Joe Manganiello calls out Sofia Vergara, says her reason for divorce 'simply not true'

Joe Manganiello is telling his side of the story, following his high-profile divorce from Sofia Vergara .

The actor hit back at claims from the actress that they divorced because Joe was younger and he wanted to have kids where she didn't, calling them "simply not true".

© Robert Smith

"There's been a lot said in the press about me wanting a family", he said to Men's Journal. "That's simply not true."

He explained: "We did try to have a family for the first year and a half, 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 OK.'"

"But that wasn’t the case with her", he continued. "And I swore to her that I would never leave if it didn't work out. And I didn't."

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While Joe confirmed that he does want to have children, he revealed that it wasn't "inevitably why everything ended", explaining: "It's because two people grew apart, and sometimes that happens."

He continued: "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."

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The Magic Mike star's clarification comes months after Sofia told Spanish newspaper El País that Joe's desire for children had played a role in their separation .

"My marriage broke up because my husband was younger; he wanted to have kids and I didn’t want to be an old mom," she said. "I had a son at 19, who is now 32, and I’m ready to be a grandmother, not a mother. So, if love comes along, he has to come with [his own] children."

She'd later say to People: "I totally respect where anyone wants to be a mom after 50. I didn’t think because of my career, the way I live my life, the way my marriage was, that it was fair to bring a kid to this world, and I’m not going to be able to give 100 percent.”

The former couple got together in 2014, marrying in 2015 until they announced their divorce in July 2023. They said in a joint statement: "As two people that love and care for one another very much, we politely ask for respect for our privacy at this time as we navigate this new phase of our lives."

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Sofia is the mother to 32-year-old Manolo Gonzalez Vergara , with whom she's very close. She said of her son, and being a young mom: "I raised him trying to set the best example and give him the best that I could. When people compliment me on him, on how well-mannered, how charming, funny, and well-behaved he is, it makes all the sacrifices worthwhile."