Fred Armisen’s Wives: Inside the Failed Marriages of the SNL Star

Fred Armisen is a well-known American actor and writer. Regarding his personal life, Fred Armisen has been married two times, and Primetime Emmy Award winner Elisabeth Moss was Fred Armisen's wife.

Some of Fred Armisen's marriages were short-lived, and he was involved with stars in the entertainment industry. The actor and writer, mainly known for his work as a writer for "Saturday Night Live," started working for SNL in 1975.

Armisen, born Fereydun Robert Armisen on December 4, 1996, is also known for 2004's "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy" and "Portlandia" in 2011. The Mississippi native has decades of experience in showbiz and is quite successful.

However, the multi-talented writer doesn't seem to be lucky regarding relationships. He has had two failed marriages, with his last long-term relationship being with Natasha Lyonne.

Fred Armisen Once Confessed a Green Card Came into Play

Fred Armisen's first marriage was with English singer and lyricist Sally Timms. Timms was born in England on November 29, 1959. The multi-hyphenate is also an actress and cinematographer. Timms is known for 2002's "Toonami: Trapped in Hyperspace," "Guide to Music and South by Southwest" in 1998, and 1995's "The Rudy and GoGo World Famous Cartoon Show."

She founded the group called "The Mekons" in 1985 and has recorded numerous songs during her musical career. Some of her most well-known songs include "Horses," "Broken Bottle," and "Parson's Farewell."

The singer's union to the writer was Armisen's longest marriage compared to his second one. The former spouses were married for about six years before they went their separate ways. Armisen talked about his relationship with Timms to Howard Stern and mentioned that the marriage was "more for the green card."

Elisabeth Moss Called Her Marriage to Fred Armisen "Extremely Traumatic"

Fred Armisen's second marriage was with American actress Elisabeth Moss, and the pair have a 16-year age gap. They met in October 2008 when she joined John Hamm for a few skits when he hosted "Saturday Night Live." Three months after they met, the pair got engaged.

During an interview with the New York Times in June 2009, Moss revealed that she and Armisen were "very private people." She was then engaged to the SNL star, and they tied the knot in October 2009. They married in front of family and friends during a ceremony at The Foundry in Long Island City, New York.

They had spoken about their wedding two months before and said they wanted a simple ceremony. Moss then revealed that she planned to wear a Claire Pettibone wedding gown and said she thought the designer's dresses were "really beautiful."

Their marriage didn't last, though, as they reportedly went their separate ways a few months earlier in June 2010. The couple separated after being married for less than a year. Fred Armisen's wife filed for divorce in September 2010 and cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the split. Their divorce was finalized in 2011.

Moss has been open about how difficult her marriage with Armisen was.

Moss spoke about her failed marriage for the first time nearly two years after the divorce. The "Mad Men" actress reportedly said:

"One of the greatest things I heard someone say about him is, 'He's so great at doing impersonations. But the greatest impersonation he does is that of a normal person.'"

The Golden Globe Award winner also revealed to the publication that the statement "sums it up" for her, and she wasn't prepared to spend more time talking about it. She also said she didn't keep in touch with Armisen after the divorce.

Moss has been open about how difficult her marriage with Armisen was. She detailed her experience during an interview with Vulture in 2014. Moss explained:

"Looking back, I feel like I was really young, and at the time, I didn't think that I was that young. It was extremely traumatic and awful and horrible."

The actress expressed that things turned out for the best and was relieved she was no longer in that situation. She stated that the relief she felt was that it happened when she was younger and not in her 50s. Moss said she was happy it was out of the way and hoped it wasn't "going to happen again."

Moss also spoke about how the false reports about her in the tabloids hurt. She said it was "strange" that people were talking about something related to her heart and thought it sucked.

Natasha Lyonne and Fred Armisen Broke up over a Swimming Pool

Fred Armisen's third long-term relationship was with actress Natasha Lyonne. They were introduced to each other in the early 2000s but officially became a couple in 2014. The pair had attended numerous pre-Emmy Awards events together.

In 2015, Lyonne started appearing on Fred Armisen's show "Portlandia" and was featured in several episodes until 2018. She described Armisen as "a really top-notch guy" in 2017, and the two went on to settle in Los Angeles by 2020.

The "American Pie" actress confirmed in April 2022 that their relationship had ended during the pandemic. However, the two have remained friends after their breakup. Lyonne has since revealed the reason for their split as she said:

"I honestly think we broke up because I wanted a swimming pool. We love each other just about as much as two people can love each other, and we're still talking all the time, but Freddy doesn't like a swimming pool."

She further said it might seem like a "mundane" reason to break up, but she needed a pool, especially during the pandemic. Lyonne shared that she bought herself a house with a swimming pool in Los Angeles.