After nearly three decades of marriage, Hugh Jackman and Deborra-Lee Furness are struggling to finalize their separation. Despite announcing their split in September 2023, the estranged couple has yet to file for divorce, reportedly due to complications surrounding their decision to forego a prenuptial agreement.
Daily Mail has reported that their split could become “messy” as they work to divide their substantial $250 million fortune. “One of the biggest reasons why they haven’t yet filed is that they never had a prenup,” a source close to the Wolverine star told the British outlet.
The couple, who met on the Australian TV show Correlli in 1995, married in April 1996 and went on to adopt two children, son Oscar, 24, and daughter Ava, 19.
“When they got married, they thought it would be forever. Who doesn’t?” the source told Daily Mail. “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.”
“They put their differences aside to co-parent and he cares a lot about is children.” the insider added.
The couple’s shared assets include a sprawling property portfolio, such as a $3.5 million estate in East Hampton, a $5.9 million Bondi beach house in Sydney, and a $21 million Manhattan penthouse purchased just a year before their split. “A lot of moving parts need to be worked out and there is a huge amount of money involved,” the insider noted, and the couple wants to “make this as easy as possible” for them.
Jackman and Sutton Foster confirmed their romance last week when they were photographed holding hands outside a Los Angeles restaurant. The relationship has only fueled the discord, as Furness has struggled with feelings of “resentment and an imbalance of power” during the final years of their marriage.
“They are cordial to each other, but they are no longer friends,” the insider told Daily Mail. “They put their differences aside to co-parent, and he cares a lot about his children.”
Jackman’s relationship with Foster began as a friendship during their time on Broadway, but the insider insisted there was no overlap between his relationships with Furness and Foster. But, Furness sparked speculation by “liking” a social media post claiming Jackman was “running off with the mistress.”