These 15 Celebrities Gave Their Partner An Ultimatum — Here's How It Worked Out For Them

"I didn’t want to play the games."

Ultimatums can be a bit polarizing — some people swear by them in setting relationship boundaries...

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...while others are against taking the chance of alienating a partner with strict relationship demands.

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The nature of ultimatums can vary, and you don't always know how they may impact a connection.

Here are 15 celebrities who gave their significant others an ultimatum, and how it affected their relationships.

1. Cardi B presented an ultimatum to Offset, and the two were married soon after.

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Before Cardi and Offset had children together, Cardi told him they would have to get married first.

“We were making out and he was like, ‘You’re going to have my baby one day,’ and I was like, ‘We ain’t having no baby. You have to marry me,’" Cardi told Essence in an April 2022 interview. "And he was like, ‘Alright, let’s get married.'"

When an argument came up, Cardi revisited the topic of marriage. The two then tied the knot in 2017.

“I was like, ‘Let’s just get married then. You said you wanted to marry me.’ And we did," Cardi said. 

Although they separated for a time beginning in 2018, Cardi and Offset have since reconciled. They have two children together and share three children from Offset's previous relationships.

2. Before Vanessa Lachey and Nick Lachey became hosts of The Ultimatum, Vanessa issued an ultimatum of her own.

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During an episode of Netflix's The Ultimatum, co-hosts Vanessa and Nick talked about their ultimatum experience as a couple.

While Vanessa thought she "was gonna be that girl that would never give a man an ultimatum," after dating and moving in with Nick, she was ready to take their relationship to the next level. 

"We dated for five years. So I finally said, 'What are we doing?'" Vanessa said.  

They took a break from seeing other, and during this time they each dated one other person. This experience resulted in them recognizing their desire to continue the partnership.

"We realized that if we got at it our own way, we could be amazing together," Vanessa said. "But it took seeing somebody else and me realizing, I don't mind the things that I thought bugged me or were holding me back ... The bigger picture is how I feel about this person and their values of wanting to be with me and knowing everything about me."

They've been married since 2011 and have three children together.

3. Diane Keaton gave Al Pacino a marriage ultimatum that ended their relationship.

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In 2017, Diane opened up to People about her former flames, including Al. She developed a crush on the actor when they were costars in The Godfather, and the two then started to see each other. Diane said she was “mad for [Al]" at the time and called him "charming" and "hilarious." 

But when he wasn't showing a desire to get married, Diane decided to present an ultimatum to Al. This ultimately led to their split.  

“I worked hard on that one. I went about it in not a perfect way," Diane said. 

4. Faith Hill issued an ultimatum that helped Tim McGraw make some lifestyle changes.

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Tim spoke to Extra in 2019 when his book, Grit & Grace: Train the Mind, Train the Body, Own Your Life, was being released. He reflected on his partying becoming excessive during his successful music career and said he was confronted by Faith about this. At the time, the two were already married with kids.

"She told me, 'Look, you're not living up to what you need to be living up to with your family. ... You're not respecting your career; you're not respecting yourself; you're not respecting the life that you have. And you just need to take a long look in the mirror and figure out what you want to do.' And she was right," Tim said.

After this talk, Tim turned things around and began to improve his lifestyle through exercising and halting his partying. He and Faith have now been married for over 25 years.

5. Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas offered each other fun ultimatums that involved bingeing Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings.

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When they started seeing each other, Joe learned that Sophie watches the Harry Potter films every year around the holidays. So, she said Joe would have to see the movies in order to date her.

"Sophie...she said, 'Look, if we're going to get married' — and it was actually, 'If you're going to date me, you have to watch the Harry Potters,' " Joe said on The Late Late Show with James Corden in 2020.

"So I watched them all. I fell in love with it," he added.

Afterward, Joe told Sophie she'd have to watch The Lord of the Rings franchise with him, and they viewed these films at home together during the pandemic.

