Jax Taylor and Brittany Cartwright’s love story wasn’t exactly a fairy tale leading to their 2024 divorce.
Taylor met Cartwright in between seasons 3 and 4 of Vanderpump Rules in the spring of 2015. Fans watched Cartwright move to Los Angeles to be with Taylor during season 4 of the reality series.
While she quickly befriended the cast, their relationship was at the center of the drama after Taylor cheated on Cartwright with former SURver Faith Stowers in between seasons 5 and 6.
“I just kind of fell into a deep hole and that happens out here sometimes. You get sucked into this lifestyle,” Taylor exclusively told Us Weekly in November 2018 about his indiscretion. “I hate to use [my father’s death] as an excuse to pick myself up, [but] I don’t think I would have done it unless something happened, something traumatic needed to happen in my life.”
Less than a year after the cheating scandal, Taylor proposed. The twosome exchanged vows in June 2019, but the drama hasn’t stopped.
Scroll through for a timeline of their ups and downs:
2015
The twosome met at Gold Spike Lounge in Las Vegas. “The place it all started! @caramarietabor and I met @musickillskate, and then @mrjaxtaylor swooped in and got my number at the bar. Lol memories!” Cartwright recalled in January 2019 via Instagram.
2016
While fans met Cartwright during season 4 of Vanderpump Rules, they got to know the Kentucky native even better when she and Taylor landed their own spinoff: Jax and Brittany: Take Kentucky. The first and only season taped in 2016 and aired in 2017.
2017
During the season 6 premiere of Vanderpump Rules, Cartwright learned of Taylor’s affair with Stowers. The former SURver later claimed to Us that Taylor insisted his relationship with Cartwright was “totally done” at the time of the hookup.
2017
Cartwright and Taylor briefly split while dealing with the fallout of his affair with Stowers.
“I’m just, like, really unhappy. I’ve been unhappy for such a long time … This has 150 million percent nothing to do with you,” he told her during season 6 of the Bravo show. “I am not good at relationships. You deserve a lot better than me. I just don’t think we should be together anymore.”
2017
While Cartwright and Taylor’s relationship was rocky during the summer and fall of 2017, they confirmed they were 100 percent back on in December 2017. Cartwright was also on hand to help Taylor deal with the death of his father that month.
“It is hard, trust me, and there are still days, sometimes, when you can’t help but think of horrible things from the past,” Cartwright told Us at the time. “But for the most part, we’ve moved mountains in this relationship. I feel like we’re almost starting over, but we’ve grown so much. He does things before I even ask him now. Even just helping around the house. I can just tell in our everyday lives that he’s changed.”
2018
Taylor popped the question in June 2018. “She said yes!!!” he wrote at the time via Instagram. “I can’t wait for y’all to see how this happened next season!!! I am marrying the woman of my dreams and I could not be happier!! 💍”
2019
A little more than a year after he proposed, Taylor and Cartwright walked down the aisle at a castle in Kentucky. ‘NSync singer Lance Bass officiated the nuptials after the couple came under fire for initially picking a pastor who has made offensive remarks against the LGBTQ community in the past.
2019
Two months after they tied the knot, Taylor was spotted sans wedding band in Los Angeles in August 2019. While Cartwright assured Us at the time that things were good between them, fans watched Taylor question if they rushed into their marriage during season 8 of Vanderpump Rules.
“I’m thinking about my wedding, it just was so quick,” he told Stassi Schroeder during a May 2020 episode. “Did I do the right thing?”
2020
Taylor’s affair with Stowers made headlines again in June 2020 when she opened up about being the only Black cast member on the show.
“I felt like after their friend did something that we both were involved in that he’s done like, a thousand times, they wanted to attack me instead of him. They wanted to attack, attack, attack, attack, attack,” Stowers said at the time via Instagram Live. “I was wrong, I was this, I was that, calling me names, saying my hair was nappy, which is weird coming out of their mouths. … I was just really, like, confused that they were attacking me and giving him nothing — in my opinion. He got off very, very, very, easy — especially with the things I’ve been told.”
