Criss Angel Wife History: Shaunyl Benson, JoAnn Winkhart, Kids, and Today Explained

If you’re searching “Criss Angel wife,” you’re probably trying to answer two things at once: who he’s married to now, and who his wife (or wives) have been over the years. Here’s the clearest way to frame it: Criss Angel has been married before, and his most public long-term relationship has been with Shaunyl Benson, an Australian singer-songwriter and former spouse/partner with whom he shares children. In recent years, their relationship has been widely reported as on-and-off, including public breakups and reconciliations, which is why the “wife” question can feel confusing online.

Who Is Criss Angel?

Criss Angel is a world-famous illusionist and entertainer known for pushing magic into a high-stakes, rock-concert style of spectacle. He built his career on daring stunts, intense branding, and a persona that blends showmanship with “how did he do that?” mystique. If you’ve seen his work in Las Vegas, on television, or through viral clips, you already know the formula: big visuals, extreme endurance, and a performance style that treats magic like a full-body event.

Because his career has been so public for so long, interest in his private life has always followed. Fans aren’t only curious about his tricks; they’re curious about who he shares real life with when the lights shut off.

Does Criss Angel Have a Wife Right Now?

Criss Angel’s current marriage status has been widely described as complicated. He and Shaunyl Benson were reported to have married in a private ceremony in 2015 and then divorced not long after. They later rekindled their relationship, built a family together, and were publicly described at various points as partners again. More recently, their relationship has been reported as ending again, with public statements that suggested a breakup and separation.

So if you’re looking for one clean, present-tense label, this is the safest way to put it: Criss Angel does not have a clearly confirmed, stable “current wife” status that is consistently presented as an ongoing marriage in recent mainstream reporting. He is best known for having been married to Shaunyl Benson and previously married to JoAnn Winkhart.

Criss Angel’s First Wife: JoAnn Winkhart

Criss Angel’s first widely reported marriage was to JoAnn Winkhart. Their relationship belongs to the earlier chapter of his rise, when his public image was expanding and his fame was accelerating. They married in the early 2000s, and the marriage ended in divorce in the mid-2000s.

JoAnn is often described as private and not a constant public figure. That’s why many biographies mention her mainly in timeline form rather than with extensive personal detail. In celebrity culture, the spouse who stays private often becomes the “least documented,” even when the marriage was significant in real life.

This marriage matters mainly because it confirms something people often miss: Shaunyl Benson was not Criss Angel’s first wife. JoAnn Winkhart was.

Criss Angel and Shaunyl Benson: The Most Public “Wife” Chapter

When most people search “Criss Angel wife,” they are usually referring to Shaunyl Benson. Shaunyl is an Australian singer-songwriter who became a major figure in Angel’s personal story because of the length of their relationship and the fact that they share children.

Their relationship has been described publicly as long-running and turbulent, with periods of closeness, separation, and reconciliation. What adds to the confusion is that many outlets have used different labels at different times: wife, ex-wife, partner, fiancée, or “on-and-off.” That’s why two people can read two different articles and come away with two different assumptions, even when both articles are trying to describe the same relationship.

The most consistently repeated core facts are these: Shaunyl Benson is the partner most closely associated with Criss Angel’s family life and parenting years, and they were at one time married and later split. After that, the relationship reportedly continued in an on-and-off way, which kept the public conversation alive.

When Did Criss Angel and Shaunyl Benson Get Married?

Many public summaries report that Criss Angel and Shaunyl Benson married privately in 2015. That detail is often described as a “secret” or “quiet” ceremony, which fits the pattern of many celebrity relationships where legal status changes without a big public wedding rollout.

Not long after, their marriage was widely reported as ending in divorce, followed by later reconciliation. Some sources describe the relationship as having multiple “chapters,” including a later engagement or renewed commitment. In other words, their timeline is not a straight line, which is why the “wife” label has shifted over time depending on when the article was written.

Criss Angel’s Kids With Shaunyl Benson

One reason Shaunyl remains central to the “Criss Angel wife” search is that they share children. Criss Angel has been publicly described as a father of three with Shaunyl. Their children are frequently named in public coverage and social media discussion, particularly because the family has faced a serious health battle that drew widespread sympathy and attention.

Their oldest son, Johnny, has been publicly discussed in connection with a childhood cancer diagnosis and treatment journey that affected the family deeply. That chapter shifted the public tone around Criss Angel’s private life, because it moved attention away from celebrity romance and toward something far more real: parenting under extreme stress, fear, and uncertainty.

Criss Angel has spoken publicly at times about family and fatherhood, and that’s another reason the spouse question persists. Fans often associate Shaunyl with the years when his identity expanded from “magician” to “dad fighting for his child.”

Why the Relationship Timeline Gets So Confusing Online

The confusion usually comes from three things happening at once.

First, “wife” is a search habit more than a precise label. People type “wife” when they mean partner, ex-wife, fiancée, or the most serious relationship someone has had. That creates a mismatch between how people search and how relationships are actually defined legally and chronologically.

Second, many websites recycle each other’s wording. If one site calls Shaunyl “his wife,” dozens of others copy it, even if the relationship status later changes. That’s how outdated information stays alive.

Third, Criss Angel’s relationship with Shaunyl has been widely described as on-and-off. When a couple reconciles after divorce or separation, the public language gets messy fast. Some outlets continue using “ex-wife” because the legal status is clear. Others use “wife” because the couple appears to be together again. Both can sound plausible, which is why readers feel like they’re getting mixed answers.

What Shaunyl Benson Is Known For Beyond the Relationship

Shaunyl Benson has been described as a singer-songwriter and performer. While she is most widely known by casual audiences because of her relationship with Criss Angel, her public identity includes music and creative work. She has also maintained a social media presence where family life and personal perspective have occasionally intersected with public discussion.

In relationships with celebrities, especially highly branded figures like Angel, the partner can become a public character even if they never intended to. Shaunyl’s name travels widely online because she is tied to the most human, emotionally charged part of his story: family.

What Criss Angel’s Love Life Looks Like Today

In recent reporting, the most visible updates around Criss Angel’s love life have centered on the breakdown of his relationship with Shaunyl Benson again, including public statements that suggested a painful split. That doesn’t automatically mean a finalized legal status is easy to summarize in one sentence, but it does explain why many people searching now are looking for the “current” answer rather than the historical one.

If you’re trying to describe his relationship status responsibly, the cleanest approach is to avoid overstating what isn’t stable or consistently confirmed. The stable facts are these: he was married to JoAnn Winkhart earlier in life, he later married Shaunyl Benson and shares children with her, and the Shaunyl relationship has had multiple breakups and reconciliations that have been discussed publicly.