After Hugh Jackman and Deborra-Lee Furness stunned the entertainment world last year by announcing that they were divorcing after 27 years of marriage, the “Wolverine” actor was said to be working on a memoir, in which he promised to “open up about his life like never before” and share some “bombshell secrets.”
Could one of those “secrets” be that Jackman has found love again with a Broadway co-star? And could he share that the romance began in the waning years of his marriage to Furness?
Such questions are now swirling around Jackman and stage and TV actor Sutton Foster, his co-star in the hit Broadway stage revival of “The Music Man,” which ran from late 2021 to early 2023. Talk about a romance between the Australian actor and Foster gained traction this week after it was reported that she had filed for divorce from her screenwriter husband, Ted Griffin, after 10 years of marriage.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 12: Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster perform a number from “The Music Man” onstage at the 75th Annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on June 12, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions)
Page Six reported that Foster, 49, filed for uncontested divorce in New York County Supreme Court Tuesday, “amid buzz she is moving on” with Jackman, 56.
Rumors that Foster’s marriage was “on the rocks” began “swirling” in Broadway circles when the Tony Award-winner co-starred with Jackman in “The Music Man.” Multiple sources told Page Six that Foster and Jackson had fallen in love.
“They are 100 percent together and are in love and want to spend the rest of their lives together,” one source has told Page Six.
NEW YORK, NY – MAY 01: Hugh Jackman and Deborra-Lee Furness attend “Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garcons: Art Of The In-Between” Costume Institute Gala – O at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 1, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by John Lamparski/Getty Images)
Multiple sources also told Page Six that Jackman and Foster “are going strong” but that they have tried to keep their relationship out of the public eye. “They are still together,” a source said. “They go out of their way to hide it, but it’s common knowledge.”
In Touch Weekly reported back in April that the romance was “an open secret” on Broadway. At that time, Jackman was still technically married to Furness, 68, though the two were separated. For her part, Foster was still married to Griffin, whom she wed in Santa Barbara in 2014 in a gown she picked out on the TLC show, “Say Yes to the Dress.” Foster and Griffin are parents to a daughter, 6, whom they adopted together.
Foster apparently couldn’t resist the charms of the handsome, famously toned, 6-foot-2-inch Jackman. A source told In Touch that she was “absolutely giddy” around him after she was cast to play “Marian the Librarian,” the love interest of conman Harold Hill in the classic musical. Jackman, meanwhile, “was besotted with Sutton from the moment he met her. He followed her around like a puppy!”
Nominees Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster attend the 2022 Tony Awards Meet The Nominees press event in New York, on May 12, 2022. (Photo by Angela Weiss / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)
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Foster reportedly admitted that she and Jackman “became close” while sharing rehearsal space during the show’s production, In Touch reported. They also made notable red carpet appearances together, looking very much like a couple when they attended the Tony Awards in June 2022 at Radio City Music Hall.
“The Music Man” closed in January 2023, and Jackman and Furness, 68, announced their separation eight months later. At the time, Page Six reported that the divorce was “a long time coming.”
The Australian couple, who have long lived in New York City, announced their split as the youngest of their two children was turning 18.
When news broke about their divorce, the usual gossip began to swirl about how Jackman and Furness’ marriage had been a “sham” all along. Over the years, the couple has responded to persistent speculation that Jackman is secretly gay. The pair often have used humor to push back against such “mean-spirited” gossip, as Furness has called it.
Now, it appears there might be another factor in the split — Jackman’s co-star. Of course, her name didn’t come up in the separation announcement, which was amicable and polite. Jackman and Furness said they had “been blessed to share almost three decades together as husband and wife in a wonderful, loving marriage.” They also spoke about how their “journey” is “shifting” and they “have decided to separate to pursue our individual growth.”