Cole Sprouse addresses split from Lili Reinhart in Instagram post: 'I wish her nothing but the utmost love'

Cole Sprouse has addressed his split from Riverdale co-star Lili Reinhart for the first time in an Instagram statement.

In his post on Wednesday, Sprouse, 28, said he and Reinhart, 23, "initially" separated in January before deciding to permanently end their relationship in March.

"What an incredible experience I had, I'll always feel lucky and cherish that I had the chance to fall in love," he wrote alongside a photo of the actress in a forest.

RELATED: Lili Reinhart and Cole Sprouse's relationship timeline

"I wish her nothing but the utmost love and happiness moving forward. All I'll say about it, anything else you hear doesn't matter."

Sprouse ended the post by mentioning Reinhart's upcoming movie, adding: "I'm sure she's just as incredible in it as everything else she does. Thanks guys."

The two actors met in 2016 on the set of The CW's teen series Riverdale, in which they play Jughead Jones and Betty Cooper, and it's believed they began dating in early 2017.

The couple made the relationship 'official' in 2018, both on Instagram and the red carpet; Sprouse and Reinhart attended the Met Gala together to much fanfare.

Rumours of a breakup began swirling in mid-2019, with People magazine suggesting their busy schedules were adding strain to the relationship.

"At the end of the day, their personalities are very different and their lifestyles often clashed," a source told the publication.

RELATED: Lili Reinhart says quotes about depression were attributed to breakup

The couple responded with loved-up photos and pointed captions on Instagram

"BREAKING: A reliable source has confirmed that none of you know s---," Reinhart wrote, sharing the W magazine cover she appeared on with Sprouse.

"UNPRECEDENTED: Cole Sprouse and Lili Reinhart consume the flesh of 'reliable sources' to fuel their bacchanalian sex cult," Sprouse captioned the same image on his account.

However, split speculation intensified this year when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold.

It was reported Reinhart and Sprouse had parted ways and were isolating separately. In May, People confirmed the duo had separated.

Earlier this week, Refinery29 published an interview with Reinhart in which she discussed heartache and "immense life changes".

The next day, the Hustlers star said her quotes had been wrongly interpreted as a reference to her split from Sprouse.

"Quotes taken from my most recent interview are not about a 'breakup.' They are about the depression I've felt over these last few months," she said on Twitter.

"Tired of people taking my words out of context and piecing together their own story for clickbait. I would never speak so candidly about something as personal as a breakup. That's incredibly private."

Reinhart and Sprouse both refrained from discussing their relationship publicly during the time they were together.