NEW YORK — Will Arnett dismissed what he called “made-up” rumors about his relationship with ex-wife Amy Poehler in a Rolling Stone interview published Wednesday. The actor-comedian said the pair’s real life as co-parents is far less dramatic than the internet assumes, Dec. 24, 2025.
In the conversation, Will Arnett said he has grown used to strangers acting as if they already know the truth about his family. “It’s f–king hilarious to me how much s–t is just made up and they have zero idea,” he said, according to E! News. He added that while attention is part of the job, it doesn’t turn speculation into fact.
What Will Arnett said about the rumors — and why he’s pushing back
Will Arnett did not single out any one rumor, but he objected to the broader idea that public commentary is a reliable window into private relationships. “Look, yes, it’s part of celebrity culture that we all participate in,” he said, as relayed by People. Arnett also noted that celebrity has been “good” to him, while arguing that the same culture can fuel confident storylines built on guesswork.
Will Arnett and Poehler married in 2003 and announced their separation in 2012, as Reuters reported. Their divorce was finalized in 2016, CBS News reported. They share two sons, Archie, 17, and Abel, 15.
Since their split, Will Arnett and Poehler have largely avoided public sparring about the breakup, but they have periodically offered glimpses of how they parent. In April, Poehler made a surprise appearance on Arnett’s “SmartLess” podcast — co-hosted with Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes — sparking fresh attention to their dynamic. In the episode recap, Entertainment Weekly quoted Will Arnett praising their approach: “I’m really, really lucky to have her as a partner in this way.”
Arnett also joked about the downside of the surprise: He said their sons kept Poehler’s appearance from him, and he described that omission as the part that “unnerved” him.
Beyond parenting logistics, Will Arnett suggested the friendship is real and practical. He told Rolling Stone he still leans on Poehler for input on big choices, saying he trusts her judgment — a detail that, in his view, doesn’t fit the more combative narratives people sometimes project onto famous breakups.
A familiar frustration for Will Arnett
Will Arnett has pushed back on “Team” narratives before. In a 2022 Guardian profile, he described the online commentary around the separation as “brutal” and questioned why strangers treated a divorce like a competition with winners and losers.
Now, Will Arnett is again urging readers to separate celebrity chatter from lived experience. The loudest versions of a story, he suggested, often come from the people farthest from it — while the reality of his relationship with Poehler is defined less by rumor and more by the day-to-day work of raising their children with respect, consistency and, when possible, humor.
