Anyone who’s ever been in an interracial relationship can tell you that at some point the differences become an issue. Unfortunately, the culture gap can become so wide, it’s difficult to get past it. Add in the pressures of being famous actors and it all comes to a head. For Idina Menzel and Taye Diggs, their careers, along with “the interracial aspect” led to their divorce in 2014. During an appearance on Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s Dinner’s on Me podcast, the Frozen star discussed the role race played in her “complicated” split from Diggs.
“The thing that came into play more, I would say—and Taye has talked about it too—is the interracial aspect of it,” Menzel said.
The couple started dating in 1996 when they were both in the original Broadway cast of Rent. They got married in 2003 and had a son in 2009. Menzel explained that their differences didn’t come into play as much in the theater community. But when their relationship landed in the Hollywood spotlight, she realized how they would be seen to the rest of the world.
“He’s on the cover of Essence and Ebony and being interviewed by all these Black journalists and I think he had his own stuff to deal with that,” she said. “And it seemed like there was disappointment in the community with him because he was married to a white, Jewish girl from some show we don’t even remember, and so, I took that on too. That’s stuff that we had to deal with. It was less about being successful and more about that kind of stuff.”
Once he co-starred in 1998’s How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Diggs became a serious heartthrob, a label he still gets today. Seeing him with Idina definitely led to bad feelings for some Black women. Coupled with the disparity in their careers, it all started to take a toll on their relationship.
Taye Diggs has been what we call Black famous for a large portion of his career. That’s a world that the “Let it Go” singer isn’t necessarily going to understand. That kind of cultural difference would cause a strain on any relationship. Though their marriage ended in 2014, the exes are able to remain supportive of one another as they co-parent their son.