9 celeb parents on what it's like co-parenting with a famous ex.

Breakups and divorce are complicated enough, and when kids are involved, it makes the entire situation a lot messier.

Oftentimes, the stories about co-parenting are told through a negative lens, with people complaining about their exes and how exhausting it is having to deal with them. 

Watch: 3 Dating Mistakes Women Make After Divorce. Post continues below.

However, these celebs have proven that it doesn't have to be hell, and if both parties are willing to cooperate, a lot of good can come out of remaining civil with your ex for the sake of the children.

Jenna Dewan and Channing Tatum.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jenna Dewan (@jennadewan)

In an interview with Romper, Jenna Dewan, 43, opened up about what it's like co-parenting with ex-husband, Channing Tatum. The former couple shares 10-year-old Everly, and have been seen attending her Irish dance performances together.

"It's always a journey," the pregnant actress said. "It never ends. You just learn as you go and get better at certain things, and for me, Evie will always be my top priority. I just continually put her first. That's how I can manage all hard things."

Ali Wong and Justin Hakuta.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ali Wong (@aliwong)

Ali Wong has so much appreciation for her ex-husband, that she gave him a shoutout in her acceptance speech during the 2024 Golden Globes.

"I really need to thank the father of my children and my best friend, Justin, for all of your love and support," she said. "It’s because of you that I’m able to be a working mother."

The two split after eight years of marriage, but they've chosen to stay on good terms for the sake of their two daughters, Mari and Nikki.

Megan Fox and Brian Austin Green.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Brian Green (@brianaustingreen)

Megan Fox and Brian Austin's Green marriage lasted for a decade before they decided to part ways in 2020.

And while they've both moved on to new relationships - Fox with Machine Gun Kelly and Green with Dancing With the Stars', Sharna Burgess, the two have maintained a great co-parenting bond for their three sons, Noah, Bodhi and Journey.

"There’s no rule book to it. There’s no way of doing it right or doing it wrong.  We are learning as we go. The important thing for us is just communicating as much as we can," Green said on the Hollywood Raw podcast.

Burgess also came forward and said that she and Fox have a "great" relationship.

"And the reason it’s great is because the focus is on the kids," she said on the Not So Hollywood podcast. 

"There’s nothing else that needs to be considered, other than making this a beautiful, healthy, and whole environment for them…We do a great job of co-parenting, and we have fun with it as much as we can."

Jennifer Garner, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez.

Ben Affleck, Violet Affleck and Jennifer Lopez. Image: Instagram.

What do you get when a troubled Hollywood star splits from his actor wife and marries the triple threat he almost married 20 years earlier? A 'healthy' co-parenting situation, apparently. 

As per Entertainment Tonight, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner are "learning and growing together as a new, extended family."

Lopez shares Max and Emme, 15, with ex-husband Marc Anthony, while Garner and Affleck are parents to daughters Violet, 18, and Seraphina, 15, and son Samuel, 11. "They have open communication and both are working to make this transition the best it could possibly be," the source adds, a year after Bennifer tied the knot.

Back in December 2022, JLo told Vogue that blending their families was "going really well so far", despite the teens having "so many feelings". 

She said, “What I hope to cultivate with our family is that his kids have a new ally in me.”

Miranda Kerr, Orlando Bloom and Katy Perry.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Miranda (@mirandakerr)

Miranda Kerr and Orlando Bloom’s three-year marriage might have ended in 2013, but the pair found their soulmates elsewhere in Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel and singer Katy Perry, respectively. What they also found were two people who happily dove head-first into co-parenting the former glamour couple’s son Flynn, 13.

"From day one, Orlando and I really made a commitment to put Flynn's needs at the forefront of everything we do. So that's how he's grown up - with two loving parents that want the best for him and then obviously, when Evan and Katy came into the picture, we just felt that offered Flynn even more love and he really sees that," Kerr told Stellar’s Something To Talk About podcast.

She also scored a best friend and “sister” in the ‘I Kissed A Girl’ singer, too. "I literally say how thankful I am for Katy every day. As she's said in the past, she will sometimes sidebar text me and be like, 'Hey, what do you think of this?' or 'What if we do this?' and 'Maybe this is a good solution' so we're always kind of working together as that female force to try and do the best thing for our families," she continued.