The couple has been married since 2019, and they have one child together and one on the way.

6. Katie Maloney presented an ultimatum to Tom Schwartz, but later ended up filing for divorce from him.

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The Vanderpump Rules costars began seeing each casually other after meeting in 2010, Katie said in an April 2022 We Met at Acme podcast episode. When their romantic feelings became stronger, Katie asked Tom to be her boyfriend.

"We both didn't want a relationship, but we caught feelings," she said. "So I felt like we had to establish some boundaries so the other one didn't get hurt."

The couple next moved in together, and an ultimatum from Katie led to them getting married in 2019. 

"Then I gave him an ultimatum, the famous ultimatum," Katie said. "I felt like he was always very commitment-phobic in ways, and I was wanting to take natural progressions... He was being naughty, and so I was like, 'You know, it's time for you to make the real commitment.'"

On March 15, Katie and Tom each posted statements on their Instagram accounts announcing their separation. Tom made a reference to this being Katie's choice, as he wrote he "fully respect[s] Katie's decision."

"Of course, now I’m the one that’s asked for a divorce. So it’s funny how life works," Katie said in the interview.

7. Dax Shepard issued an ultimatum to Kristen Bell about the way she handled conflict.

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In a 2017 episode of Harry, Kristen said she would often storm off when she and Dax got into fights early on in their relationship. Although she said it initially "felt so good" for her to make a dramatic exit during conflicts, an ultimatum from Dax changed her outlook on this approach.

"I realized how incredibly toxic it was only after he pointed it out," Kristen said. "He was like, 'Yeah, you can't leave anymore during fights... I love you, but I'm not going to do that my whole life.'"

They began to take steps toward fighting in a healthier way, and Kristen said they now "fight beautifully." They've been married since 2013 and have two daughters together.

8. Sofia Richie's ultimatum to Scott Disick regarding Kourtney Kardashian finalized their breakup.

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In a March 2021 episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Scott said Sofia issued an ultimatum that ended their relationship, E! News reported. The couple initially separated in 2020, but got back together soon after this. At the time, Sofia voiced her need to be more of a focus in Scott's life.

"And I feel like she likes being the center of attention… And she goes, ‘In your life, I feel like I'm the last person that gets attention,'" Scott said. 

Although he and Sofia decided to work things out, Scott soon felt she was attempting to "push Kourtney out," he said. She then issued a final ultimatum to him.

"And then she literally said with an ultimatum, ‘You have to choose me or Kourtney.'"

After hearing this condition, Scott realized a relationship with Sofia would no longer work, and the two parted ways.  

"I'm never gonna give up my relationship with Kourtney and the co-parenting we have," he said. "Nothing in a million years will be worth what we have."

9. Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves exchanged vows after she issued an ultimatum.

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Before tying the knot, Camila and Matthew had been together for years and had two children together. They "talked about [marriage] spiritually," "talked to a lot of people that had been divorced," as well as "happily married" couples, until Camila gave Matthew a marriage ultimatum. 

"It took her going, 'C’mon, Big Boy, Mr. Easygoing-We’ll-Get-to-It-When-We-Get-to-It. Either shit or get off the pot,'" Matthew told GQ in 2014.

This ultimatum worked out, as they got married in 2012 and had one more child after their nuptials.

10. Idris Elba was able to work through his ultimatum habit with Sabrina Dhowre Elba.

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Idris and Sabrina would have disagreements when they first started dating, during which he would issue heated ultimatums. 

"Sabrina and I, very early in our relationship, I was very stressed, so I had these massive anger tantrums that were like explosions," Idris said in a 2021 episode of their podcast, Coupledom. "I was always the first to say, 'Hey, if you're not happy, leave. Move.' It was kind of like a male instinct."

They were able to find solutions to this issue, however, and married in 2019. Sabrina called Idris her "best friend" in the podcast episode, and he expressed similar feelings toward his wife.

