Jennifer Aniston's boyfriend has reportedly suggested he needs "some space" amid claims their relationship is on the rocks.

Jennifer and Justin Theroux are said to be on a break as they have been bickering. The tensions allegedly came to a head over the Easter weekend with one report suggesting an argument between the pair reduced Jennifer to "floods of tears". Now more speculation has surfaced, claiming Justin has asked for time apart.

"Justin suggested he needed some space, which escalated into an almighty row, and by the end of it he said he wanted a break and told Jen he had been looking into buying a place of his own in Los Angeles," a friend told the UK edition of Grazia magazine.

The revelation follows reports questioning whether the two were going to live separately. It is also understood they are under stress after poor box-office ratings for Wanderlust, the film they starred in together.

Jennifer has shown a pattern of dating movie co-stars and breaking up a year after the film's release. "Her romance with Vince Vaughn on The Break-Up ended a year after they were together," a source said last week.

"And while it wasn't nearly as serious, her romance with Gerard Butler fizzled out once the year of filming and press junkets for their film The Bounty Hunter came to an end in April 2010."

Another issue for Jennifer and Justin is their preference to live in separate parts of America. Justin is said to be a New Yorker while Jennifer loves Los Angeles.

"At the beginning of the relationship, he didn't want to compromise his New York life, which is why Jen bought a place there. When she wasn't happy, he moved with her back to LA. But it's not really his scene," a source said.

Jennifer, 43, has been open in public about how happy she is with Justin, 40, in the past. They have been in a committed relationship for nearly a year, with rumours they were set to wed.