Joe Manganiello denies giving Sofía Vergara ‘ultimatum’ about having kids

As far as Hollywood divorces go, Joe Manganiello’s split from Sofía Vergara after seven years of marriage seemed to be relatively amicable.

But in a new interview with Men’s Journal, the “True Blood” actor is speaking out against Vergara’s claim that the marriage broke down in 2023 because he was pushing her to have children, saying that this claim was hurtful to his character and people’s perception of him.

“That’s simply not true,” Manganiello said.

When Manganiello, 47, and the “Modern Family” star, 52, announced their divorce in July 2023, the news stunned fans because they seemed to be happy together. They began dating after meeting in 2014 at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, married in 2015 and appeared to “be in it for the long haul, at least as far as Hollywood romances go,” Men’s Journal said.

After Manganiello and Vergara broke the news of their divorce, reports circulated that they may have clashed over his desire to live a sober lifestyle; her social media shows that she enjoys wine and the occasional cocktail. There also was chatter over who would get custody of their dog, Bubbles, the Chihuahua/Pomeranian mix that Vergara brought home shortly after their 2015 wedding. As Men’s Journal reveals, Manganiello has Bubbles.

Earlier this year, Vergara opened up to El Pais and her comments about the divorce helped to create the narrative that they weren’t on the same page when it came to having children.

“My marriage broke up because my husband was younger; he wanted to have kids and I didn’t want to be an old mom,” Vergara explained to El Pais in January. “I feel it’s not fair to the baby. I respect whoever does it, but that’s not for me anymore.”

When Vergara said raising kids wasn’t for her “anymore,” she could be referring to the fact that she is the mother of a 31-year-old son, Manolo, whom she shares with her ex-husband and childhood sweetheart.

But in his interview with Men’s Journal, Manganiello strongly pushed back against his ex-wife’s suggestion that he needed to have a baby with her to be happy in the marriage.

“We did try to have a family for the first year and a half,” the “Magic Mike” star revealed.

“And we had a huge conversation right out of the gate during the first month we dated,” he also recalled. “I said, ‘If you’re done with kids, then I understand. Just tell me, and I’ll know what this is, and that’s OK.’ 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.”

While Manganiello conceded that he did want to have children, he said this wasn’t the reason that “inevitably everything ended.”

“It’s because two people grew apart, and sometimes that happens,” Manganiello said. He expressed frustration over the narrative surrounding their breakup. Manganiello explained that character is important to him, and he didn’t like being portrayed as a man who’d push his partner into having children.

“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?'” Manganiello said. “That’s never who I was.”

According to Men’s Journal, Manganiello is experiencing the opposite of a mid-life crisis. The publication refers to it as his “midlife discovery.” The 6-foot-5-inch actor — and “longtime professional hunk” — is enjoying a new phase of his career as the host and executive producer of the blockbuster-hit reality TV show, “Deal or No Deal Island.”

Manganiello also has been working out a lot, achieving new health and fitness goals, Men’s Journal reported. He’s also  in a new relationship with girlfriend Caitlin O’Connor. He’s felt confident enough about the romance to go Instagram official with it in February. “When you have a bad day, hopefully you have a good partner in life,” he told Men’s Journal.