The Saddest Details About T.J. Holmes' Life

T.J. Holmes was once a renowned journalist, with stops throughout his career at CNN, MSNBC, and ABC News. He was made a co-anchor of "GMA3: What You Need to Know" during 2020, and that job move would end up being the downfall for his career, though it did lead him to love.

Through a series of affairs, most notably with his "GMA3" co-anchor Amy Robach, Holmes imploded his own career –- and his marriage with Marilee Fiebig. He's also dealt with the cancellation of his late-night show, the ending of his first marriage, and issues with alcoholism. The sad details of his life have cast a shadow on his life — here's a closer look.

T.J. Holmes' first major career move was joining CNN in 2006. He made quite the name for himself there and leveraged that success into a multi-platform talent deal with BET in 2011. "[Holmes has] been an outstanding news anchor and we look forward to working with him in a variety of new ways on BET," executive Stephen G. Hill said in a statement at the time (via BET). "It's now upon us to develop vehicles that capture his intelligence, curiosity about the world, warmth, humor and compassion. It's a challenge that we are happy to have." The vehicle they created for Holmes was "Don't Sleep," a late night show launched in October 2012 that was "focused on keeping Black America engaged, awake, and in the know" (via BET Press).

If Hill regarded developing a show for Holmes a challenge, then the network failed that challenge as "Don't Sleep" aired its last episode in December 2012. BET cancelled the show due to low ratings, and Holmes left the network by May 2013. "I will never, ever regret
thinking that my heart was in the right place," Holmes told Journal-isms on crafting the show for a Black audience (via The Root). "You learn from the mistakes, there are questions I 
should have asked, things that should have been cleared up," he said. He declared himself "a 
completely free agent" before returning to CNN and eventually finding a longer-term home at ABC News.

T.J. Holmes isn't unfamiliar with messy marriages and divorces; he was actually married and divorced prior to his infamous affair with Amy Robach and subsequent split with Marilee Fiebig. Holmes and Amy Ferson were together until 2007 when Ferson filed for divorce from Holmes as their marriage was "irretrievably broken" according to her divorce filing (via The U.S. Sun). Their relationship must have been contentious and ready to boil over as a judge ordered Holmes and Ferson to not engage in anything "threatening, injuring, maltreating, vilifying, molesting or harassing" to each other.

Not much is known about Holmes' first ex-wife, but we do know Ferson made out well from the divorce, costing Holmes over $100,000. Holmes was ordered to pay Ferson $2,000 monthly over three years, pay the $3,500 owed on a joint credit card, and hand over $25,000 from the couple's shared savings account. Holmes also had to pay off Ferson's BMW and provide her healthcare coverage via CNN, his employer at the time.

T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach began working together on "GMA3: What You Need to Know"in late 2020, beginning a close friendship that would eventually evolve into a full-blown affair, ending both their marriages and their tenures with ABC News. "There were rumors they were having an affair about a year ago. A lot of people believed there might have been some truth to it, because you can see there's a mutual affection there," a source told People after news of their affair broke. The Daily Mail was first to report it in November 2022, with their sources saying their relationship evolved in June of that year.

However, a separate source told People Holmes and Robach's relationship began later on, and only after they separated from their spouses at the time. "This was two consenting adults who were each separated. They both broke up with their spouses in August within weeks of each other. The relationship didn't start until after that," the source said.

Regardless of when the affair started, it caught Holmes' then-wife Marilee Fiebig completely unaware. "She's devastated. She had no idea. They haven't been together in [a while], but they were trying to work it out," a source told Page Six after news broke about Holmes' infidelity. Fiebig filed for divorce at the end of December 2022, after Holmes and Robach had been publicly dating for weeks and any hope — or desire — for reconciliation was gone. Fiebig has undertaken quite the transformation since, including finding love with Andrew Shue — Robach's ex-husband.

T.J. Holmes' affair with Amy Robach wasn't his only inappropriate workplace relationship – he reportedly had affairs with at least two other colleagues at ABC News. "He was a predator who took full advantage of his position, and he was reckless," a source told the Daily Mail. The first affair was in 2015 with an intern thirteen years younger than Holmes. She sought mentorship from him, but "he absolutely abused the position of trust" as their relationship grew physical. Their affair lasted for a few months before ending. "This was a young woman, starting out in a difficult industry, looking for role models and mentors and she got T.J. No one talked about abuse of power back then, but stuff happened," the source said.

Holmes engaged in a long-term affair with "Good Morning America" producer Natasha Singh. "She fell in love with him. He had a key to her apartment," a source told Page Six. Holmes' ex-wife Marilee Fiebig found out about this affair, creating a blindspot as to his future relationship with Robach. "Marilee never considered Amy because she was focused on Natasha. She never thought about [him cheating] with Amy because they were friends," a different source said to Page Six. The outlet reported a few days later that Holmes engaged in another affair while at ABC, though as the affair partner is unnamed, it's unclear if Page Six's report is referring to Holmes' affair with the ABC intern in 2015 or a third person at the company.

The inappropriate relationships became too much for ABC and the network dropped both T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach in January 2023. According to a statement from ABC News, "After several productive conversations with Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes about different options, we all agreed it's best for everyone that they move on from ABC News" (via NBC). This came after they were pulled from air in December 2022. "T.J.'s cheating with ABC staffers was definitely one of the reasons why they were yanked off," a Page Six source said. Another alleged that Holmes' behavior at the network was a large factor as well, saying, "He's also a d**k to producers. No one likes working with him."

Almost a year after their dual firings from ABC News, Holmes and Robach began a podcast together, "Amy & T.J," where they cover everything from politics to pop culture. "The best way to sum us up, Amy and T.J., is that we're the folks who lost the jobs we love because we love each other," Holmes said of their podcast, putting a somewhat rosy spin on what actually happened (via Variety). "We have fought for love, and I can say I have never been happier. I am with my best friend," Robach said.

An early 2024 episode of "Amy & T.J." especially stuck out. Titled "A Year on the Rocks," T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach detailed their issues with controlling their alcohol intake. "I am certainly somebody who right now and in years past needs to reexamine my relationship with alcohol, and that's what we are doing," Holmes said. He commented that he could "easily have a drink in my hand from the afternoon until nine at night" and that having 18 drinks in a day wasn't uncommon for him. According to a Page Six source, the pair bonded together while drinking after work, saying, "They'd have drinks all day after meetings."

The pair spent a staggering sum on their alcohol intake. "We spent, in the month of December, $2,869 on alcohol alone, period. I thought the number would be higher, to be honest with you," Holmes said. Robach also had issues with drinking, saying, "I drank a lot, a lot more than I ever have" because of the alienation she felt from losing her career and friends. "That is an amount of money now that is going to be saved in January," Holmes commented as he and Robach elected to partake in Dry January, a movement with growing popularity where people will abstain from drinking alcohol for the month of January.

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).