Cameron Diaz shared insights into what makes her marriage with Benji Madden successful. During a candid discussion with her brother-in-law, Joel Madden, on the December 11 episode of his Artist Friendly podcast, the 52-year-old actress and entrepreneur highlighted therapy as a foundational aspect of their relationship.
With a laugh, she remarked, “Therapy is a big thing in our family. It’s what we depend on.” Joel, 45, who has been married to Nicole Richie since 2010, readily concurred, stating, “Big time.”
Diaz reveals how professional guidance strengthens her partnership with Benji
For Diaz, engaging in regular couples therapy helps reinforce the commitment necessary to maintain a healthy marriage. “To not do the same thing over and over again, trying to figure out if doing it again will make it work this time,” she explained, emphasizing the importance of reflection. She noted that couples should ask themselves, “Why didn’t it work? How can I make it work? What’s my part? What’s the other person’s work?”
By discussing conflicts and challenges with a professional, she believes couples can approach future interactions better prepared to achieve different outcomes. Diaz shares two children, Raddix and Cardinal, with Benji, who is 45 years old.
In discussing their relationship, she emphasized that both partners must be fully committed daily. “You can’t be in a marriage and have a family if both people are not 100 percent every day,” she explained to Joel. “Nobody can be 99 and the other one be 100.
Even if you’re mad at each other, don’t want to see each other, sick of each other, it’s still 100 percent commitment to the marriage and to the partnership and the family.” Drawing a comparison between her marriage and Benji’s brotherly bond, she often finds herself telling her husband, “I’m not your twin… You can’t finish my sentences. You don’t know what I’m thinking.”
Joel expressed his belief that Diaz marrying Benji was “the best thing that ever happened to him.” Diaz responded with a laugh, saying, “Yeah, it is. It’s the thing that I’m most grateful for in my life, is our marriage and our family. Period. That’s it.”
Her guest appearance on Artist Friendly coincided with the 100th episode of Joel’s podcast. Currently, Diaz is filming Outcome, a dark comedy directed and starring Jonah Hill, where she reunites with her Feeling Minnesota co-star, Keanu Reeves.
