Months before officially filing for divorce from Jax Taylor, Brittany Cartwright exclusively told Us Weekly what would push her to sever marital ties.
“We need to have a serious conversation,” Cartwright, 35, shared in an April Us cover story about where she stood at the time with Taylor, 45. “Every time I try to talk to him, it turns into an argument but I’m obviously not going to do this for very long.”
Cartwright — who shares son Cruz, 3, with Taylor — had announced the pair’s separation months before the interview. “Jax and I are taking time apart,” she said during a February episode of the duo’s “When Reality Hits” podcast.
During her April talk with Us, Cartwright charged that Taylor hadn’t put in the work to mend their marriage. “Things are in his hands if he’s going to fix some things in our relationship, so we will see,” she said, adding that she’s “not seeing enough effort” from his side.
“He needs to go to therapy,” she explained. “He doesn’t need to be staying out at the bar all the time. He needs to respect me more and stop taking me for granted. I was the closest person to him and was kind of like his punching bag. He was always giving me jabs. I can’t deal with that for the rest of my life.”
As for the future, Cartwright wasn’t 100 percent certain what was in store for the Vanderpump Rules alums. When asked whether there’s a “chance” they could rekindle their romance, Cartwright admitted, “definitely.”
“But I won’t waste my time and get back into a toxic situation,” she said. “Now the veil has been lifted and I see how much I was always cleaning up Jax’s messes. I’m thrown in the middle of all these fights and constantly forced to apologize for him in the media and to friends. It’s hard.”
If the pair were going to divorce, Cartwright noted they hadn’t ironed out details about their living situation yet. “We haven’t really gotten to figure that out yet,” she said. “I would love to stay there with me and Cruz and take it over.”
Us confirmed on Tuesday, August 27, that Cartwright officially filed for divorce from Taylor after five years of marriage. Per court docs obtained by Us, Cartwright cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for their split. She also listed their date of separation as January 24.
Cartwright is seeking primary legal and physical custody of Cruz with visitation for Taylor. She does not want the court to award spousal support to either of them.
Her filing came days after Taylor completed his 30-day in-patient treatment for his “mental health struggles.” His rep told Us in a statement, “Jax has spent the last 30 days in treatment and will be heading back home later this week. It’s been an emotional month for him and he’s most looking forward to spending time with his son.”
Cameras are currently rolling for season 2 of The Valley.
