Hollywood heartbreak is everywhere.

Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban have separated after 19 years of marriage. People and TMZ – which was first to share the news – reported on Sept. 29 that Urban, 57, and Kidman, 58, are separated. USA TODAY has reached out to both Kidman and Urban's representatives for comment. The couple first met 20 years ago in Los Angeles and married just over a year later near Sydney, Australia, on June 25, 2006.

The internet is in a frenzy. Some fans dissected who could be to blame or who gets the money in such a high-profile divorce. Others already mused who Kidman would date next, and many are simply stunned, saddened. One TikTok creator argued a 19-year marriage should be considered a success in today's society, not a failure.

"Let them live," the creator says. "I'm more concerned with her next AMC commercial than I am with this."

Whatever the hot take, we can't look away: That's because we love to keep tabs on the highs and lows of celebrities, experts say.

And speculation over Kidman and Urban's dissolution likely says a lot more about us than we realize.

Telling their own story

We're all familiar with Urban and Kidman's doting red-carpet appearances. The couple famously supports one another, from Hollywood accolades to cross-country music tours.

But experts say behind public kisses, high-profile celebrities manage a carefully curated image. Just in June, the "Holland" actress shared a backstage photo of herself embracing Urban to mark 19 years since their wedding, and simply captioned the Instagram post: "Happy Anniversary Baby ." Such a sudden shift is a reminder we never really know what's happening behind the songs and screens, despite our best intentions.

And now more than ever, it's even harder for Urban or Kidman to control that narrative.

This is because fans feel they know celebrities, called a parasocial relationship, and have already decided the truth for themselves. Whatever is said, or left unsaid, by the couple, the internet fills the gaps with their own theories. Instagram posts aside, we've made up our minds about what happened.

'We identify with it'

Another reason we react is we relate to Urban and Kidman, who are parents to daughters, 17-year-old Sunday Rose and 14-year-old Faith Margaret. Whether we're parents ourselves, or had parents separate, the experience strikes a chord.

"The reason we keep opening and clicking on updates is ... because we can all identify with it," Robert Thompson, director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University, previously told USA TODAY. "It's the portion of the fabulous lifestyle that we can actually enter into."

But seeing an A-list couple fall apart also gives some a green light for downward comparison, seizing the drama to feel better about themselves, Elizabeth Cohen, professor of communication studies at West Virginia University, previously told USA TODAY.

Either way, if you catch yourself with heightened emotions, that might be an indicator to pause scrolling. It might be time to write your own story instead of someone else's.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban news is everywhere. Why are we so interested?

Reporting by Nicole Fallert, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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