Forget Orlando and Evan, this co-parenting partnership is all about the women.

Gwyneth Paltrow, Chris Martin and Dakota Johnson.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dakota Johnson Source (@johnsonsource)

In a 2020 Harper's Bazaar interview, Gwyneth Paltrow gave her ex-husband Chris Martin’s girlfriend, Dakota Johnson, a glowing reference.

"I love her," Paltrow said. "I can see how it would seem weird because it’s sort of unconventional. But I think, in this case, just having passed through it iteratively, I just adore her."

But during an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show that same year, the Oscar-winning actress suggested her ex-hubby is a little trickier to contend with when it comes to co-parenting. "Some days it's not as good as it looks. We also have good days and bad days, but I think it's driving towards the same purpose of unity and love and what's best for [our kids]," she admitted.

"We have this idea that just because we break up we can't love the things about the person anymore that we loved and that's not true," she added.

The Coldplay frontman and Paltrow share daughter, Apple, 19, and son Moses, 17, and consciously uncoupled” in 2014. The actress had been married to TV producer, Brad Falchuk since 2018.

Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Naomi Watts (@naomiwatts)

"There are good days and bad days. Liev and I are on great terms and we're trying to do our absolute best for the sake of the children, and we hope to keep moving forward in that way," Naomi Watts told Vogue Australia of co-parenting their teens Sasha and Samuel with her ex, actor Liev Schreiber. That was in 2017, a year after their breakup.

Fast forward to 2019, and Watts told PorterEdit how she was "proud" of how far they’d come. 

"We’re doing things very differently. I’m pretty proud of us, corny as that may sound. We’ve made it our absolute priority to be good and kind to each other and we’re absolutely committed to that."

Schreiber is just chuffed with how they’re nailing their situation. The Ray Donovan actor told Sunday Today with Willie Geist how it brings him joy to see their children’s adoration for their mum. 

"I was making some jokes this morning at breakfast about mommy with the [kids], and their eyes light up when I talk about her. You can see how important it is to them that their parents care about each other and that no matter what happens, you continue to try and do that," he said.

Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick.

Image: Instagram

"Scott and I are so thankful that we've been able to work together to raise the best family we possibly can," Kourtney Kardashian said in a joint interview with ex Scott Disick for her lifestyle website, Poosh. They share three children, sons Mason, 13, and Reign, nine, and daughter Penelope, 12.

"While at times things aren't perfect and we don't have all the answers, we came to realise that we're playing on the same team, and we'll always have our friendship and love for one another," Kardashian added, while Disick had some advice for new co-parents. 

"Communication, mutual respect, and you know, some kind of sympathy toward each other because you’re both going through a lot, and it’s a huge adjustment."

These two make it sound easy, but we know how turbulent their relationship has been through the years via their reality show Keeping Up With The Kardashians and then, The Kardashians. From navigating parenthood to a breakup, and then bringing new partners into the mix, plus Scott’s party-boy years – it’s great to see them come out on top all these years later.

Oh and did we mention Kardashian’s new hubby, Travis Barker has children and a stepchild of his own? Can you ‘keep up’ with the Kardashians?

Demi Moore and Bruce Willis.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Demi Moore (@demimoore)

It’s been 23 years since Demi Moore and Bruce Willis divorced, but their family unit is stronger than ever before.

In 2015, their daughter Rumer, now 35, told Larry King, of the early days of their split: "I was 10. I mean, I think at that time I didn’t have as much of an understanding of the public side of it to have that affect me as much. But I have to say, I’m so thankful and grateful that my parents made such an effort at that time."

By the time the pandemic came around, fans were surprised to learn Demi bunked in with Bruce, his wife Emma Hemming and their daughters Mabel and Evelyn, plus Demi and Bruce’s adult daughters Rumer, Scout and Tallulah. The family called it “chaotic neutral” and said they endured a period of lockdown together for as a "precaution".

We later learned Bruce was suffering from aphasia, a form of dementia that affects cognitive abilities. "We are moving through this as a strong family unit… As Bruce always says, 'Live it up' and together we plan to do just that," the blended family said in a statement.

This story was originally published on June 16, 2023, and has since been updated with new information.

Feature Image: Instagram