Deborra-Lee Furness recently made headlines after seemingly pointing fingers at her former husband, Hugh Jackman, amidst swirling speculations about his involvement with his current partner Sutton Foster.
After making the tough decision to officially file for divorce from the renowned actor, 56, a couple of years post their public separation, the 69-year-old Australian actress opened up about her feelings in an exclusive statement to DailyMail.com.
‘My heart goes out to all those who have experienced the pain of betrayal,’ she shared. ‘It’s a deep wound that takes time to heal, but I choose to have faith in a higher power and believe that God or the universe, whatever your source of guidance may be, is always on our side.’
She continued, ‘This belief has helped me navigate the breakdown of an almost three-decade marriage. I have gained much knowledge and wisdom through this experience. Even when we are presented with apparent adversity, it is leading us to our greatest good, our true purpose.
‘It can hurt, but in the long run, returning to yourself and living within your own integrity, values and boundaries is liberation and freedom.’
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Deborra-Lee Furness took a swipe at her estranged husband, Hugh Jackman, amid the flurry of rumors that he cheated on her with his current girlfriend Sutton Foster
She concluded her statement with the ‘one thing’ that she has learned, which is ‘that none of this is personal,’ adding, ‘We are all on our individual journeys and I believe that the relationships in our lives are not random.
‘We are drawn to people, we invite them in, in order to learn our lessons and to recognize and heal the broken parts of ourselves…I remain grateful.’
Back in January, DailyMail.com exclusively reported that the estranged spouses had yet to file as their decision to dismiss a prenup was proving to be a point of contention.
Insiders at the time claimed that their split could get ‘messy’ as they were struggling to divvy up their estimated $250 million fortune.
‘One of the biggest reasons why they haven’t yet filed is that they never had a prenup,’ an insider close to Jackman said.
‘When they got married, they thought it would be forever. Who doesn’t? At the time, neither of them expected Hugh’s career to get as enormous as it has.
‘Because there was no prenup, and he made a fortune during their marriage, this divorce is not going to be cut and dry. It may even get messy because the stakes are high. A lot of moving parts need to be worked out and there is a huge amount of money involved.’
The insider insisted they both wanted to ‘make this as easy as possible,’ but that after three decades and one partner becoming a massive A-list star, ‘it’s not quite that easy.’
Following her decision to officially file for divorce from Deadpool & Wolverine star, 56, two years after announcing their separation, the Australian actress, 69, addressed her heartbreak in an exclusive statement to DailyMail.com (pictured in 1999)
‘My heart and compassion goes out to everyone who has traversed the traumatic journey of betrayal,’ she said. ‘It’s a profound wound that cuts deep, however I believe in a higher power and that God/the universe, whatever you relate to as your guidance, is always working FOR us’ (seen in 2013)
In March, the divorce was brewing but they struggled to reach an agreement on how to divide their assets, a source revealed to DailyMail.com.
‘Hugh and Deborra-Lee have not yet filed for divorce because they are struggling to reach an agreement on how to divide their assets,’ a source said. ‘Deborra-Lee feels entitled to more money than Hugh is willing to offer.’
Her insistence on getting a bigger chunk of their estimated fortune was said to be fueled by the murky origins of his romance with Foster.
‘While he didn’t physically cheat on her with Sutton, Deborra-Lee believes they were having an emotional affair and she feels he betrayed her,’ the source continued.
Their marriage started to fall apart during Covid, as previously reported by DailyMail.com, around the same time that Jackman struck up a friendship with Foster, his costar on the 2022 Broadway revival of The Music Man. She was married to Ted Griffin at the time (Griffin and Foster are also in the midst of finalizing their divorce).
The couple were married for 27 years; seen in 2022
Furness and Jackman announced the end of their marriage in a shock statement in September 2023, telling fans that they were ‘shifting’ and as a result had decided to ‘separate to pursue our individual growth.’
Soon followed rumblings that Jackman had struck up a relationship with Foster, with the pair finally confirming their romance in January in what fans claimed was a staged picture opportunity as they left a Los Angeles restaurant hand-in-hand.
Furness and Jackman met back in 1995 on Australian TV show Correlli, when she was a major star, and he was enjoying his first role fresh out of drama school.
He proposed four months later, telling Today in 2018 that he knew two weeks into meeting Furness that they were ‘going to be together for the rest of our lives.’
Jackman went public with his new girlfriend, Sutton Foster (right), in January after months of speculation (pictured together in 2022)
They were married in Melbourne, Australia, in April 1996 before adopting their son Oscar, now 24, in 2000. Five years later they completed their family unit when they adopted daughter Ava, 19.
Since tying the knot, Jackman has amassed an eye watering fortune, estimated to be around $200 million, thanks to his turn as Wolverine in Marvel’s blockbuster comic book franchise.
He retired the role in Logan in 2017 before reprising the character – and hijacking the box office – last year with Deadpool and Wolverine alongside his close friend Ryan Reynolds.
He’s currently performing in an off-Broadway play, Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes, alongside Ella Beatty, Warren Beatty and Annette Bening’s daughter.
The actor swears liberally, speaks graphically about sex and engages in multiple steamy make-out sessions with his 25-year-old co-star.
