A public breakup and a surprise divorce: What led to Lupita Nyong'o and Joshua Jackson's relationship.

After months of dodging speculation about whether they were dating, Joshua Jackson and Lupita Nyong'o have hard-launched.

The pair were photographed walking hand in hand in Joshua Tree, California, confirming their relationship months after each went through a breakup.

The photos did seem like only a matter of time: paparazzi photos had captured them leaving a supermarket together earlier in December (and obviously, grocery shopping is Peak New Couple Behaviour), although they were very uncomfortable with the lenses pointed at them (fair!) and Nyong'o slouched low in the passenger seat as they left.

Watch: the horoscopes go through a breakup. Post continues below video.

They also hung out at a Janelle Monáe concert in October, which had sources telling TMZ that "nothing romantic" was going on because "they've known each other for years".

Now, it seems, they've said 'f**k it'.

Each had previously confirmed breakups in October.

On October 2, Jodie Turner-Smith filed for divorce from Jackson, 45, after almost four years of marriage, citing "irreconcilable differences". They have one daughter, Juno, born in April 2020.

In her filing, Turner-Smith detailed their date of separation as September 13. She also requested joint legal and physical custody of their daughter.

He responded to the filing with his own in November, making it seem like a very amicable split. He agreed on the custody arrangement and the "irreconcilable differences" reasoning, as well as adhering to their pre-nuptial agreement dictating how they would divide their assets.

The only difference in their filings, seen by The Blast, was one thing: Jackson listed their date of separation as September 30, 17 days after Turner-Smith's named date.

It is believed the pair will appoint a private judge to settle the divorce, keeping the details behind closed doors.

Meanwhile, Nyong'o, 40, had been dating musician and sports commentator Selema Masekela for about a year until confirming their breakup in an Instagram Story also in October — and the same day as photos from the aforementioned Janelle Monáe show dropped.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Lupita Nyong'o (@lupitanyongo)

"I find myself in a season of heartbreak because of a love suddenly and devastatingly extinguished by deception," she wrote at the time, stating that she needed to share this "personal truth" to "publicly dissociate myself from someone I can no longer trust".

"I am reminded that the magnitude of the pain I am feeling is equal to the measure of my capacity for love. And so, I am choosing to face the pain, cultivating the courage to meet my life exactly as it is, and trusting that this too shall pass."

She said she hoped "the knowledge of my experience might be useful to someone else out there experiencing the grip of heartbreak who is poised to try and escape from the pain and miss out on the wisdom that comes from it."

"Let's face our pain so we don't spread it," she concluded, with the hashtag #breakup.

Feature image: Getty.

Do you enjoy a weekend away or a trip interstate? Take our survey now to go in the running to win a $50 gift voucher.