Thoughts on Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner's ugly divorce
Plus, recommendations from this week!
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I find it so interesting that in in a year so full of celebrity breakups, it’s Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner’s that’s becoming one of the most talked-about of them all. Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn, as well as #Scandoval, probably still have them beat, but one of those involves the single biggest music artist in the world, and the other blew up as a result of a perfect storm of reality TV mess and marketing. A Jonas brother’s divorce making this much noise in 2023 just feels a bit surprising on the surface.
But, if you really think about it for a bit, maybe it’s not. After years of doing their own things, the Jonas Brothers staged a perfectly orchestrated comeback in 2019 on the back of a killer comeback single in “Sucker,” as well as by leaning into nostalgia while rebranding themselves as husbands and family men. The arc from promise ring-wearing teeny boppers to sexed-up bachelors to cool married DILFs was complete (at least for Nick and Joe — Kevin and Danielle have really always been a unit). Their wives even co-starred with them in the “Sucker” music video, which helped propel it to No. 1 — the first of their careers.
Individually, the Jonas brothers were cool, fashionable dads with their own unique styles, while as a group, the Jonas Brothers were perfectly content being a successful touring legacy act. It’s been the perfect combo, really, as most of their most loyal fans are Millennial women at similar life stages to them who would love a night out seeing their favorite heartthrob band from their teen years live for a moms’ night out. (I went to their concert at Yankees Stadium last month, so I can say this from first-hand experience.)
But then there’s this divorce, which totally came out of nowhere and isn’t exactly ideal timing to be dealing with for Joe while he has so many eyes on him every night while on tour. He must really have wanted to get a divorce.
has a great timeline of the whole split so far in the latest edition of her newsletter , so click on that for every detail, but what’s fascinating to me is how quickly Joe has thrown away so much of the goodwill he’s built up with the public in the matter of just a couple of weeks. While I’m sure there’s a faction of diehard Swifties that’s been mad at him for the past 15 years for breaking up with Taylor Swift in a 27-second phone call back in 2008, generally speaking he was well-liked. But then came the PR spin.Through leaks to TMZ immediately after filing for divorce over Labor Day Weekend, somebody from Joe’s camp started painting Sophie as an absent, hard-partying mother who had done something unforgivable that Joe caught on their Ring camera. The internet immediately saw through these “sources” as Joe was then conveniently photographed taking his daughters to launch. The fact that the couple had previously gone to great lengths not to have their children photographed or share many details about them with the public at all was not lost on those who were paying attention.
Fast forward to this week when it became blatantly obvious that that ill-conceived joint statement the former couple released after the first round of tabloid leaks wasn’t going to stand. In a moment you surely did not miss, Sophie stepped out for dinner with Taylor. When they say a picture is worth a thousand words, they’re talking about these photos. In separate legal filings, it comes out that this girls’ dinner came one night after Joe and Sophie met up to discuss their children and Joe allegedly refused to give Sophie their children’s passports so that she could take them back to England. So, no, the timing was not a coincidence in the slightest.
As Sophie sees it, she and Joe agreed to raise their children in the UK, which is why they sold their home in Miami. As Joe sees it, Sophie is being unreasonable because she legally shouldn’t even be allowed to take the kids out of the country (he filed in Florida). Either way, Joe has also used the latest filing as an opportunity to backtrack on his brutal initial strategy of painting her in a bad light via anonymous sources: “Joe has already disavowed any and all statements purportedly made on his behalf that were disparaging of Sophie,” his lawyer wrote. Okay, but what about those convenient paparazzi photos with your kids? Sure, Jan.
Sophie’s proven this week that she can use the media and fans and paparazzi to her benefit just as well (read: better) than Joe can. Not only that, but having a powerful of an ally as T-Swift, one of the most media savvy celebrities in the game, in your corner not just to take photos with but also to, you know, get some advice from? That’s invaluable, and it’s already clear she’s taking a page or two from her book.
It’s never fun to see people go through a breakup, much less a fun, well-liked celebrity couple with young children, but what is fascinating is the ways in which such a breakup impacts either stars’ standing with the public as they use and manipulate the media to work in their favor. This one is far from over.
