Talk about bonding over a shared experienced. In 2008, Shania Twain and her husband Robert "Mutt" Lange split up after she found out that he had cheated on her with her best friend, Marie-Anne Thiébaud. While that turn of events is dramatic enough, the story doesn't stop there. Twain married Marie-Anne's former husband, Frédéric Thiébaud, after they connected over their spouses' infidelity.
Today, Twain and Frédéric have been married for 12 years, and Lange and Marie-Anne are still together, too. The "Any Man of Mine" singer has opened up about the rearrangement of the two couples over the years, including how she reacted when she discovered her husband's affair and how she fell in love with her current husband amid that heartbreak. Read on to learn more.
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Twain and Lange were collaborators and spouses.
Bauer-Griffin/GC Images via Getty ImagesTwain and Lange had a whirlwind romance leading up to their marriage. The music producer got in touch with the country star after hearing songs from her self-titled debut album, and they tied the knot in 1993, only six months after they first met in person.
Twain and Lange worked together on her next three albums: The Woman in Me (1995), Come on Over (1997), and Up! (2002). Lange produced, and they co-wrote songs. Together, the couple made some of Twain's biggest hits, including "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?," "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!," and "You're Still the One."
Twain and Lange welcomed a son, Eja Lange, together in 2001.
Lange had an affair with Twain's best friend.
Jemal Countess/WireImage via Getty ImagesIn May 2008, Twain's representative confirmed to People that she and Lange were splitting up. "Shania Twain and her husband, music producer Robert 'Mutt' Lange, are separating after 14 years of marriage," the statement read. "This is a private matter and there will be no further comment at this time."
But, soon after, People reported that sources said Lange had cheated on Twain with Marie-Anne, who was referred to as "a longtime secretary and manager of the couple's chateau in Switzerland." In response, Lange told People, "It’s absolutely not the reason [for the separation]" and denied being in a relationship with Marie-Anne.
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Twain found solace in Marie-Anne's ex.
Kathy Hutchins / ShutterstockLange and Twain's divorce was finalized in 2010. By New Year's Day 2011, Twain and Frédéric were married. That same year, the singer opened up about the cheating and her new marriage in an interview with Redbook.
"Being betrayed is one of the most valuable lessons life can teach," she said, via the New York Daily News. "Now that you are wise to the game, you have the tools to choose your friends more carefully and protect your inner circle from these predators."
Twain said of bonding over the pain with her new husband, "Fred [was] going through the same thing I was, and I admired how he handled it. That is where I fell in love with him, because he was so exemplary in every way." She added, "He's attentive, brighter than God should ever allow any one man to be, funny, romantic, and cute as heck."
She said she wished she never met Marie-Anne.
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen / YouTubeDuring a 2015 appearance on Watch What Happens Live, Twain was asked during "Plead the Fifth" what she would say to Marie-Anne if she ran into her. "I wish I'd never met you," the star replied.
Twain then clarified that she wouldn't necessarily be "better off" if she didn't know her former friend. "I think I've learned a lot from all that," she said.
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She doesn't speak to Lange in person.
DFree / ShutterstockIn an interview with Armchair Expert in March 2023, Twain explained how she and Lange were able to pull it together for Eja, who is now 22.
"Mutt and I parent well together—for people who don't talk to each other," Twain said (via People). "We'll just text. We both love our son so much, so we don't play any games like that. We have the same priority, we share spaces for him. No nonsense there."
Twain toldPeople in 2022 that she's been able to move forward with her ex.
"I'm able to have more appreciation for him again, not for what happened in our marriage but for all that he contributed to such a great part of my career and my life," she said. "We have a beautiful child from it. The resentment is gone."
She has no regrets about where she ended up.
Joshua Sammer/Getty Images for ZFFTwain has also shared with her fans how happy she is with Frédéric and how much their shared experience brought them together. "That is a really strong bond that builds over time, that is rare, that you don't have in every relationship if you don't have those deep scars in common," she told People. "We were a big part of each other's healing."
On Armchair Expert she said, "I think everyone gets what they deserve … I got what I deserve, I got the greatest man on the planet."
