Actors Natasha Lyonne and Fred Armisen have been a Hollywood fixture for nearly eight years now, ever since they first walked a red carpet together at the 2014 Emmy Awards.
But their romance has come to an abrupt end, and for a very unusual reason. Armisen didn't want a swimming pool at their house.
Lyonne touched on the unlikely end to her romance with the SNL alum while doing press for the upcoming new season of her hit Netflix series Russian Doll.
But even reading the reason for the break-up in context doesn't really make it make much more sense.
The "Orange Is the New Black" alum and the "Saturday Night Live" comedian have been together for eight years.https://www.huffpost.com/entry/natasha-lyonne-fred-armisen-broke-up_n_625c79b7e4b0723f801a19ae\u00a0\u2026— HuffPost (@HuffPost) 1650234916
During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the trade mag asked Lyonne if she was still based in Los Angeles after having decamped from her native New York during the pandemic.
“I’m not. I had been there living with Fred and during COVID."
This led to Lyonne confirming she and Armisen had split up.
When asked for the reason for the break-up, Lyonne said:
“I honestly think we broke up because I wanted a swimming pool."
"We love each other just about as much as two people can love each other and we’re still talking all the time, but Freddy doesn’t like a swimming pool."
Clearly there's more to the story, right?
Well the additional context Lyonne added didn't really do much to clarify things.
"It might seem like a mundane reason for a breakup, but during that pandemic, you’ve got to get your laps—I’m like Burt Lancaster in 'The Swimmer.'"
Lyonne then told The Hollywood Reporter she's since bought a new house in Los Angeles that does have a pool and is now splitting her time between both coasts.
She quipped to the magazine:
"[T]hat’s the real scandal. I guess I finally am an actual bicoastal."
Of course, Lyonne was most likely joking with her interviewer.
Nonetheless, the news raised quite a few eyebrows on Twitter.
Perfectly legitimate reason.https://twitter.com/latimes/status/1516154731734831104\u00a0\u2026— SemperFiVirginia (@SemperFiVirginia) 1650316200
fred armisen chose not having a swimming pool over natasha lyonne? pleasepic.twitter.com/J7K1Q61OTK— Carrie Wittmer \ud83e\udd87 (@Carrie Wittmer \ud83e\udd87) 1650045529
Wait. What?https://twitter.com/THR/status/1515499534117441540\u00a0\u2026— I LOVE Natasha Bianca Lyonne Braunstein (@I LOVE Natasha Bianca Lyonne Braunstein) 1650198387
Fred Armisen doesn't like swimming pools. And if that doesn't make me 100% on Team Elisabeth Moss from like 10 years ago ...https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/natasha-lyonne-russian-doll-season-2-hollywood-journey-1235129441/\u00a0\u2026— Whitney Friedlander (@Whitney Friedlander) 1650254163
As good a reason as any, to split.— Vicky\ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddea\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 (@Vicky\ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddea\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6) 1650238042
whathttps://twitter.com/vanityfair/status/1516091237962555402\u00a0\u2026— becca \ud83c\udff4\u200d\u2620\ufe0f is seeing ashe in 7 days! (@becca \ud83c\udff4\u200d\u2620\ufe0f is seeing ashe in 7 days!) 1650299466
fred armisen and natasha lyonne breaking up over him not wanting a swimming pool is genuinely the funniest fucking thing ever— gwynnie naylor (@gwynnie naylor) 1650209449
Something tells me she\u2019s trolling the reporter— Chelsea Berry She/Her \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6ally\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f (@Chelsea Berry She/Her \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6ally\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f) 1650235536
\u201cI honestly think we broke up b/c I wanted a swimming pool. We love each other just about as much as two people can love each other & we\u2019re still talking all the time, but Freddy doesn\u2019t like a swimming pool.\u201d - Natasha Lyonne, keeping it real, as always.https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/natasha-lyonne-russian-doll-season-2-hollywood-journey-1235129441/\u00a0\u2026— LaceyVRose (@LaceyVRose) 1650041719
So there you have it--add swimming pool opinions to the list of irreconcilable differences.
