Vanessa Morgan alluded to her divorce from ex-husband Michael Kopech being the “biggest blessing” of her life.
“In the moment, it’s so painful. It’s almost like we idolize what our dream reality [was] from when we were a kid,” Morgan, 31, said during Rachel Bilson’s “Broad Ideas” podcast on Monday, March 11. “You mourn the future that never happened. You mourn the fantasy that you created, and that wasn’t the reality that was the best alignment for me.”
Morgan added: “God saved me. I only saw the bigger picture now. You go through those two years of pain. I went through two years of pain.”
Morgan married Kopech, 27, in January 2020. The last time she posted about the baseball player was in April of that year. Morgan announced via social media in July 2020 that she was pregnant with a baby boy, not including Kopech’s name in the post. Days later, the Chicago Tribune announced that Kopech had filed for divorce from Morgan the month prior to her pregnancy announcement. At the time, a rep confirmed that Kopech was the father of Morgan’s son. She gave birth to River in January 2021.
Vanessa Morgan and Michael Kopech’s Whirlwind Relationship Timeline
“Part of the biggest thing is that embarrassment. Not wanting to face that you have a broken family,” Morgan said elsewhere during Monday’s podcast episode. “You get married, you want to kind of have that fantasy and I think it’s almost like you feel disappointed to tell people that it didn’t work out, I’m going to be a single mom. I think that’s the beauty of life is that it doesn’t always go as planned and it’s the journey.”
The Riverdale alum said that she doesn’t allow herself to have the “victim mentality” when discussing her past relationship.
“I don’t want to be a victim,” Morgan added. “Otherwise, I’m just going to feel bad for myself all the time and I didn’t want to feel bad for myself. I have a beautiful son, that was my blessing.”
Morgan went on to address all the speculation surrounding her and Kopech’s split, explaining that “chose to stay silent” to protect her “peace.”
“I believe when you feed into the gossip, it just makes things worse,” she continued. “I chose to stay silent. I chose for my son’s peace to stay silent, and I thought that was the best choice for me and my family. I don’t want my son to grow up seeing the truth.”
Kopech has since moved on with Morgan Eudy, with whom he welcomed son Vander in May 2022. When it comes to his relationship with River, Morgan hinted that she cares for their son the majority of the time.
White Sox Pitcher Michael Kopech’s Family: Meet His Kids, Their Mothers
“His father is in his life,” she said. “He doesn’t get to see him very often but at least he’ll always know that my partner now has been there from, what he will remember, is the beginning.”
Morgan is currently in a relationship with James Karnik, whom she’s been dating since 2022. The actress said she waited six months before introducing her son to Karnik, 33, but the pair have a great relationship.
“They’re together every single day,” Morgan said of Karnik and River. “I think he looks at him like a father figure.”
