Actor Shailene Woodley seemingly spilled some tea about her breakup with NFL star Aaron Rodgers, including what she really blames for their split. Woodley and Rodgers, who met after their friends set them up during the COVID-19 pandemic, broke up in February 2022, a year into their surprise engagement. As the news broke, an In Touch insider claimed that Rodgers’ football career was leaving little room for romance. “While Shailene is supportive of Aaron’s career, he put football first and they were barely spending any time together,” revealed a source. “She felt he neglected their relationship. Neither of them was happy.” Meanwhile, Rodgers was reportedly nervous about saying “I do.”
Over the years, the “Big Little Lies” star has seemingly shared pieces about her breakup with Rodgers with fans. During an interview with Net-a-Porter, Woodley indirectly revealed that she filmed her show, “Three Women,” while navigating the heartbreak from their breakup. “It was hard to film because I was going through the darkest, hardest time in my life; it was winter in New York, and my personal life was shi**y, so it felt like a big pain bubble for eight months,” shared the actor in January 2023. However, her work obligations actually helped her to push through the pain. “I was so grateful that at least I could go to work and cry and process my emotions through my character,” she added.
Now, Woodley may have revealed the reason for their split.
Was Aaron Rodgers an unavailable partner?
Bustle. While she didn’t name Aaron Rodgers, she added, “I fell in love over and over with unavailability … I love easy and I care easy, but I do not love lightly, and I do not care lightly.” The actor also revealed that it took her time to realize that fixing an unhappy relationship wasn’t her issue. “Ultimately, that has helped me walk away without the need to understand why certain things didn’t play out the way that I may have desired them to.” Between Rodgers’ hectic NFL schedule and his and Woodley’s second attempt at a romantic relationship, all signs point to him.
It’s also possible that Rodgers’ NFL fame, paired with her own, invited more eyeballs onto their romance, which made navigating it extra difficult. “It honestly never really hit me that millions of people around the world were actually watching these things and paid attention to them,” Woodley shared with Net-a-Porter. “Then, I dated somebody in America who was very, very famous. It was the first time that I’d had a quote-unquote ‘famous’ relationship, and I watched [the] scrutiny, opinions, the desire for people to know my life and his life and our life — it just felt violating in a way that, before, it was fun.” Describing herself as a “private person,” Woodley felt like she was oversharing with people that she didn’t trust.
Well, at least Woodley is embracing her truth.