Fans subsequently accused Cartwright of being racist toward Stowers, which she denied. Taylor’s old tweets about his former costar also resurfaced, prompting some viewers to call on Bravo to fire him. That same month, Cartwright’s mother was placed in ICU due to serious complications from bladder surgery.
“Brittany is beyond overwhelmed. Her mom is in the hospital, in the ICU, and that matters more than anything else. Imagine dealing with that and combating comments calling her a racist, when she is anything but that?” a source told Us. “She’s being hit at all angles. Jax has his flaws, but when it comes to being Brittany’s rock, he has not wavered. He is unconditionally and wholeheartedly there for her, as are her closest friends. She knows she is loved and supported as she navigates through this really difficult time.”
2020
Taylor joined Cartwright in Kentucky for their first wedding anniversary in June 2020.
“Happy 1 year anniversary honey! ❤️❤️,” she gushed via Instagram at the time. “Thank you for making me laugh every single day and for being my best friend. You’re my lobster and I love you to pieces. ❤️”
2020
Cartwright confirmed in September 2020 she is pregnant with the couple’s first child. “Mom & Dad,” she wrote alongside a series of pics of the pair holding a sonogram. “The love of our lives is coming soon.”
They later revealed that they are expecting a baby boy.
2020
Taylor revealed on his costar Katie Maloney’s “You’re Gonna Love Me” podcast in November 2020 that he and Cartwright had conceived on their “second try” while visiting her home state of Kentucky. He also shared how he plans to get involved in their son’s schooling, saying, “I’m gonna be part of the PTA, 100 percent. I’m very excited to be part of school. I can’t wait. Like, any field trips I’m gonna be there.”
2020
In December, the couple announced that they will not be returning to Vanderpump Rules for another season. “We are excited to take this time to focus on our growing family and share with you our new endeavors,” she wrote via Instagram. He added, “It’s time to move on…. we had a good run. It doesn’t make sense anymore.”
2021
The couple welcomed their son, Cruz, on April 12. “I don’t think I have ever been as happy as I am right now, everything else in life seems so insignificant now,” Taylor captioned their baby boy’s Instagram debut. “I am crying just writing this message. I have the most beautiful son a man could ask for, he’s an absolute blessing from God. I just want to say how absolutely amazing my wife has been through this whole process, it has not been an easy pregnancy for her, but she did an absolute[LY]amazing job all the way till the end. I have always been in awwh [sic] of Brittany but I fell in love with her all over again.”
2021
The pair celebrated their second wedding anniversary in June 2021.
“Happy second wedding anniversary to the head of our household, my beautiful wife @brittany,” Taylor wrote via Instagram. “I can’t believe it’s been 2 years married and 6 years together already. And now we have a family. Thanks for always being my rock and putting up with my “Dad” shenanigans. You have made me such a happy man over the years and now you have given me the best gift ever, our little boy Cruz. We love you so much. 💜♥️”
2021
“He’s only 3 months old, and it just feels like he’s always been here,” Cartwright said during a July 2021 episode of E! New’s Daily Pop. Taylor added: “I can’t remember not having him. It’s gotten to that point already. We just love him so much and love having him around. We just can’t picture life before him.”
The proud papa noted that their little one is “a really good baby. He’s so smiley all the time.” Taylor and Cartwright revealed they haven’t gotten a babysitter yet, explaining that they share parenting responsibilities.
2021
The couple also commented on how they feel about seeing their former Vanderpump Rules costars filming again now that they’ve stepped back from the spotlight. “I do have FOMO if I see pictures of everybody and stuff, but at the same time, I don’t have to leave my baby to go film,” Cartwright said on Daily Pop in July 2021. “It’s like a win-win situation, but it’s also kind of sad at times.”
Taylor, however, said he has moved on with his life since walking away in December 2020. “For me, I’m not sad at all. I would love to film this, but not with that show,” he explained. “I would love to do it on my own. I’m past that … I don’t miss that at all.”
2021
“Brittany and Jax are enjoying this new chapter of their lives as parents,” a source exclusively told Us in December 2021. “Having Cruz has really brought them closer as a couple. They are in a better place now with a baby in the picture.”
