Joe Jonas Was Pushed by His Brothers to Divorce Sophie Turner: He Was ‘Unhappy’ and ‘Distracted’

She was having a blast. Over Labor Day weekend, Sophie Turner headed to DropShot Digbeth, a bar in Birmingham, England, to join pals for beer pong, shots, billiards and arcade games. The Game of Thrones actress was in great spirits as she downed, in her words, a “f—in’ bangin’” mojito, at what was described as a wrap party for Joan, the U.K. TV series she’s been filming all summer, before things wound down around 2 a.m.

An ocean away, her husband was hiring an attorney. Days after Sophie’s night out, Joe Jonas filed for divorce on September 5, calling their four-year marriage “irretrievably broken.” While the split came as a shock to fans, the singer, 34, and Sophie, 27, “have been having marriage trouble for close to a year,” reveals a source. “Since welcoming their second child [in 2022], they’ve struggled with the demands of parenthood and their careers and balancing all of that with their personal goals.” 

They tried to figure things out. “Joe and Sophie hoped they’d find their footing and resolve the issues, but it became too much,” adds the source. “The truth is, neither of them has been happy for some time and they’ve been living separate lives for months.”

Growing Tensions

Speculation about what went wrong quickly emerged. There are claims Sophie — who was just 20 when she started dating Joe, a bride at 23 and a mother of two by 26 — feels she’s missed out on a lot. There’s also a vague TMZ report alleging Joe saw or heard Sophie doing or saying something on a Ring security cam­era that made him realize their mar­riage was over. Ultimately, says an insider, “they just reached a point where it wasn’t meshing anymore, and it became painfully apparent that they’re not very well suited for the long term.”

A lot brought them to this point. According to the insider, “Joe’s pull­ing the plug because he can’t take his wife’s wild partying.” That’s ironic, since in 2020, Sophie insisted, “I’m a homebody. If I could stay at home all day, I would,” while Joe’s “a real so­cial butterfly.” Sophie’s also hinted at being homesick. “I miss England so much,” she said of her native coun­try in August 2022. “The people, the attitude, everything…. For my men­tal health, I have to be around my friends and my family.” So­phie, who’s lived with Joe in NYC, LA and Miami, made it clear that “England would ideally be the final destina­tion, but [Joe] might take quite a bit of convincing!”

Career ambi­tions were a fac­tor, too. “Sophie resented that Joe assumed she’d put work aside while he went on his [current Jonas Brothers] tour, especially since they’d discussed her returning to work after having their second kid,” says the source. “She felt lied to when he expected her to join him on the road.”

She was there for his band’s kickoff concert in NYC on August 12, where Joe dedicated a song to her, calling the actress the person who’s “got [my] back no matter what.” But three weeks later, he ended it. “Sophie had wanted Joe to wait until she was back in the States,” says the source. “She begged for another chance.”

According to the insider, Joe decided “to rip off the Band-Aid” instead after a push from siblings Nick, 30, and Kevin, 35. “Everyone could see Joe was unhappy and distracted,” explains the insider. “So his brothers sat Joe down to talk about it in a mid-tour intervention.”

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What’s Next

Divorce papers indicate there’s a prenup Joe wants enforced. The terms reportedly ensure Joe, who’s worth an estimated $50 million, keeps his music royalties and Sophie, who’s worth an estimated $10 million, keeps her acting residuals, and that they’ll only have to split the value of their marital home. (They sold their Miami mansion for $15 million in August.)

But it’s up to a judge to decide what’s best for Willa, 3, and a second daughter, 1, whose name they’ve not shared publicly. Though the girls are currently in Joe’s care — the pop star was seen having breakfast with them at Sweet Butter Kitchen in LA’s Sherman Oaks suburb the morning after his filing — he’s asking for shared custody and a parenting plan that allows for “frequent and continuing contact with both parties.”

Joe and Sophie said in a joint statement on September 6 that their split is amicable and that “truly this is a united decision.” According to the insider, “Sophie seems to have reluctantly accepted it, even if it does mean some painful discussions about custody arrangements and the practical inconvenience of both parents being based on different continents.” For each of them right now, adds the insider, “it’s an agonizing and painful situation.”