Celebrity News

Chris Rock files for divorce

Chris Rock is divorcing his wife, Malaak Compton-Rock, after 19 years of marriage.

The comedian — who has repeatedly poked fun at marriage in his stand-up routines — has hired power divorce attorney Robert S. Cohen, who confirmed in a statement, “Chris Rock has filed for divorce from his wife, Malaak. This is a personal matter, and Chris requests privacy as he and Malaak work through this process and focus on their family.” They have two daughters, Lola Simone, 12, and Zahra Savannah, 10.

Malaak also released a statement confirming the split: “After much contemplation and 19 years of marriage, Chris and I have decided to go our separate ways,” wrote the founder of nonprofit styleWORKS, which helps women enter the work force after leaving welfare. “My children remain at the center of my life, and their well-being is my top priority. It is in this spirit that I sincerely ask that their privacy and the privacy of our family be respected during this transition in our lives.”

Rock’s decision to hire famously tough attorney Cohen — who has represented Christie Brinkley, James Gandolfini and is currently repping Richard Gere’s estranged wife, Carey Lowell — indicates he could be preparing for a bitter divorce battle.

But Rock’s divorce might not come as a surprise to his fans. He said in a 2011 show, “Nothing gets you ready for marriage, nobody tells you that once you get married, you’ll never (bleep) again . . . Marriage is so tough, man, Nelson Mandela got divorced — he got out of jail after 27 years of torture, spent six months with his wife and said, ‘I can’t take this s - - t no more.’ ”

Rock also said, “Marriage is some boring-ass s - - t, because once you get married, you have to hang around with other married people, and that’s just disgusting.” And, “The problem with relationships is that people want too much, everybody is looking for a soul mate . . . You are never going to get a soul mate, you are never going to find the perfect person, you’ll never find someone who likes ‘Seinfeld’ and the Wu-Tang Clan — it ain’t happening.”