The insider noted, “Cruz has brought so much joy into their lives” and that Taylor has “changed as a person after becoming a father.” The former bartender has become a “family man” and has been “just as hands-on as Brittany” with the baby, per the source.
May 2022
“Happy Mother’s Day to my beautiful wife, the rock, glue, staples, rope and everything in between that keeps our family strong. Thanks for everything you do for Cruz and I,” Taylor gushed via Instagram. “I personally think we need more than a day to celebrate all the amazing moms in the world. Cruz and I are so lucky to have you. We love you!”
June 2022
The married couple made headlines on June 14 after it was revealed that they were no longer as close to Stassi Schroeder and her husband, Beau Clark, after skipping their Rome, Italy, nuptials.
“I can’t believe I thought we were close. I feel stupid that I thought we were better friends than that. I wanna surround myself with [friends] that communicate with me, that we have mutual respect,” Schroeder previously alleged during a May 2022 episode of her podcast. “And when I was at the wedding, I looked around at everyone that was there and I was like, ‘God, I love every single person that’s here. I’m so thankful for each person that’s here and what a wonderful group of people that we love [and] that wouldn’t do that to us.’”
The foursome are also not following each other via social media.
July 2022
Cartwright opened up about how “terrible” she felt after she and Taylor missed Schroeder’s wedding.
“I felt terrible. I still feel terrible because I do love them,” the Kentucky native said during an episode of the “Scheananigans” podcast. “I think about it all the time.”
August 2022
After not attending Schroeder’s wedding, the couple and their son traveled to Mexico for Scheana Shay and Brock Davies’ nuptials.
February 2023
Following the duo’s feud with Schroeder, Maloney revealed that she had not spoken to Taylor or Cartwright despite attempting to not get involved in the drama.
“I haven’t talked to them since that all happened,” Maloney said while appearing on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. “I got a text message from Brittany the day we all left for the wedding saying she wasn’t going.”
January 2024
Cartwright hinted at troubles in her marriage during the February 22 episode of the pair’s “When Reality Hits” podcast. “I think that we will have to address some rumors — just a little bit. I’m not going to go too hard on this because, you know, some people do deserve to have their privacy. But I will say — marriage is hard and people go through ups and downs all the time and it’s completely normal,” she said. “Sometimes people might need their space [and] sometimes they won’t.”
One week later, she revealed that she had moved out of her and Taylor’s home. “Jax and I are taking time apart and I made the decision to move into another home to take some space for the sake of my mental health,” Cartwright said on February 29. “I don’t know what the future holds but right now my focus is on being the best mom to Cruz. I love you guys and pray for us. Everything will be just fine.”
August 2024
Us confirmed that Cartwright filed for divorce from Taylor on August 27. She cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for the split and confirmed their date of separation as January 24, 2024. Cartwright is seeking primary legal and physical custody of their son, Cruz.
October 2024
Court documents obtained by Us Weekly confirmed that Taylor had given Cartwright full legal and physical custody of their son Cruz. The former VPR star also made an error in his court filing, accidentally claiming that he and Cartwright were not legally married. (Taylor checked both boxes — one saying they were married and the other saying they were not.)
“While Jax made errors in filling out forms that are usually done by trained legal professionals, those errors will be amended without delay,” a rep for Taylor told Us in a statement. “Jax and Brittany have already long resolved all matters related to custody of Cruz, and will continue to work together privately for the best interest of their son, which remains their overriding concern.”
Cartwright took to social media and weighed in on the situation.
“We are legally married. I’m guessing paperwork is hard for some people,” she shared in an Instagram comment. Lance Bass, who officiated the former couple’s wedding, corroborated her comment, adding, “Pastor Lance signed the papers.”
A source told Us that Taylor is still in his son’s life despite giving Cartwright custody.
“Anyone close to the couple knows what a great father Jax is and how much he loves his son. Jax has always been a very present father and that will never change,” the insider shared. “When it comes to Cruz, both Brittany and Jax have always been on the same page that he is the priority and having both parents a part of his life is a non-negotiable.”