Reese & Ryan: End of the Line

They wed young, worked hard on their relationship and doted on their two kids. But after seven years of marriage, Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe are calling it quits.

Originally posted Thursday November 02, 2006 12:00 PM EST

Witherspoon and Phillippe “seemed very serious” at a New York City screening of Flags of Our Fathers on Oct. 16, says a witness. When asked about their marriage while doing press for the film, he said, “Our relationship, we try to figure out, and this business makes it more difficult.” Photo by: Lawrence Lucier / FilmMagic

For Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe the Oct. 16 premiere of Flags of Our Fathers at New York City’s Tribeca Grand Hotel should have been a time of celebration. It was a big night for Phillippe, who stars in the World War II drama: His parents and grandmother had traveled from Delaware for the event, and Witherspoon was graciously posing for photographs at his side. But it soon became apparent that all was not well with the couple. As they walked down the red carpet, “Reese looked anxious,” says an observer. “As soon as they got inside, she bolted to the back for a glass of wine.” That apparently wasn’t quite enough to take the edge off. By the time the movie stars and their guests had decamped to an afterparty at the nearby SoHo Grand Hotel, “there was definitely tension between the two of them,” says a guest. Another partygoer noticed that Phillippe “looked dour and serious” as he mingled with well–wishers and his family inside a penthouse suite, while Witherspoon kept her distance on a roof terrace. At one point several witnesses overheard the two arguing. “The two of them were in the hall,” says one source. “She was ready to go, and he was still enjoying himself. He wanted to stay longer.”