JLo and A-Rod are officially over.
After a public flip-flop last month regarding the status of their relationship, singer/actress Jennifer Lopez, 51, and former MLB star Alex Rodriguez, announced Thursday they "realized we are better as friends and look forward to remaining so," according to a statement shared exclusively with the "Today" show and confirmed to USA TODAY by a person familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly.
"We will continue to work together and support each other on our shared businesses and projects," the statement continued. "We wish the best for each other and one another’s children. Out of respect for them, the only other comment we have to say is thank you to everyone who has sent kind words and support."
Lopez and Rodriguez got engaged in March 2019. The couple was scheduled to tie the knot in Italy in June 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic hit mid-March.
Previously: 'We are working through some things,' Jennifer Lopez, Alex Rodriguez say
Last month, a person familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly had confirmed the couple's split to USA TODAY. Multiple news outlets, including People, E! and The Associated Press had also confirmed the news. Page Six first reported their breakup.
But 12 hours later, the two changed course, announcing they had not called it quits.
"All the reports are inaccurate. We are working through some things," the couple said in a joint statement provided March 13 to USA TODAY by Rodriguez's representative Ron Berkowitz.
When asked by TMZ that same day if he was single, Rodriguez kept his response short: "I'm not," he said. Later, in a video published by the outlet, the former MLB star received a phone call, which he confirmed was from Lopez who was in the Dominican Republic filming her latest movie, "Shotgun Wedding."
In February, Rodriguez accompanied Lopez to Washington, D.C. for President Joe Biden's inauguration ceremony, where she performed a mashup of "This Land is Your Land" and "America The Beautiful."
Last December, Lopez revealed she and Rodriguez were having second thoughts about walking down the aisle together, divulging to Andy Cohen that there was "definitely no rush" to get married.
"We've talked about (not getting married) for sure," Lopez responded to Cohen after he asked her about Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell's relationship. (The couple has been together for over 35-years and never married.) Lopez added, "With like the Goldie thing and Kurt, you think, do you have to, should we?"
Lopez continued: "I mean at our age, we've both been married before, it's like, do we get married? Do we not? What does it mean for us? And it's just, it comes down to like personal, like, what do you want to do? There's definitely no rush though."
More:Jennifer Lopez says canceled wedding made her question marrying Alex Rodriguez
Lopez was previously married to waiter Ojani Noa (1997 to 1998), dancer Cris Judd (2001 to 2003) and singer Marc Anthony (2004 to 2014), with whom she shares 13-year-old twins, Maximilian "Max" David and Emme Maribel. Rodriguez was married to Cynthia Scurtis from 2002 to 2008. They have two daughters: Natasha Alexander, 16, and Ella Alexander, 12.
"It was really sad because we were supposed to get married in June and we had planned it all," Lopez told Cohen. "So in March or April, we're looking down the pipe and we're going, 'This is maybe not going to happen.' Italy's the worst place in the world. And we were going to get married in Italy. I was like, 'OK, we got to cancel everything.'"
Lopez called the postponement "disappointing," but said she has faith in "divine time."
"It just kind of gave us a moment to pause and think about it," she added. "And I think it's something that maybe is still important to us, but there's no rush… it'll happen when it happens."
Contributing: Cydney Henderson and Charles Trepany
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