The Most Tragic Confession Tish Cyrus Has Made About Her Divorce From Billy Ray

Tish Cyrus's whirlwind relationship with Dominic Purcell got serious in August 2023 when they said "I do," but that doesn't mean she's forgotten about the wounds of her past, like the end of her marriage to Billy Ray Cyrus. The Cyrus matriarch appeared on the Sibling Revelry with Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson podcast in November 2024, where she made a tragic confession about their divorce. As it turns out, she never wanted to put the nail in the coffin of their 28-year marriage. 

"I never wanted to be divorced," Tish said, adding, "I wanted to make it work, probably for a little too long, like, for my own mental health. There became a point that, like, I didn't have a choice." In fact, getting divorced was all foreign territory to Tish, who said she had grown up with two parents in a loving and strong marriage.

Following their split, Tish who still maintains relationships with all her children post-Billy Ray split, discussed how she regretted the pain it caused her kids. "My son Trace, for example... He was bummed. He was like, "I wish my mom and dad would never get... I wish that wouldn't have happened,'" she added. But this breakup seemed to be coming for a long time. There was discontent in Tish and Billy Ray's marriage at least a decade before their 2022 divorce, given that they filed twice in 2010 and 2013, but then reconciled.

While Tish and Billy Ray Cyrus's divorce did not become official until 2022, Tish separated from Billy Ray in 2020, which also coincided with the death of her mom. Tish revealed on the podcast "Call Her Daddy" in February 2024 that this was a brutal double whammy for her. "It was so crazy because, honestly, my two biggest fears in life were always being alone and my mom passing away," Tish told host Alex Cooper. "I was like, 'I just don't know if I'll survive when my mom dies. I had one month of, honestly, a complete psychological breakdown," she said. Tish explained that her physical and mental health were in the trenches, so much so that she asked her psychiatrist if she should be checked into a mental hospital, but was advised not to. Still, Tish relayed that she had lost a significant amount of weight and could not eat, sleep, or stop the tears during this difficult time.

While it may have felt like the end of the world for Tish at the moment, this dark period was short-lived as she and now-husband Dominic Purcell were seen getting flirty on Instagram just three months after she and Billy Ray announced their divorce. Hopefully, he's the one for Tish, and those signs that her relationship with Purcell is on the rocks are nothing more than speculation.