Inside Leah Remini and Angelo Pagán's Unusual Love Story

If Angelo Pagán had been wearing white socks when he met Leah Remini, this story would already be over.

"Because if you have white socks on," the actress wrote in her 2015 memoir Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, "you're dead to me."

Remini, who first laid eyes on the singer in 1996 at the Cuban club El Floridita in Los Angeles, was relieved to see that he was wearing black socks with his "good black shoes," she noted. So, reader, she married him.

And they went on to live happily ever after—until that didn't work for them anymore. The pair announced Aug. 29 that they were divorcing after 21 years of marriage, sharing in a statement that they had "both changed, as people do," so they were taking this step "which reflects who we are today."

They noted that, just because they wouldn't be husband and wife any longer, they didn't consider their relationship to be a failure. And they hoped that others, by hearing their story, "would not feel so isolated in navigating the changes that millions of couples make every year."

Remini and Pagán even earned some extra snaps in the wake of their statement, which didn't hold back on the why and may have even comforted a few people along the way: We're two individuals who don't want to be married anymore but are still going to be in each other's lives and it's fine if that happened to you, too.

Of course, Remini has never been one to hold back, not when discussing her complicated break from Scientology and not when it came to her and Pagán's love story. Which, she emphasized in her book, was not a love story.

"I mean, it's a story about love," she wrote, "just not the kind that you hope to tell your kids one day."

Because, she detailed in her memoir, not long after they first got together, Pagán admitted to Remini that he wasn't separated from his wife, as she thought he was.

"'I'm a cheater—and not just with you,'" she recalled him telling her. "'I have been a cheater my whole life.'"

Her response? "This guy is so f--ked-up, he's perfect for me!" His (eventual) honesty made her love him even more, she noted. But he also had issues, so she introduced him to Scientology and he signed up for a course. She liked that he was a "normal guy" from outside the church, she wrote, but also "someone who could quickly get with the program and get with Scientology."

However, she continued in the book, that at first resulted in Pagán re-committing to his wife and going to counseling with her at Remini's insistence.

"But an unintended consequence of no longer being burdened by his own guilt," she wrote, was that Pagán realized he needed to get out of his marriage for good.

When Pagán popped the question over dinner on Christmas Eve in 2002, Remini "was completely taken by surprise," her rep said at the time. "She was crying and so excited."

They tied the knot July 19, 2003, at the Four Seasons in Las Vegas—"It was, I kid you not, 110 degrees easy," Remini wrote—and welcomed daughter Sofia Bella Pagán on June 16, 2004.

Recalling the chemistry that first brought her and her husband together, Remini said on RuPaul's eponymous talk show in 2019, "It was like everything wrong, like everything that you should not do as a girl is ask a guy when he gets off work, hit it real quick, and it was a lot of that…I was like a groupie."

But that's what made their story "beautiful," she continued, "because we did have a hard time at the beginning. We didn't meet under the best of circumstances. We got counseling and it was not an easy road. So I'm saying these things to be funny, once again, but the truth of the matter is he is my rock."

The little family chugged along, Pagan guest-starring on a few episodes of his wife's hit sitcom The King of Queens, which ran from 1998 until 2007, as well as her later shows like Kevin Can Wait and In the Motherhood. Remini also spent a season as a cohost of The Talk from 2010 until 2011 and competed on Dancing With the Stars in 2013, returning in later seasons to guest-host and judge.

Having spent decades as a member, the actress notably left Scientology in 2013 and became one of the church's most outspoken critics. Returning to her Catholic roots, she and Pagán—who in the meantime opened their doors to TLC to make two seasons of Leah Remini: It's All Relative—had Sofia baptized in 2015.

“For the record @leahremini and I have always been Catholic !" Pagán, who also has three sons from a previous relationship, tweeted after the service. "Why we waited so long to baptize Sofia ! Hmmm .anyway it was a beautiful experience and our little angel is on her way to a more spiritual existence. God Bless."

Visiting Catholic churches, "sometimes I don’t do anything" except just sit there, Remini told People at the time. "To me it's what religion is supposed to be: a beautiful thing."

After releasing her tell-all memoir in 2015, she went on to make three seasons of Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath for A&E, winning an Emmy for Outstanding Informational Series or Special in 2017 and another for Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special in 2022. 

In the meantime, Remini decided to go back to school. When she was accepted at New York University in 2021, she called it "one of the last chunks of my life that I am taking back for myself from Scientology."

"Going to college for the first time at 51 after living most of my life in a cult and only having an 8th grade education hasn't been easy," she tweeted in May 2022. "But I took my first NYU final exams this week and I'm glad I decided to educate myself. It's never too late. It's tough, but it's worth it." (She completed her associate's degree in May and said she's working on her bachelor's.)

But while she was pursuing higher education, becoming an empty nester admittedly hit her and Pagán hard. In September 2022, Remini called dropping Sofia off at college "the most excruciatingly painful and proudest moment" of her life, writing on Instagram, "I have never cried so much in my life."

