The 45-year-old actress confirmed the breakup in a new interview with Us Weekly, published Friday. She spoke openly about the emotional toll of ending a relationship that many fans felt personally connected to.
“There was an element of the relationship that people really felt belonged to them,” said Sarah Shahi. “That was very sweet. But when things end, you feel like you’re going through it twice.”
Shahi and Adam Demos met in 2021 while filming Netflix’s Sex/Life, which was inspired by 44 Chapters About 4 Men. During the show’s two-season run, Shahi played Billie, a married woman torn between her stable family life and her desire for a former lover, played by Demos.
Although the series was popular, Netflix canceled it in 2023. Before the cancellation, Shahi had already spoken publicly about how difficult filming the second season was for her. On the podcast Not Skinny But Not Fat, she said she felt unsupported and was frustrated that she and Demos barely shared scenes, despite being partners in real life.
Even after the show ended, Shahi and Demos stayed together. However, Shahi said that breaking up while being in the public eye made the experience much harder.
“You’re going through it emotionally on a personal level,” she explained, “and then you’re going through it again on a much bigger level.”
This is not Shahi’s first public breakup. In 2020, she ended her 11-year marriage to Steve Howey. The former couple share three children: son William, 16, and 10-year-old twins Violet and Knox.
Looking back, Shahi said she realized she could no longer ignore how unhappy she felt. “I felt like I was suffocating,” she said, adding that choosing peace meant accepting that things would be messy and difficult.
Despite the divorce, Shahi said she and Howey now have a strong and healthy relationship as co-parents. She emphasized that she does not see the end of their marriage as a failure.
“I was in a relationship for 18 years and have three beautiful kids,” she said. “That is a success to me.”
Shahi added that she believes it’s important for her children to see that when something no longer works, it’s okay to let go — even when it’s hard.
Tags:
News
