After 22 years of marriage and almost as long since founding rock band Arcade Fire together, married couple Win Butler and Régine Chassagne shocked fans by announcing their separation on Thursday, Oct. 30.
“After a long and loving marriage, Win and Régine have decided to separate,” read an announcement of the split on the Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec’s Instagram page, which has otherwise been dormant since July. “They continue to love, admire, and support each other as they co-parent their son.” The pair welcomed their only child together in April 2013.
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Fans immediately began sharing their thoughts on social media. “Arcade Fire show with divorced Win and Regine, I can’t imagine a more cursed vibe,” said one X user, while another wrote, “I don’t really care about relationships of celebs or even people I’m fans of, but Arcade Fire is different. They’ve been my favorite band for half my life. I looked up to them. Win and Regine were like The Couple for me. This is so f–king sad.”
Arcade Fire co-founders Win Butler and Régine Chassagne announce splitGetty
Others expressed support for Chassagne, with one saying, “Good for her…bad for the band… It’s over …Thanks for the memories.” That’s because, in 2022, Butler was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women. He responded to the allegations by admitting to having extramarital encounters with his accusers between 2015 and 2020 in a statement to Pitchfork, though he insisted all were consensual.
Chassagne supported him through the controversy at the time, saying in a statement, “I know what is in his heart, and I know he has never, and would never, touch a woman without her consent and I am certain he never did. He has lost his way and he has found his way back. I love him and love the life we have created together.”
So, what happens to the band now that the two cofounders, who wed in 2003 one year before releasing their debut album, aren’t together? “Their work in Haiti with KANPE continues, and their bond as creative soulmates will endure, as will Arcade Fire,” said the statement.
Arcade Fire has released seven studio albums since 2004, with their most recent, Pink Elephant, coming out just months before the breakup in May 2025. They also created the score for the 2013 Joaquin Phoenix film Her. Other members of the band include Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, and Jeremy Gara, who all play several instruments for the project.
Their 2005 song “Wake Up” was perhaps their most famous, being named NMEs 25th Best Song of the Decade and 42 out of Rolling Stone’s 100 Best Songs of the 2000s. It was famously featured in the trailer for Where the Wild Things Are in 2009, and they even licensed the wildly popular song to the Super Bowl in 2010 to help raise money for Haiti.
This story was originally reported by Parade on Oct 30, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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