Chris Rock, wife Malaak Compton-Rock will divorce

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Steve Harve Malaak Compton-Rock and Chris Rock are breaking up after a 19-year-marriage.

This will be tough to turn into a punch line.

Tart-tongued comic Chris Rock, 49, and his wife, Malaak Compton-Rock, 45, announced Sunday they are breaking up after nearly 20 years together.

“After much contemplation and 19 years of marriage, Chris and I have decided to go our break ways,” Malaak said in a statement first reported by People magazine.

The couple wed in 1996. They have two daughters, Lola, 12, and Zahra, 10.

The caustic comic is riding high with his critically acclaimed, low-budget movie “Top Five,” which has hauled in nearly $ 20 million at the box office.