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Ryan Phillippe<\/strong><\/a> was reliving his \u201890s heartthrob days when he shared a throwback photo of him and ex-wife Reese Witherspoon<\/strong><\/a> via his Instagram Story.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were hot and drenched in late \u201990s angst,\u201d Ryan, 49, wrote alongside the photo of him and Reese, 48, at the premiere of her hit movie Legally Blonde<\/em> in 2001. \u201c(so much cooler than today).\u201d<\/p>\n In the picture, Reese wore a black and white striped halter dress while Ryan sported a mohawk hairstyle with a sleeveless collared shirt.<\/p>\n Ryan and Reese met at the Sweet Home Alabama<\/em> star\u2019s 21st birthday party in 1997, and she revealed she jokingly told him that she thought \u201che was her birthday present\u201d in an interview with Jane<\/em> magazine in 1998. The I Know What You Did Last Summer<\/em><\/a> star proposed and after the couple went on to film their steamy 1999 hit, Cruel Intentions<\/em>, they officially tied the knot in June 1999. Reese was around six months pregnant at the time and three months after they walked down the aisle, she gave birth to their first child, daughter Ava<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Morning Show<\/em> actress was only 23 years old when she gave birth, and she\u2019s been open about how nerve-wracking it was for her and Ryan to be young parents.<\/p>\n \u201cTo be completely candid, I was terrified too,\u201d Reese said during an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show<\/em> in 2020. \u201cI got pregnant when I was 22 years old, and I didn\u2019t know how to balance work and motherhood, you just do it. I was just like every other mom and dad trying to figure it out.\u201d<\/p>\n However, it wasn\u2019t long before Ryan and Reese\u2019s relationship hit a rough patch, and Ryan admitted in 2002 that they were in couple\u2019s therapy to the Daily News, <\/em>per People<\/em>. He told the outlet that the \u201cbiggest mistake\u201d was to have a \u201cmarriage falling apart due to laziness.\u201d<\/p>\n Reese also opened up about the couple\u2019s work they put in toward their marriage around the same time.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not interested in the fallacy of the Hollywood relationship: \u2018We have perfect children who never cry; we never have problems; we never argue, we\u2019re always best friends,\u2019\u201d Reese told People<\/em><\/a>. \u201cThat\u2019s just not true. We\u2019re normal people with normal problems.\u201d<\/p>\n In October 2003, Ryan and Reese welcomed their second child, son Deacon. While the pair appeared happy, three years later they announced they were separating<\/a> on October 30, 2006.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are saddened to announce that Reese and Ryan have decided to formally separate,\u201d a rep for the couple said at the time. \u201cThey remain committed to their family and we ask that you please respect their privacy and the safety of their children at this time.\u201d<\/p>\n Ryan called his split from Reese \u201cthe darkest, saddest place I\u2019ve ever been\u201d in an interview with W magazine<\/em><\/a> in 2008. While rumors swirled that an alleged affair with Abbie Cornish<\/strong> led to his and Reese\u2019s divorce, Ryan said that the real reason was \u201cfar more complicated.\u201d<\/p>\n