Sophie Turner Talks Joe Jonas Divorce, Sexist Party Mom PR, And Taylor Swift

By Emily Richardson | Celebrity | May 15, 2024

Header Image Source: British Vogue

Back in September, Sophie Turner, 28, and Joe Jonas, 34, announced they were separating after four years of marriage. The couple share two daughters, ages 3 and 1. Despite a boilerplate statement that included classic amicable celeb-divorce-go-tos like, “this is a united decision” and “respect our wishes for privacy,” shit got messy real fast.

Tabloids immediately painted Sophie as a party girl/absentee mom. Soon, pics of this alleged “partying” (she went to the wrap party for her upcoming series Joan) were making the media rounds. Joe? He got to be the doting father and was papped taking his daughters out to eat. HMMMMM. HOW VERY SUSPICIOUS.

Sophie opens up about this experience in the latest issue of British Vogue, calling it “the worst few days of my life”:

“I remember I was on set, I was contracted to be on set for another two weeks, so I couldn’t leave. My kids were in the States and I couldn’t get to them because I had to finish Joan. And all these articles started coming out…” she says, pausing to sip on a strawberry smoothie. “It hurt because I really do completely torture myself over every move I make as a mother - mum guilt is so real! I just kept having to say to myself, ‘None of this is true. You are a good mum and you’ve never been a partier.’”
“I mean, it’s unfathomable the amount of people that will just make shit up and put it up based on a picture. A picture might tell a thousand words, but it’s not my story. It felt like I was watching a movie of my life that I hadn’t written, hadn’t produced, or starred in. It was shocking. I’m still in shock.”

She credits the cast and crew of Joan for helping her through this harrowing time. The show’s exec producer, Ruth Kenley-Letts, tells Vogue that the paparazzi were “relentless”:

“I just couldn’t believe the lies that I read, that she was somehow out partying. And I knew they were lies, because I was with her. I’d been with her for five months straight.”

Sophie says she was grateful when her fans called out the tabloids for their misogynist narrative:

“If something like this had happened to me 10 years ago I don’t think I would have had the same support. I just feel very lucky to be alive in a time when people are open-minded,” she says. “Thank fuck for Gen Z.”

But public support didn’t make the divorce proceedings any easier. Sophie says, “There were some days that I didn’t know if I was going to make it.” When her lawyer reminded her she was fighting for her kids, the actress was able to find the strength to get through it.

And don’t forget all the help she got from fellow Joe Jonas-ex Taylor Swift, whom Sophie describes as “an absolute hero.” After the separation, Sophie needed a place to stay in New York City. When she called up Taylor for advice, the pop star immediately suggested Sophie and her kids stay at her apartment for free:

“I’ve never been more grateful to anyone than I am for her because she took my children and me, and provided us with a home and a safe space,” she says. “She really has a heart of gold.”

Sophie tells Vogue that she isn’t used to being on her own. That makes sense, she got engaged to Joe when she was 20: “Because he was older than me, I just felt like I was really taken care of, to the point I came back home and didn’t know how to do anything for myself.” She also “never really learned how to date.” And while Sophie doesn’t explicitly mention her hoity-toity new beau, Peregrine ~~Falcon~~ John Dickinson Pearson, the future 5th Viscount of Cowdray, she admits she’s “having fun dating.”

As for her relationship with her estranged husband, Sophie is doing her best to remain positive and focus on her daughters:

“I’m unhappy with the way everything played out, especially when it comes to my children. They’re the victims in all of this. But I think we’re doing the best we can,” she says. “I’m confident that we can figure it out. Joe is a great father to our children and that’s all that I can ask for.”

Damn, she’s classy. Here’s Sophie for British Vogue: