Married Life Hits a Final Sour Note for JLo, Mark Anthony

Singer-actress Jennifer Lopez and her husband, Marc Anthony, have announced they are ending their marriage after seven years. Lopez and Anthony, who were married in 2004 and are parents to three-year-old twins Max and Emme, released a statement on Friday, according to CNN. "This was a very difficult decision," said the statement, which was released through Lopez's representative Mark Young. "We have come to amicable conclusion on all matters. It is a painful time for all involved, and we appreciate the respect of our privacy at this time." Lopez had been married twice before, and Anthony once before, to a former Miss Universe, Dayanara Torres. Lopez and Anthony had been friends for years and dated for a short while in the 1990s. After Lopez's engagement to the actor Ben Affleck ended, they began seeing each other again and were married at her home in June 2004, according to Us Weekly. During the seven years of their marriage, they had undertaken a number of projects together, including acting opposite each other in the 2006 film El Cantante, working on each other's recordings and touring together, according to the Los Angeles Times. They are producers of the Latin American talent competition, Q'Viva, or The Chosen, according to Hollywood Reporter. Lopez, 41, had a high-profile career before she married Anthony, with hit records and starring roles in Hollywood romantic comedies. Recently, she was a popular judge on the TV show American Idol, along with Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. She said on Thursday that she wasn't sure if she would return for a second season on the Fox show, according to Hollywood Reporter. She had signed a one-year deal with the show for $US12 million ($A11.23 million). Anthony, 42, has won two Grammys and is the top-selling salsa artist of all time, according to the Los Angeles Times. He has two children from his previous marriage to Torres, Us Weekly says. The split comes as somewhat of a surprise, according to Us Weekly. Last year, Lopez and Anthony renewed their vows on their sixth anniversary. And in January, Lopez talked happily about her life as a wife and mother on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, saying, "As soon as I had the babies, I thought to myself, 'I want to do this a thousand more times ... I love this. This is life.' " But, noticeably, Anthony wasn't present with his wife at the BAFTA Brits to Watch event in Los Angeles last Saturday, where Lopez, who was accompanied by her mother, met Prince William and his new wife Kate, who were visiting from England, according to Us Weekly.