"I'd say we're in a good place... Ultimately, when you look to the side and you've got someone that's been there, ride or die, that's really comforting," Idris said.

11. Rachael Kirkconnell's ultimatum to Matt James helped the couple rekindle their romance.

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Before the Bachelor stars began seeing each other again, Rachael presented an ultimatum to Matt. At the time, Matt said he "wasn't really honoring [his] commitment" of dedicating effort to improving their partnership. 

"She was like, ‘If you’re going to make this work, then let’s do it. But if you’re not going to make it work, then I’m going to let you do your own thing,'” Matt said on The Pomp Podcast in May 2021. 

Once Rachael offered this ultimatum, it altered Matt's perspective and sealed the deal for their reunion. 

“It was an ultimatum that I needed,” he said. “It was what I needed, and it's been great." They're currently still together and often feature each other in Instagram posts.

12. Paulina Porizkova planned an ultimatum for Ric Ocasek, after which they separated following a marriage of nearly three decades.

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Before Ric's passing in 2019, he and Paulina were together for 28 years of marriage. When Paulina had stopped feeling seen by Ric in the relationship, she decided to give him an ultimatum, she explained in November 2021 for the Defying Ageism series by StyleLikeU. 

"I thought, One brilliant last idea: What if I give him the ultimatum before I'm finished?" Paulina said. "'When I still love him, when I still want to make this work, that might snap him out of it.'"

She told Ric she felt unhappy in their marriage and suggested they take steps toward separation or divorce. This, however, resulted in an indifferent response from Ric and confirmed their breakup.

"He just looked at me really coldly and said, 'Well, it seems like your mind's made up, so, whatever.' And that was it," Paulina said. "I really, really couldn't believe it. That that was it. That that was all the fight he was going to put up for me."

13. Rod Stewart was presented with an ultimatum by Penny Lancaster, who wasn't into playing games.

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Rod was recently divorced and not looking to settle down right away when Penny met him, she said on Loose Women in 2017. When the two started dating, she wanted to be the only woman in his life; otherwise she was determined to walk away. 

"I didn’t want to play the games, so I remember right from the very beginning I said, ‘Look, if you mess it up — I understand if you want to go out with other girlfriends. Tell me and I’ll find someone else, but please don’t do that to me,'" she said. "I made the rules pretty clear, and if you’re happy to live under the terms that I want to have a relationship with, then great."

The ultimatum proved to be favorable for Rod and Penny's relationship. They've been married since 2007 and have two sons together.

14. Natasha Richardson gave Liam Neeson a James Bond ultimatum.

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In a June 2021 interview onThe Late Late Show With James Corden, Liam said he'd received calls from producer Barbara Broccoli about potentially starring as James Bond in the '90s. Though he was never officially offered the role, Natasha, his then-girlfriend, issued an ultimatum advising against it. 

"I know they were looking at various actors and I apparently was among them," Liam said. "However, my dear, departed wife did say to me, 'Darling, if you're offered James Bond and you're going to play it, you're not going to marry me.'"

Liam and Natasha were married for nearly 25 years and had two sons before she sadly passed away in 2009.

15. Channing Tatum knocked on Jenna Dewan's door at 2 a.m. after she presented him with an ultimatum.

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Channing and Jenna met while starring opposite each other in Step Up. A romance was beginning to unfold between them, but Jenna made it clear to Channing that she was only looking for a serious relationship.

"I did the whole, 'Look if you want to date other people and be free, that's totally fine, but we're not going to 'hang out' and 'watch movies' and all this stuff,'" Jenna said on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2017. "'You've got to figure out what you want, because I know I want to be in a relationship.'" 

Three days later, after a night out partying with some of the dancers from Step Up, Channing knocked on Jenna's hotel room door at 2 a.m. 

"He said he had the chance to be free and he couldn't stop thinking about me," Jenna said.

They were married for nearly nine years and had one daughter together before announcing their separation in April 2018.