Controversial 90 Day Fiancé couple Mark and Nikki Shoemaker are splitting up after almost seven years of marriage. The Shoemakers appeared on the TLC reality show in 2015, making waves among viewers for their significant age gap.
Could The Couple’s Age Gap Have Something To Do With Their Split?
Mark filed for divorce on March 2, according to InTouch. The magazine also reported that Mark filed to have the case sealed, but a judge denied his request. The Shoemakers have not publicly commented on the divorce, but it’s fair to assume that the age gap had something to do with it.
Mark is 39 years older than Nikki, one of the largest age gaps to ever be featured on 90 Day Fiancé. The couple met online when Mark was 58 and Nikki was 19. Though maybe not the strangest characters to appear on the show, fans of the reality show were weirded out by the age difference, but that wasn’t the only part of the relationship that stood out.
Fans Saw Red Flags From The Beginning
Many viewers pointed out that Nikki was from Cebu City in the Philippines; the same city Mark’s first wife—and mother of his four children—is from. The show’s fans were also surprised by how quickly Mark proposed, popping the question just two days after the pair met face-to-face in Nikki’s home country.
Unsurprisingly, the age difference between the couple caused arguments between the Shoemakers. The couple frequently clashed over their age gap, especially the fact that Nikki was two years younger than Mark’s youngest daughter Ellie. Fans also noted that Mark and Nikki were not exactly a match made in heaven; in one scene, he scolded her for touching the windows of his car. He also refused to buy Nikki her dream wedding dress.
After their season of 90 Day Fiancé aired, Mark and Nikki decided not to participate in any of the TLC reality show’s spin-offs. They actually filed a lawsuit in 2017 against the network and the show’s production company, Sharp Entertainment, due to how they felt they were depicted in the show. A judge dismissed their case later that year.
Since the divorce filing is relatively recent, the cause for the split is unknown and it’s unclear what either party will get in the suit. However, according to court records, there is a prenuptial agreement involved. The news of the Shoemakers’ divorce has many fans celebrating the fact that Nikki is leaving what appeared to be an unhappy marriage.
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