Actress Ashley Judd has split from her husband, race car driver Dario Franchitti.
The couple released a statement last night announcing the split.
“We have mutually decided to end our marriage. We’ll always be family and continue to cherish our relationship based on the special love, integrity, and respect we have always enjoyed,” said the couple to US Weekly.
Judd, 44, and Franchitti, 39, gave no reason for the split and have yet to file divorce papers.
However, the former couple remains adamant the split was amiable. Last night, Judd tweeted “Family forever. @dariofranchitti.” Later, Franchitti responded “@ashleyjudd family forever.” The comment has since been removed from his Twitter.
The two were married for more than 12 years, tying the knot in 2001 after a two-year engagement. They had no children.
As a married couple, Judd and Franchitti took on wildly different pursuits. Franchitti, a native of Scotland, is a three-time Indianapolis 500 winner, who has continued to race around the world.
In recent years, Judd has stepped away from her acting career, which included films like High Crimes and Where the Heart Is. Instead, she increased her political involvement. Judd served as a delegate for Tennessee to the 2012 Democratic National Convention and campaigned for President Obama in 2008 and 2012.
It has been rumored Judd will run for the Senate in the next election, returning to Kentucky to do so, where she lived for many years.
So far, her rep remains mum on the subject. “Ashley has yet to decide about running for the United States Senate,” Judd spokeswoman Cara Tripicchio told Politico last month.“She is honored by the incredible encouragement from her fellow Kentuckians and the national interest, including Senator McConnell.”
In the meantime, Judd remains busy with several other humanitarian projects, working to increase AIDS awareness and lobbying for wilderness protection laws.
