Hilary Duff and Spouse Mike Comrie call it quits

It’s the New Year and it’s time for another round of celebrity splits. Starting off the New Year is the announcement that Hilary Duff and her husband of four years, the retired National Hockey League star Mike Comrie, have called it quits.

The pair, who have a son, Luca, who is turning two years old in March of this year have decided to an “amicable split.” According to those close to the pair, “Hilary Duff and husband Mike Comrie have mutually decided to an amicable separation. They remain best friends and will continue to be in each other’s lives. They are dedicated to loving and parenting their amazing son, and ask for privacy at this time.”

It’s only been a few months since we heard Hilary Duff announce to reporters that Mike Comrie, 33, was an “amazing father.” According to Hilary Duff, “He’s so patient and loving and involved. He’s all the things that I knew that he would be.” At the time Hilary Duff also commented about how she would like to have a baby girl if they decided to expand their family.

The couple was married August 2010 in a Santa Barbara wedding. Hilary Duff gave birth to her son Luca on March 20, 2012. Hilary Duff, 26, notes that they expect to stay in each other’s lives and Duff’s mother, Susan, believes they can be much better friends than spouses. The pair have also announced they will continue to parent their son together. According to sources, the pair was spotted as recently as New Year’s Eve together.

Who is Hilary Duff?

Hilary Duff, according to Wikipedia, is “American actress, singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, model, producer and author.” She began her career working in local theater production and television commercials in the Houston area before becoming a teen heartthrob in the Disney Chanel hit series Lizzie McGuire.

Hilary Duff continued her career by staring in a string of teen movies such as The Lizzie McGuire Movie, Agent Cody Banks, and A Cinderella Story. She has also been a fixture in television in shows such as Joan of Arcadia, Ghost Whisperer, Two and a Half Men, and Gossip Girl. Duff does not limit herself to onscreen roles. She has also produced movies and done voice over work for a number of animated films.

Hilary Duff, like many other Disney stars, can also sing. She signed a recording contract with Hollywood Records in 2002 and released a number of albums, many of which have done quite well. Her most famous album was Most Wanted which went platinum in the in 2005. Other chart toppers followed, such as her highest-top charting single “With Love” which debuted on the United States Billboard Hot 100.

Duff took a singing hiatus for five years but has returned to the studio and is expected to release her fifth studio album in 2014. Other Hilary Duff ventures include a successful clothing line, literature, fragrances, and other humanitarian causes.