Ever since Mary-Kate Olsen and her husband, Olivier Sarkozy, began the arduous process of separating, the couple’s plans have been complicated by coronavirus at every turn. First Olsen’s original filing was rejected by the New York County Clerk while the courts were closed to nonemergency business due to the pandemic. Then an emergency order Olsen filed in the hope that Sarkozy would not be able to kick her out of their Gramercy apartment was also rejected. As soon as the courts reopened for new matters on Monday, she was finally able to file her divorce petition. On Wednesday, Page Six reported that their relationship was altered by coronavirus from the onset of the pandemic. According to the outlet, Olsen decided to end things when Sarkozy invited his ex-wife, Charlotte Bernard, to move into their $5 million Bridgehampton home.
“Olivier was concerned for the safety of his family in New York during the pandemic. He insisted to Mary-Kate that he wanted to bring his ex-wife, their kids, and his mother from the city to their Bridgehampton home,” a source told the outlet. “Maybe French people culturally have a different view of marriage, and while Mary-Kate loves his children, it was too much to have his ex-wife living with them during the pandemic. Would you want the ex-wife living with you for an unforeseeable amount of time in the middle of a crisis?”
Another source saw it slightly differently, claiming that the marriage had already run its course when Sarkozy invited Bernard to move in along with his two children. “It was simply erosion…growing apart. No cheating or betrayals…sometimes couples just run their course. The plan to move in his family was his way of moving on, and the final straw for Mary-Kate,” the source said. “The moment MK drove out of the driveway in April, Olivier had his mother, kids, and, wait for this, Charlotte, his ex-wife, move in to keep them in a safer place, away from COVID.” That source added that he and Bernard had remained on good terms after their divorce and claimed that Bernard actually attended Olsen and Sarkozy’s reportedly cigarette-filled nuptials in 2015.
As for Olsen, she wound up in what seem to be much quieter digs after leaving the Bridgehampton home. At first she was staying with her twin and business partner, Ashley Olsen, outside of New York City, according to E! Online. Last Thursday, Page Six reported that she decided to rent a Hamptons place of her own, paying $325,000 for a summer stay at an estate with a private dock.
More Great Stories From Vanity Fair
— Prince Harry’s Quarantine Lament: The Ex-Royal Is Reportedly Feeling a Little Sad in L.A.
— Astronaut Jessica Meir Returns Home to a “Completely Different Planet”
— Can a New Book Finally Settle the Feud Rumors Between Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton?
— This Is What Swedish Chefs Learned While Keeping Their Restaurants Open in the Pandemic
— Even Stephen King Thinks We’re Living in a Stephen King Book
— A Pandemic Won’t Kill the Open Office, but Slack Could
— From the Archive: The Lonely Heir, an Inside Look at Prince Charles’s Childhood
Looking for more? Sign up for our daily newsletter and never miss a story.