- Lauren Sanchez is reportedly engaged to Amazon CEO after about five years of dating
- Lauren was married to talent agent Patrick Whitesell for about 13 years before they divorced in 2019
- Jeff was married to MacKenzie Scott for 25 years before their 2019 divorce
Lauren Sanchez is a bride-to-be! The former reporter, 53, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, 59, are reportedly engaged as they continue their European vacation on Jeff’s brand-new $500 million yacht. Although they have not made the official announcement as of this writing, the pair has sparked engagement rumors for years — especially after Lauren was spotted wearing a sparkling heart-shaped ring on her ring finger in 2019.
Lauren and Jeff have been together since 2019, the same year each announced their divorce from their respective partners. Jeff was previously married to MacKenzie Scott for 25 years. They announced their divorce on Jan. 9, 2019: the same day Jeff and Lauren’s romance was revealed. Meanwhile, Lauren was married to Patrick Whitesell, a former friend of Jeff’s. Their divorce was finalized in Oct. 2019. Learn more about Lauren and Patrick’s marriage, and Lauren and Jeff’s romance below.
Lauren Sanchez And Patrick Whitsell
Lauren and Patrick, the head honcho at Endeavor talent agency, had been friends with Jeff for years ahead of their divorce. In fact, they were seen chatting it up at Amazon’s Golden Globes afterparty in Jan. 2019 before Lauren and Jeff’s relationship was uncovered. “Jeff was in great spirits and having lots of fun. He had a crowd of people around him,” an insider told PEOPLE following the event. “Lauren was there but wasn’t with Jeff all the time. Her husband was there, too.” A second insider claimed that Patrick knew Jeff and Lauren were seeing each other at that point.
As they weren’t completely in the spotlight, little is known about Lauren and Patrick’s marriage. They were married for 13 years before officially ending their union in Oct. 2019. They share two teenage children: a daughter, Eleanor, and a son, Evan. Lauren also has an adult son named Nikko with former NFL tight end Tony Gonzalez.
The pair filed for divorce in April 2019. “Over the last two or three years, their marriage felt more like a business relationship,” a person close to the former couple told PEOPLE. “They both were doing their own thing.” They appear to have separated amicably, as they were still living together during the beginning stages of their split, according to the outlet.
Lauren Sanchez And Jeff Bezos
Although their relationship made headlines in Jan. 2019, Jeff and Lauren are thought to have been seeing each other for quite some time before their respective divorces. In fact, the pair were spotted enjoying some alone time together at the Casa Tua club in Miami, Fla. in late Oct. 2018, per Page Six. Lauren and Patrick had already privately separated by then, an insider told the outlet. Lauren, who is also a pilot, and Jeff then became closer when she started working for the billionaire.
“Patrick and Lauren have socialized with Jeff Bezos and his wife for a few years, because both [now former] couples have houses in Seattle,” the source explained. “Then Lauren was hired to work on one of Bezos’ projects, ‘Blue Origin,’ a space-launch company, as a helicopter pilot. She has been shooting aerial shots for Bezos.”
As noted above, Jeff announced his and MacKenzie’s divorce the same day the news of his relationship with Lauren dropped. He reportedly made the announcement to beat photos he knew were going to come out of him and Lauren together. MacKenzie also reportedly knew about Jeff and Lauren’s romance. “Jeff and MacKenzie tried very hard to work things out. They separated last year, then Jeff and Lauren started dating. MacKenzie knew they were dating; the news today was not a surprise to her,” an insider revealed to Page Six. “Lauren was with Jeff at the Golden Globes because they are dating.”
Lauren and Jeff made their first public appearance as a couple at the Wimbledon final at the All England Club in April 2019. Shortly after, they were seen cruising off the coast of Spain together on a superyacht, per Insider. They made their red carpet debut in Jan. 2020 at an Amazon Prime event in Mumbai, India.
Although they are relatively private people, they have on occasion publicly praised one another. “We’re really great teammates, and we also have a lot of fun together and we love each other,” Lauren raved to CNN during their first joint interview in Nov. 2022. “We always look at each other and we’re the team.” Jeff added, “It’s easy. We bring each other energy, we respect each other. So, it’s fun to work together.” In addition to piloting for Jeff, Lauren helps out with his various philanthropic endeavors.
Earlier in the year, Lauren penned a heartfelt birthday tribute to Jeff when he turned 58. “Yes everyone knows you are brilliant, but they don’t always see your heart the way my eyes do,” she began. “They don’t see the man who puts everything aside to help a sick friend, but my eyes do. They don’t see the man who wakes up early every morning to make breakfast for the kids so they can laugh and talk about life and science and how to make this world a better place—my eyes do. They don’t see the man who wants everyone to feel joy, who’s (sic) heart is immeasurable and who’s (sic) ability to love is infinite. My eyes see this.”