Blair Underwood, Desiree DaCosta part ways after 27 years of marriage

Actor Blair Underwood and his wife Desiree DaCosta are calling it quits after 27 years of marriage. The couple, who share three children together, announced their split in a joint social media statement.

The 56-year-old actor and DaCosta shared a joint statement on Instagram on Sunday to announce their split. The exes share sons Paris, 24, and Blake, 19, and 22-year-old daughter Brielle.

"After a tremendous amount of thought, prayer and work on ourselves individually and collectively, we have come to the conclusion to end our marriage that began 27 years ago," the statement began.

"It has truly been a beautiful journey,"

Underwood

and DaCosta continued in their joint statement.

The statement further read, "Our proudest achievements are our three incredible children. Three souls to which God entrusted us. We continue to be awed and humbled by the blessings of parenting. We have always put their best interests first and will continue to do so. We will continue to be the best of friends and co-parents and have the utmost respect for one another as we embark upon this new chapter of our lives, separately."

The former partners concluded their statement saying, "We thank you all for your support throughout the years and we humbly ask for privacy and understanding during this new season of change."

Underwood previously spoke highly about his relationship with DaCosta in a 2008 interview, during which he reflected on watching his dad serve as the breadwinner to his mom while growing up, reportedly.

"I wanted to be her rock, her protector," the actor said of DaCosta. "If she had a problem, I wanted to solve it. I thought that's what was expected of me."

But Underwood said that thanks to DaCosta, he eventually learned that he didn't need to fix all of her problems, but merely support her when she needed him by her side.

"I was relieved as well; she didn't expect me to always have an answer for her," he said. "She wasn't coming to me for a repair. She just needed a shoulder to cry on."

Underwood rose to fame in the late '80s with the

NBC

drama 'L.A. Law'. He has received two

Golden Globe

nominations, for 'L.A. Law' and 'In Treatment', and shared a Grammy for best-spoken word album for 'An Inconvenient Truth'.

Like Underwood, DaCosta worked in the film industry as Eddie Murphy's assistant on films like 'Harlem Nights' and 'Another 48 Hours'. It was DaCosta who urged Underwood to join SATC as the love interest of Miranda (Cynthia Nixon).