Miley Cyrus & Liam Hemsworth: A Decade of On-and-Off Ended in Less Than a Year of Marriage
Ten years of on-and-off. Less than one year of marriage. A Malibu wildfire, a same-week kiss with someone else, and a prenup that made the exit quick.
Key Facts
What Happened
Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth's love story began on the set of The Last Song in 2009 when she was 16 and he was 19. What followed was a decade of breakups, reconciliations, public transformations, and tabloid speculation. They finally married in a small ceremony at their Nashville home on December 23, 2018, just weeks after the devastating Woolsey wildfire destroyed their Malibu home. Many observers believed the shared trauma of losing their home had pushed them to finally commit.
The marriage lasted less than eight months. In August 2019, photos emerged of Cyrus kissing Kaitlynn Carter, Brody Jenner's ex-wife, during a vacation in Italy. The same week, representatives confirmed the couple had separated. Hemsworth filed for divorce in Los Angeles on August 21, 2019, citing irreconcilable differences. The speed of the filing and the overlapping timeline with Cyrus's new relationship dominated tabloid coverage for months.
The divorce was finalized on January 28, 2020, making it one of the quickest celebrity divorces in recent memory. The key factor was their prenuptial agreement, which predetermined how assets would be divided. Hemsworth specifically asked the court not to award spousal support to either party, consistent with the prenup terms. Cyrus kept the couple's pets, and property division, including the Malibu real estate, was handled according to the pre-existing agreement.
Cyrus later channeled the breakup into her music, most notably the hit 'Flowers,' widely interpreted as a message to Hemsworth. The song became one of the biggest hits of 2023 and won a Grammy. The case demonstrates a recurring pattern: trauma-bonded marriages, where couples marry during or immediately after a crisis, often have short lifespans. The wildfire that brought them together could not sustain a relationship that had been unstable for a decade.
Legal Breakdown: Prenuptial Agreements
Prenups in Short Marriages
Even in a marriage lasting less than eight months, the prenup was the decisive document. Without it, California community property laws would have governed the division of any assets or income earned during the marriage. With it, the divorce was reduced to a procedural formality.
Who Files First Matters
Hemsworth filed first in Los Angeles. Filing first gives you some control over venue, timing, and the initial narrative of the proceedings. In cases where both parties live in different jurisdictions, the first filing can determine which court has authority over the case.
No-Fault Divorce and Public Infidelity
Cyrus's public relationship with Kaitlynn Carter dominated headlines, but California's no-fault divorce system meant the new relationship had no legal impact on the proceedings. No-fault means the court does not assign blame, regardless of how dramatic the circumstances appear to the public.
What This Means for Your Divorce
- →Do not marry during or immediately after a crisis. Trauma bonds feel intense but often do not survive the return to normal life.
- →A prenup works even for short marriages. The cost of drafting one is trivial compared to the cost of litigating without one.
- →Filing first can give you strategic advantages in venue selection and timing. Discuss this with your attorney before your spouse acts.
- →No-fault divorce means the court does not care who cheated. Focus your energy on the financial and custody terms, not on assigning blame.
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This article is based on publicly available court records, news reports, and legal analysis. It is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading this content.
Divorce laws vary by jurisdiction. Always consult a licensed attorney in your area before making legal decisions.