Joe Manganiello has spoken out in response to his ex-wife Sofia Vergara’s claims of a ‘stifling’ marriage and pressures over kids in a new interview.
The Modern Family actress, 52, tied the knot with the Magic Mike XXL actor, 47, in 2015 but called it quits last year.
It was initially said that the pair had remained civil after the split, although they did have a small custody battle over their dog Bubbles.
However, in January, Sofia revealed that the marriage had suffered due to the age difference and Joe wanting to have children.
She said she did not want to be ‘an old mum’, which had caused friction in their relationship and eventually spelt the end of the decade-long romance.
Now, Joe has hit back and dismissed the story as ‘simply not true’.
Speaking to Mens Journal, the True Blood star said they had in fact discussed children and even planned to have a family.
‘We did try to have a family for the first year and a half,’ he claimed. ‘And we had a huge conversation right out of the gate during the first month we dated.
‘I said, “If you’re done with kids, then I understand. Just tell me, and I’ll know what this is, and that’s okay.” But that wasn’t the case with her. And I swore to her that I would never leave if it didn’t work out. And I didn’t.’
Joe claims he did not believe their lack of children played into the eventual divorce, stating instead they had just grown apart.
His ex-wife’s perception of events surprised him, with the Spider-Man actor upset about the version of himself being portrayed.
‘To be painted as if I had some sort of midlife crisis, and after nine years, turned to somebody and gave them an ultimatum of, “Do this potentially unhealthy thing to your body, or else I’m gone”? That’s never who I was,’ Joe shared.
Announcing their decision to divorce in a joint statement, Sofía and Joe said: ‘We have made the difficult decision to divorce.
‘As two people that love and care for one another very much, we politely ask for respect of our privacy at this time as we navigate this new phase of our lives.’
At the time, an insider told Page Six: ‘Sofía’s living her best life. She’s spending time with her friends after being stifled in a relationship with a largely unsupportive partner.’
The couple had originally met at the 2014 White House Correspondents’ Association dinner and married a year later in a star-studded ceremony in Palm Beach.
While the split was said to be ‘amicable’ another source claimed there was a sticking point around issues concerning their Chihuahua/Pomeranian mix.
‘They still have a few issues to figure out, like custody of their dog, Bubbles,’ an insider told Us Weekly in July 2023.
By August, Joe appeared to have emerged as the full-time dog dad, with Sofia soon posting snaps with a new dog named Amore.
After this matter was settled a source told the Daily Mail that ‘neither one of them is bitter or out for revenge’.
They added: ‘Sofia loves Bubbles and wants her to be happy which is precisely why she’s letting Joe have custody.
‘He said Sofia has the biggest heart and would never do anything to intentionally hurt him or Bubbles.’
Metro.co.uk has reached out to Sofia’s reps for comments.
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