Their 20-year-old actually ended up coming home for awhile, but they re-dropped her off at another school in January.

"It's been a few weeks since she left for the second time," Remini told People in February, "and my husband and I are even more of a mess now."

She and Pagán apparently had a lot to figure out once they were left to their own devices, but it sounds as if they're on the same page about what to do next.

"This decision came after a lot of thought and care," they stated in a shared Aug. 29 Instagram post, "and as hard as divorce is, we are approaching this with a positive outlook because we know it’s what’s best for us."

"We are proud of how we have worked through this together," they continued. "Yes, we’re sad, and we’ve got some figuring out to do as we continue to move forward into our new normal—together still in many ways, and apart in some new ones."

Their bond had "evolved into something different," they explained. "We think a marriage that lasted this long and created so many beautiful memories, especially raising our incredible daughter, is something to celebrate. From our perspective, this marriage was a huge success."

So, a toast to Remini and Pagán. But we also wonder if any of these famous couples who split up after more than a decade together arrived at a similar conclusion...

The NFL star and the supermodel touched down in divorce court after 13 years of marriage, confirming Oct. 28, 2022, on their respective social media platforms that they had finalized the terms of their split.

"We arrived at this decision amicably and with gratitude for the time we spent together," Brady, who shares kids Benjamin, 12, and Vivian, 9, with Bündchen, wrote in his Instagram Story message. "We are blessed with beautiful and wonderful children who will continue to be the center of our world in every way. We will continue to work together as parents to always ensure they receive the love and attention they deserve."

The Super Bowl MVP noted that he and Bündchen didn't arrive at this decision lightly. "Doing so is, of course, painful and difficult, like it is for many people who go through the same thing every day around the world," he continued. "However we wish only the best for each other as we pursue whatever new chapters in our lives that are yet to be written."

Just three months after their 25th wedding anniversary, Flavin filed for divorce on Aug. 19, 2022, triggering a host of rumors about potential trivialities that could have inspired her decision.

Stallone nipped one in the bud—they didn't have a falling-out over what kind of dog he wanted to get—and told TMZ, "I will always love her. She's an amazing woman. She's the nicest human being I've ever met."

He also said in a statement at the time, "I love my family. We are amicably and privately addressing these personal issues."

The parents of three daughters—Sophia, 26, Sistine, 24, and Scarlet, 20—have since put up a united front on social media, prompting hopes that the Rocky star and his bride maybe just needed time in their respective corners to regroup.

The parents of daughters Miley, 29, and Noah, 22, and son Braison , 28 (plus he adopted her daughter Brandi and son Trace, 33), tied the knot in 1993.

The country superstar filed for divorce in 2010, saying in a statement at the time that they were "trying to work through some personal matters." Mission accomplished, at least temporarily, because Cyrus withdrew his petition in March 2011. He refiled in June 2013, however, and she counter-filed. And yet they again decided to stay together, Tish crediting couples therapy for bringing them closer. 

But Tish filed for divorce again in April, her petition stating that she and her husband of 29 years had been living apart since February 2020.

"It is after 30 years, five amazing children and a lifetime of memories, we have decided to go our separate ways—not with sadness, but with love in our hearts," the friendly exes told People in a joint statement. "We have grown up together, raised a family we can be so proud of, and it is now time to create our own paths."

In November 2022, Billy Ray's rep confirmed he was engaged to singer Firerose, and Tish accepted Prison Break star Dominic Purcell's proposal in April 2023.

The parents of three and co-founders of the internationally renowned Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation revealed in May 2021 they were splitting up after 27 years of marriage. A Washington judge finalized their divorce just three months later, a ready-to-roll separation contract making the division of their estimated $130 billion fortune less onerous.

But in the interim, the Wall Street Journal reported that she had started meeting with divorce lawyers as early as May 2019, and reasons why being married to the co-founder of Microsoft wasn't all it was cracked up to be started to emerge.

Both recently divorced, Penn from Madonna and Wright from Dane Witherspoon, the actors fell in love making the 1990 crime drama State of Grace. They welcomed daughter Dylan in 1991 and son Hopper in 1993 and then decided to tie the knot in 1996. They purposely moved to Northern California to raise their kids away from "the bubble of celebrity," Wright told Vanity Fair in 2015, but tumult followed and, after a few false starts, they officially divorced in 2010.

"I believe we were together not only to have our beautiful children but to learn how to love...for the next time around, the right way," the House of Cards star said. "And then, what I'm looking for in people now is kindness."

At the time she was back on with ex-fiancé Ben Foster, but after that ended she moved on with Clement Giraudet, marrying him in 2018. TMZ reported Sept. 24 that Wright has filed for divorce, citing July 31, 2022, as their date of separation.

Penn famously dated Charlize Theron for a couple of years and then married Leila George in January 2020, but she filed for divorce in October 2021.

