Ingmar Bergman Was Blamed for a Rise in Swedish Divorces

It is extremely uncommon for a third party to be the reason for a divorce if that third party had no involvement whatsoever in the marriage. It's one thing if someone has an affair, but when neither spouse knows the other person, that's unique. Nevertheless, despite not knowing any of the parties involved, renowned director Ingmar Bergman was held responsible for a noticeable increase in Swedish divorces. And the entire thing can be attributed to his 1973 miniseries Scenes From a Marriage.

When the series first aired, about 50% of Sweden watched it, and a year later, the divorce rate increased from 2% to 3.3%. Overall, there has been a very large increase, which is anecdotally attributed to the series. Even though it was fiction, the show had a realistic, documentary-style presentation and showed a marriage in disarray. The show appears to have inspired couples to want to address similar issues in their own relationships, and there is evidence to suggest that Sweden's marriage counseling services experienced a major spike in demand, with wait lists ballooning from three weeks to three months.

Sweden's divorce laws were modified in the same year. In the past, separation for a full year, mutual agreement, and marriage counseling were all required of couples. It was made significantly simpler by the divorce law reform, therefore it's conceivable that both of these factors led to the divorce boom.