Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux announce separation: 'We are two best friends who have decided to part ways as a couple'

Couple released a joint statement saying they wished to convey the truth rather than allow for tabloid gossip

Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux have announced they are separating after two years of marriage.

The pair said the mutual decision was “lovingly made” at the end of last year; giving no reason for the split and saying they intended to continue their “cherished friendship”.

“We are two best friends who have decided to part ways as a couple, but look forward to continuing our cherished friendship,” they said.

“Normally we would do this privately, but given that the gossip industry cannot resist an opportunity to speculate and invent, we wanted to convey the truth directly.”

“Above all, we are determined to maintain the deep respect and love that we have for one another.”

Their home in Los Angeles had just been featured in Architectural Digest magazine, where Aniston was quoted as saying: “I look around at my husband and my dogs and our home, and there's nowhere else I want to be.”

Theroux was not interviewed for the piece.

Aniston, 49, and Theroux, 46, reportedly met on the set of comedy film Wanderlust, and were married four years later in a secret ceremony at their Bel Air home in August 2015.

This was Aniston’s second marriage: she was married to actor Brad Pitt for five years and divorced in 2005. Pitt has since split from his second wife Angelina Jolie.