The power couple—and that was even before they were governor and first lady of California—announced in May 2011 that they had separated after 25 years of marriage.

A week later, Schwarzenegger came clean about fathering a son with his family's former housekeeper of more than 20 years. Joseph Baena, 25, enjoys a relationship with his dad (as well as an affinity for the weight room) and is pursuing his own career as an actor.

The Shriver-Schwarzenegger union, which produced daughters Katherine, 33, and Christina, 31, and sons Patrick, 29, and Christopher, 24, didn't officially end until December 2021, when the grandparents of two finalized their divorce.

His-and-hers prison sentences for fraud were not kind to the Real Housewives of New Jersey stars' 20-year marriage. He ended up being deported to Italy after spending three years behind bars, and they divorced in September 2020.

"I can't get mad at her," Joe told E! News of his ex a month later. "She's the mother of my four daughters and she's taking care of them right now because obviously I can't. What am I going to do, have the kids move here to a country that they don't even know the language? That would be a disaster...Thank God they're tough kids, but it's still a damn shame. At the end of the day, you know, we're doing our best."

Teresa is once again a married woman, wedding Luis Ruelas in August 2022, the couple having met in a chance encounter at the Jersey shore. The bride's four daughters—Gia, 22, Gabriella, 19, Milania, 17, and Audriana, 13—were all in attendance. 

Married for all intents and purposes, if not on paper, the Oscar winners separated in the summer of 2009 after 23 years together, having met making the rowdy 1988 baseball romance Bull Durham.

They share sons Jack, 33, and Miles, 31, plus Robbins helped raise Sarandon's daughter, Eva Amurri, 38.

"People were coming up to me in the street and saying, 'I cried and cried when I heard,'" Sarandon told The Telegraph in 2010 after their breakup. "Well, I was sadder! I didn't think it would ever happen, either. You bring people into your life at certain times. Maybe you have a relationship to have children and you realize that it's fulfilled after that point."

Robbins ended up marrying actress Gratiela Brancusi in 2017, but it wasn't widely known they'd taken that step until he filed for divorce in January 2021.

Though she didn't file for divorce from the father of her seven children until April 2009, according to Reuters, their separation began just days after his explosive drunk-driving arrest in July 2006.

"Throughout our marriage and separation we have always strived to maintain the privacy and integrity of our family and will continue to do so," they said in a 2009 statement confirming the end of their union. At the time, Gibson was already expecting a child, his eighth, with then-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva. (He's since become a dad of nine, welcoming son Lars in 2017 with Rosalind Ross.)

"It was an unfortunate incident," Gibson said on Variety's Playback podcast in 2016, referring to his 2006 arrest and the resulting backlash over anti-Semitic comments he made to the officer that pulled him over. "I was loaded and angry and arrested. I was recorded illegally by an unscrupulous police officer who was never prosecuted for that crime...So, not fair. I guess as who I am, I'm not allowed to have a nervous breakdown, ever."

The TLC star's third of four "sister wives"—and mother of six of his 18 children—left the family's Arizona home in November 2021 after 27 years together and moved to Utah.

"I started thinking maybe this isn't working for me," Christine told People in August. "And then I stopped believing in polygamy. I realized I didn't really want to live it anymore. I didn't like sharing a husband or feeling like I wasn't important."

Kody legally married first wife Meri Brown in 1990, after which sister wives Janelle Brown and Christine joined him in spiritual matrimony in 1993 and 1994, respectively. He and Meri divorced and fourth wife Robyn Brown became his legally recognized spouse in 2014. 

"I want a guy who actually loves me and wants to be with me intimately," Christine said. "I will be a monogamist from here on out."

Janelle has also since left the fold, Kody revealing in the December 2022 reunion special that they were separated.

OK, so the couple that earn their first billion together don't necessarily stay together.

News of the Amazon founder and sometimes-richest-man-in-the-world's divorce from his wife of 25 years in January 2019 came as a shock—though mainly because Bezos was already involved with not-yet-divorced Good Day L.A. co-host Lauren Sanchez and the National Enquirer published their romantic text messages. (Bezos, who shares four children with Scott, countered that they were long-separated so the tabloid didn't have much of a scoop.) 

Scott, who married Seattle science teacher Dan Jewett in March 2021, received a reported $38.3 billion worth of Amazon stock in her divorce settlement, turning her into one of the world's richest people as well. She signed The Giving Pledge, a promise to give at least half of her fortune to charity, in 2019.

Jewett made the vow as well after their wedding, but Scott filed for divorce on Sept. 26, 2022.

Married for 30 years, the Matilda co-stars announced in 2012 that they were separating—but the parents of three never pulled the trigger on a divorce.

"We're still separated, but we see each other often, and we're still a family," Perlman told People in August. "We can do things together, we can do things separately. I'm really, really glad that Danny and I were able to navigate some rough days to be able to have this different kind of relationship. I think it's pretty rare, but we agree on so many things that it makes sense."