Natalie Portman Thanks Friends Who ‘Lift’ Her ‘Up’ After Benjamin Millepied Divorce

Natalie Portman shared that she is thankful for “friends who lift me up” in a birthday post shared to Instagram on Sunday, June 9. “This year, on my birthday, I want to celebrate my gratitude for my friends who lift me up again and again,” captioned the 43-year-old.

The Black Swan actress released snaps of herself alongside her friends on different occasions. Many of her Hollywood gals praised her on her special day, such as Reese Witherspoon who commented, “incredible diamond of a human! I love you.” Kerry Washington noted “HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEAUTIFUL HUMAN,” and Isla Fisher shared, “Ports I love you. Happy Birthday. I’m so grateful you were born.”

This special shoutout comes shortly after Natalie split from her estranged husband, Benjamin Millepied – whom she met on the set of Black Swan – in August 2023. Throughout their 11 years of marriage, the then-couple welcomed Aleph and Amalia, whom “she and Ben really love” and “are equally focused on being the best co-parents they can be,” an insider told People back in March. Two months prior to the split, it was rumored that the 47-year-old dancer was unfaithful with Camille Étienne.

Though neither have addressed the infidelity allegations, Natalie gave Vanity Fair a subtle message when asked. “It’s terrible, and I have no desire to contribute to it…” referring to the chatter surrounding her marriage. 

Natalie found a sacred place throughout this phase of her life, and that was with her friends. “I lead a very non-Hollywood life in L.A. I live on the east side. I have some friends who are in the entertainment industry, but many friends who are not, and we don’t do industry things when we hang out…We’re not going to Hollywood parties, we’re having dinners at home in the backyard,” she shared to the outlet.

Despite the heartbreak, an insider told Us Weekly, “Natalie is her confident self [again]…It took her a while to get her smile back after the divorce, but she has turned a corner…She’s really coming into her own self-happiness.”