Rumours swirled last week that Reese Witherspoon’s ex-husband Jim Toth had been spotted with a new flame, four months after the couple announced their shock split.
According to reports, actor and producer Jim was staying with a new “girlfriend” in Costa Rica and the dynamic was “definitely romantic”.
And insiders say that while Jim may have begun a new romantic chapter, Reese, 47, is also keen to get back on the dating scene.
A source says, “Reese isn’t the type to sit around feeling sorry for herself, but when she found out Jim was taking his new girlfriend on a romantic vacation, it triggered her. It’s not that she wants him back – and part of her is happy for him – but she’s finding dating after divorce really challenging.
She’s having the worst luck and where she’s been all business and no play for so long, she doesn’t really know how to find a man.”
Reese’s close pal Sofia Vergara recently announced her divorce from husband of seven years Joe Manganiello, and her other BFF Jennifer Aniston is also currently on the market.
And while the girls can bond and spend time together, the insider also says that this has, in a way, been a hindrance, adding, “She’s asked friends to set her up but many of them are in the same boat as her. Others suggested she try a professional matchmaker, but that sounds so weird to her.”
But now she’s vowed to put herself out there a bit more over the next few months, after coming to the realisation that there is a void needing filling.
Award-winning actress Reese was married once before to actor Ryan Phillipe, with whom she shares a daughter Ava, 23, and son Deacon, 19. They called time on their marriage in 2006, seven years after tying the knot. She then went on to wed Jim in 2011 and they welcomed their only child, Tennessee, a year later.
Since announcing the split – which sources have suggested was down to their “respective business moves driving them apart” – Reese has been thriving at work, having executively produced Daisy Jones & The Six with her company Hello Sunshine, as well as accumulating several in-the-works projects, both as an actress and producer. Reese’s other main job is being a mum to her kids, and she is extremely close with lookalike daughter Ava.
But the source says this has also been holding her back. They say, “Reese would love to have some romance in her life. But the reality is, she doesn’t really have the time to focus on it. Between all the balls she has in the air for work and then keeping her family together and giving her three kids the TLC they need, there are hardly enough hours in the day.
“It has dawned on Reese that something’s missing and that she could very well end up single for the rest of her life unless something changes in her schedule. She’s determined to work out a way to spend some to focus on herself and actively make an effort to get back on the dating scene as, ultimately, she does want to find love again at some point.”
