Hugh Jackman & Sutton Foster Go Public

Nothing to hide! On Jan. 6, a beaming Hugh Jackman and his new girlfriend, Sutton Foster, held hands during a date night out in Santa Monica, Calif. Earlier, the Deadpool & Wolverine star, 56, had been spotted in the audience enjoying the 49-year-old’s performance in Once Upon a Mattress, which has just transferred from Broadway to L.A.

The move has allowed the undercover lovers a chance to go out in the open, after the former Broadway costars became involved following Hugh’s 2023 split from wife of 27 years, Deborra-lee Furness and Sutton’s September announcement that she and second husband Ted Griffin were finished after 10 years. “It was all about timing and respecting their exes, but they felt they’d waited long enough,” an insider tells Star of the pair’s choice to go public. “Hugh, for one, couldn’t stand all the sneaking around. It’s a relief to be able to show the world they’re in love and happy.”

Still, the new couple got mixed reviews from fans who are still shocked that Aussie native Hugh would ditch his wife after so long. (While he has two grown kids, Sutton has a 7-year-old daughter, which has led some to also question her judgment.) Says the insider, “Some of Hugh’s friends think this is a midlife crisis!”