The repercussions of a split between Hollywood actor Johnny Depp and long-time partner Vannessa Paradis are being considered by media outlets.
An unnamed source has told celebrity website RadarOnline that the couple's relationship "is heading toward the end", but their individual circumstances mean that it will not be as straightforward as a conventional visit to divorce solicitors.
The individual said: "They're not married but they've been together for years and have kids together so it isn't as easy as just breaking up."
Depp and Paradis have been cohabiting for 14 years and have two children; 12-year-old Lily-Rose and Jack, who is eight years old. They have generally been seen as one of the more steady Hollywood couples and the lack of a marriage certificate was not seen as evidence that they could split up.
Minute15.com pointed out that it is not the first high-profile couple to hit the headlines for the wrong reasons in 2012, as Katherine Jenkins and Gethin Jones have confirmed they will split, while actor-comedian Russell Brand announced his divorce from his wife of 14 months, the singer Katy Perry.
The website pointed out that there is scant solid evidence of a Depp-Paradis separation, but highlighted how a picture did appear in a French magazine in 2011 that appeared to show him kissing his public relations representative.
