Ariel Winter and Luke Benward Call It Quits After Nearly Six Years Together
Ariel Winter and Luke Benward are over after nearly six years—Winter confirmed in the comments of a People Instagram post that they quietly split in August 2025.
Well, here’s a relationship update I didn’t expect to type this far into 2026: Ariel Winter and Luke Benward quietly broke up last summer after almost six years together. No drama blast, no Notes app essay — just a low-key split that only went public now because People reported it on Thursday, May 14, and Ariel jumped into their Instagram comments to confirm.
Where things stand now
Winter, 28, and Benward, 31, ended things in August 2025. According to Ariel, they’re still on good terms and sharing dog duties. She put it plainly in the comments under People’s post:
'He’s still one of my best friends, a great human being and a great pup coparent. Just because sometimes people aren’t meant to be doesn’t mean you don’t still appreciate the time spent and retain the friendship you shared … still a big luke fan over here!!!'
So, yes — amicable, and yes — the dog is fine.
How they got here
These two went from friends to more back in 2019. By the time the world shut down in 2020, they were already past the awkward getting-to-know-you phase. In a June 2025 interview, Benward explained that they skipped right to the deep end during lockdown and, at the time, felt like it worked. Ariel even joked then that while some couples imploded or had babies during COVID, they were proudly one of the rare relationships that actually got stronger.
Working together, planning together... then calling it
They also blended the personal and professional. The pair costarred in the thriller Don’t Log Off and talked about using that as a springboard: they’d produced a short that did well, were aiming to produce more projects together, and were even putting a cooking show package together to pitch. It was a very Hollywood- forward plan for the next few years — which makes the timeline interesting, because just a couple months after those upbeat June 2025 interviews, they split in August.
The fandom stuff that made them work
Benward openly stanned her TV past — he would sneak on Modern Family episodes just to mess with her, and he was especially loyal to Phil Dunphy. Ariel clarified she didn’t ban him from watching the show; she just preferred not to sit through her own episodes with him. And if you followed them on Instagram, you probably caught her long 2021 birthday post where she called him her safe space, praised how caring and devoted he was, and basically wrote the definition of a supportive partner. For context, before Luke, Ariel dated Levi Meaden for three years until they broke up in 2019.
The quick version
- 2019: Winter and Benward shift from friends to dating.
- 2020–2021: Weather the pandemic together; call themselves one of the rare COVID-strong couples.
- They costar in Don’t Log Off and start producing projects; develop a cooking show to pitch.
- June 2025: Give upbeat interviews about their future plans, both personal and professional.
- August 2025: Quietly split.
- May 14, 2026: People reports the breakup; Ariel confirms in the comments and says they’re still friends and coparenting their pup.
It’s a clean, grown-up breakup — not the ending fans wanted, but not a mess either. And if you’re wondering, no reps have added anything beyond what Ariel already said publicly.