Joe Manganiello disputes Sofía Vergara's claim they divorced over having children

Joe Manganiello doesn't quite agree with ex-wife Sofía Vergara 's explanation for why their marriage didn't work out.

In January , six months after the power couple separated, the " Griselda " star told El País that "my marriage broke up because my husband was younger; he wanted to have kids and I didn’t want to be an old mom."

In an interview published in Men's Journal Tuesday, " True Blood " alum Manganiello, who pivoted to reality TV this year as the host and executive producer of " Deal or No Deal Island ," disputed this characterization of his 2023 divorce .

"That’s simply not true," he told the magazine. The issue of having children "wasn't inevitably why everything ended. It's because two people grew apart, and sometimes that happens."

The 47-year-old added: "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."

The "Magic Mike" star 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 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.”

In her El País interview, Vergara — mom to 32-year-old Manolo Vergara — explained not wanting to have another child because "I feel it’s not fair to the baby. I respect whoever does it, but that's not for me anymore."

She is "ready to be a grandmother, not a mother," she said.

Vergara and Manganiello married in November 2015. Manganiello filed for divorce in July 2023, and Vergara followed with her own request for the dissolution of their seven-year marriage due to "irreconcilable differences."

Joe Manganiello is now dating Caitlin O'Connor

Earlier this year, Manganiello went Instagram official with 34-year-old actor and model Caitlin O'Connor, who appears in the Max series "Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty."

The two made their red carpet debut in December at the Children of Armenia Fund Gala in New York. They later attended an Art of Elysium gala in Los Angeles together in January.

In a "week in review" post in February, Manganiello wrote that he "celebrated Valentine's Day with Tool & Caitlin," adding a heart emoji. He also shared a photo taken with O'Connor, 34, at a Tool concert, as well as another photo showing her next to roses and a box of chocolates.

"When you have a bad day, hopefully you have a good partner in life," he told Men's Journal about his new relationship.

Contributing: Brendan Morrow

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Joe Manganiello disputes Sofía Vergara's claim they divorced over having children