Read
This article from earlier this month is a must-read peek behind the curtain of Rotten Tomatoes and its largely unfortunate impact on how people decide what movies to see and how we view movie criticism. (Lane Brown for Vulture)
I loved this profile of “Real Housewives of New York” star Jenna Lyons (as well as the accompanying photos!), which did a fantastic job at capturing who she is, where she is in her career and what an enigma she is in the “Housewives” world. (Matthew Schneier for The Cut)
- also did a wonderful interview with her that had some great “Housewives” talk but focused more on fashion. Listen to that here!
Alex Cooper of “Call Her Daddy” is deep into the rebranding of her public image, and I find it fascinating. This profile does a great job at capturing what she's trying to accomplish in this next phase of her career and some of the contradictions that have arisen from this move. (EJ Dickson for Rolling Stone)
We’re in the era of meaningless online metrics. Here’s what that means and why that matters. (John Herrman for Intelligencer)
Have you noticed a recent change in Airbnb? You’re not alone. (Kate Lindsay for The Atlantic)
This piece on fashion’s “talent problem,” the evolution in what luxury brands value and how that impacts who they choose to design their lines was fascinating. (Cathy Horyn for The Cut)
What to make of the sudden comeback of ‘90s-style country music? (Justin Curto for Vulture)
Listen
“Believable: The Coco Berthmann Story”
I really enjoyed this true crime podcast from Dear Media about Coco Berthmann, who became famous online after sharing her story of allegedly surviving sex trafficking while growing up in Germany. People begin to question her story after she’s arrested for raising money after a fake cancer diagnosis, and this podcast digs deep into all aspects of her life. I didn’t love the use of AI to read out some texts and emails and such (maybe, like, pay voice actors instead?), but otherwise found this to be interesting and fairly well-done.
“Magnificent Jerk”
There have been just two episodes so far of this new podcast, whose host finds out a lot of previously secret information about her late uncle, who was the leader of a Chinese gang and wrote a screenplay about his life that was actually turned into a ‘90s movie starring Rob Lowe.
Fall 2023 Spotify Playlist
Here’s where I’ll be dropping all the new music I’m listening to from now until December — meant to be listened to on shuffle. Give it a follow! (Here’s my playlist from this summer if you want more.)
Watch
“The Super Models” (Apple TV+)
I’ve been so excited for this four-part docu-series about supermodels Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelist, Cindy Crawford and Christy Turlington ever since the trailer dropped this summer. I’ve watched the first two episodes, and it’s pretty incredible to hear about these women’s stories and careers and lives and legacies. I love how much of a sisterhood they’ve shared. And, yes, I’ve already shed a few tears.
“The Other Black Girl” (Hulu)
I’m halfway through this adaptation of Zakiya Dalila Harris’ book, which I recommend reading, and I’m really enjoying it. It isn’t quite a drama, it isn’t quite a thriller and it isn’t quite horror, but it has elements of all three that intertwine quite well. The two leads are great, as are the stacked group of actors who play supporting characters (Bellamy Young from “Scandal,” Eric McCormack from “Will & Grace” and the iconic Garcelle Beauvais).
Jessie Ware’s Cover of Cher’s “Believe” (YouTube)
The new reigning queen of disco covered Cher’s iconic hit while performing at a BBC Radio 2 festival in the UK last weekend, and I’ve watched it at least 25 times over the course of this week. The vocals, the crowd — the whole thing is perfection and sure to spark joy. Crossing my fingers this is on her setlist when I see her in October!
Self-Promotion
“We Should Talk” feat. Paige Lorenze
This week on my podcast for In The Know, which will shifting in focus to feature more influencer/TikTok/internet personality talent (Bravo interviews coming back very soon elsewhere, I promise!), is an interview with Paige Lorenze. We talked about her career, founding the clothing brand Dairy Boy, what it’s like dating a professional tennis player (her boyfriend is Tommy Paul) and more.
Currently
Savoring being at home in New York City for the next month-plus, getting back into my routine, not overcommitting to plans and working on an exciting new side project that I cannot wait to tell you about. :)