‘God bless you guys, good for you. I’m here, you’re there.’ But it took me a long time to get to any of that.”
Later in the episode, Long touched base with O’Connell, who said Stamos “seems like a great guy.”
“He recently moved really close to my family and I. So my kids have a joke when we’re driving — my kids are always like ‘There he is, there he is,'” O’Connell said. “My kids are dying to meet him. My kids are infatuated with him because of the ‘Full House’ thing … They’re in love [with] him, everyone is.”
First Run-In
Romijn saw Stamos for the first time since their breakup in 2021 when she was with her kids.
“I finally saw him just a few weeks ago [for] the first time since we split up,” she told O’Connell on “The Talk” in May 2022. “I had the girls in the car. We were sitting in after-school traffic at a strip mall and I saw him.”
“There he was, walking right in front of the car, cap pulled down, sunglasses on. … I was with him for 10 years,” she added. “I would recognize that gait from a block away. I recognize the way his body moves. I know that walk [and] I’m familiar with his body.”
When O’Connell asked why she didn’t say hello, Romijn joked she was having a bad hair day.
“I certainly wouldn’t want you there [either],” she told O’Connell. “That would be his worst nightmare.”
Divorce makes the heart grow fonder
Romijn admitted that she missed “a lot” of things about Stamos after they split.
“I have a lot of really fun memories,” Romijn explained to O’Connell during the same 2022 discussion on “The Talk.” “I have a lot of fond memories of him. A lot of things about him that I miss. But yeah, it’s tricky. It’s a very hard decision to come to when you decide to end a marriage. It was heartbreaking.”
But she also recalled how dreadful the ending of their marriage was.
“Going through a divorce is terrible, it’s awful,” Romijn said. “I was with him for 10 years. Divorce feels like a failure … and there were a lot of things that I had to let go of that were very sad.”
Hate’s a strong word
Stamos admitted that he “hated” Romijn and referred to her as “the devil” during their divorce.
“I just hated her,” he told People in October 2023. “I couldn’t believe how much I hated her, and it ruined my life.”
He reflected on their long breakup, calling the split “shattering.”
“It went on [for] years and years,” he told the magazine, noting that he played a part in their relationship’s downfall.
“It was very much the opinion that she dumped me because her career was going great and mine wasn’t. I don’t blame her for it. It was just the perception that people took,” he added. “Maybe they weren’t wrong. She was doing great at that time and I wasn’t.”
Man Down
Stamos admitted that he let himself feel “emasculated” by Romijn’s growing success during their marriage.
“I loved her and I thought she was super talented. So I was happy to do that,” he said on Sirius XM’s “The Howard Stern Show”(per People) in October 2023.
“But I forgot about my own stuff. She was taking off and I just wasn’t paying attention to mine. And it wasn’t her fault.”
He remembered thinking that he had enough fame from his role in “Full House” and wanted to “put the spotlight on her.”
“And I loved watching it. I think that she outgrew me,” he said, adding that he only put “50, 60 percent” effort into their marriage and his own career at the time.
“I didn’t work on anything. I didn’t work as hard as I should at anything,” he said, noting that if he had tried, his life “would have been a lot better.”
Stamos’ Tell-All
Stamos released his new memoir, “If You Would Have Told Me” in October 2023.
He opened up about Romijn in the book, saying he met his ex-wife when he and former “Full House” co-star Lori Loughlin were “on the precipice of turning romantic.”
Stamos recalled that he and Loughlin had “the sort of true friendship that’s supposed to be the foundation of a great, lasting relationship.”
But when Stamos and Loughlin attended a Victoria’s Secret fashion show afterparty as friends, he met Romijn and decided to pursue her instead.
“In my mind it was like … the two Sandys in ‘Grease!’” he wrote.
Stamos also detailed the last time he and Romijn saw each other, which was when they had a joint meeting with their attorneys to hash out their divorce.
“I don’t really feel she owes me anything more than an apology.” he wrote (via People.) “I guess I owe her one, too. But we don’t say a word. I walk over and give her a hug. We spill tears. We had promised each other that we would spend some time together after today, but we don’t.”
“This will be the last time I ever see her. We will not cross paths again, we will not run into each other at events. This is the end.”
Stamos wrote that it took a “long time” to move on from Romjin and he grew angry toward her. While struggling, he turned to alcohol to deal with his emotions and eventually got a DUI and subsequently attended rehab.
Romijn’s husband later claimed that he and his wife didn’t get a heads-up that Stamos would be writing about the Victoria’s Secret model in the bombshell memoir.
“We find out just like anyone else,” O’Connell said on “Access Hollywood,” adding that they didn’t “get any warning.”
