Glaring Red Flags In Cameron Diaz's Marriage, According To Our Matchmaker

Truth be told, there's no formula for long-lasting love. We've seen textbook-perfect couples crash and burn, only to be outlived by the pair that everyone swore would be divorced in a year. That said, certain relationship traits are far more common in marriages that end in divorce, and in the case of Cameron Diaz's relationship to Benji Madden, our divorce-meter is beeping hard.

The multiple-award-winning actor tied the knot with the Good Charlotte guitarist in 2015, and since then, the couple's insights into their marriage have piqued a lot of interest. On the surface, it doesn't get more lovey-dovey than them. There are social media tributes, the I'm-so-in-love declarations on TV shows, and even the occasional PDA. However, if there's one thing celebrity couples have taught us, it's that reading between the lines is a lot more valuable than their actual statements. To separate cynical predictions from facts, Glam spoke exclusively to Susan Trombetti, matchmaker and CEO of Exclusive Matchmaking. With her expert guidance, we're taking a dive into Diaz and Madden's love story to uncover a few glaring red flags.

One of the most popular reasons that couples split is because they jump into marriage too quickly, and according to Susan Trombetti, that seems to be the case with Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden. During our exclusive chat with Trombetti, we discussed the couple's rather quick relationship progression, which went from dating to marriage in months.

Sparks flew for Diaz and Madden in May 2024, and less than a year later, in January 2015, they officially tied the knot. According to Trombetti, this fast progression most likely didn't give the couple time to really get to know each other. "In my expert opinion, at eight months, you can consider marriage, discuss it, and even think you are heading that way, but you shouldn't be getting married," she tells us. "You need to go through four seasons with someone. It sounds romantic, but it's risky."

On the other hand, Trombetti points out that, since Diaz is one of those celebs who got married later in life, she may have "wanted to commit out of being more intentional" and was ready for the realities of such a quick marriage. Fingers crossed that this is the case.

Eight years into their marriage, Cameron Diaz made a guest appearance on the "Lipstick on the Rim" podcast in December 2023 and shared an interesting take on marriage generally. "We should normalize separate bedrooms," she said (via People). "To me, I would literally, I have my house, you have yours. We have the family house in the middle. I will go and sleep in my room. You go sleep in your room. I'm fine. And we have the bedroom in the middle that we can convene in for our relations." When the host pointed out that not everyone would agree with that take, Diaz backpedaled, saying, "I've already said it. By the way, I don't feel that way now because my husband is so wonderful. I said that before I got married." 

Susan Trombetti exclusively tells Glam that the problem with this take isn't that there aren't merits to it. In fact, sleeping in separate rooms might actually be good for your relationship. "... but there is also a waning intimacy sometimes associated with separate bedrooms," she says. "She even mentions separate houses. This might come from being independent for a long time." 

Another potentially telling detail is how the actor backpedalled after the tiniest bit of pushback. Switching from advocating for something to saying that you don't personally need it makes one think. Is the actor trying too hard to push an everything-is-perfect narrative? And if so, why?

Everyone who's ever been in a relationship knows how monumental anniversaries are. It's a time to reflect on your history so far, and in happy relationships, the majority of the sentiment is positive. However, Benji Madden's 2025 anniversary post on Instagram didn't exactly give off this vibe. "Never perfect – always real – always reliable," he wrote.

Speaking exclusively to Glam, matchmaker Susan Trombetti admits that the post had her thinking. "[It] can be realistic, but it doesn't sound like a 'Happy Anniversary, Honey' message," she says. "When coupled with her comments about the marriage, it seems like they have issues." Moreover, our matchmaker makes a concerning connection: "It puts me in mind of Ben Affleck's Oscars speech when he mentions his wife at the time, Jennifer Garner, and said their marriage was the 'best kind of work.' They are divorced now, but it raised eyebrows, and so does Benji's anniversary message."

To be clear, we agree that lovey-dovey messages aren't the sole hallmark of a great marriage. After all, Jessica Simpson and Eric Johnson's relationship was riddled with red flags, yet they went over the top with the sweet messages. Still, we wonder just how much negative reality has set into Diaz and Madden's marriage.

It's common knowledge that talk therapy can change your outlook on life. It's great for dealing with negative behavior and gaining a better understanding of yourself. However, for most people, therapy isn't meant to be lifelong. For Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden, though, being self-sufficient without a third party doesn't seem to be the goal.

In December 2024, the "Charlie's Angels" actor made an appearance on brother-in-law Joel Madden's podcast, "Artist Friendly," to discuss myriad things, ranging from her marriage to their general lives, and she had this to say about therapy: "Therapy is a big thing in our family. It's what we depend on." She went on to joke about refusing to have certain discussions without a therapist present.

Susan Trombetti makes it clear that she doesn't view this as a cute relationship quirk. "Their over-reliance on therapy to mitigate the problems in the marriage tells me they married too quickly," she exclusively tells Glam. "There is nothing wrong with therapy, but do they have a lot of tension in their marriage, or do they just love therapy?" At the very least, it points out that the couple might not be as aligned as they claim to be.