Hugh Jackman gave reason he can take back deborra Lee after separating for 27 years

Hugh Jackman and Deborra-lee Furness are separating after 27 years of marriage

By Stephanie Kaloi Updated on May 10, 2024 04:02PM EDT
Hugh Jackman and Deborra-lee Furness attend the 10th Annual Governors Awards gala hosted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at the the Dolby Theater at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, California on November 18, 2018
PHOTO: VALERIE MACON/AFP
Hugh Jackman and Deborra-lee Furness are going their separate ways.

The couple announced the amicable ending of their marriage in a statement shared exclusively with PEOPLE in September 2023.

“We have been blessed to share almost 3 decades together as husband and wife in a wonderful, loving marriage. Our journey now is shifting and we have decided to separate to pursue our individual growth,” the statement read. The pair added that their family is their “highest priority” and requested privacy as they navigate “this transition in all of our lives.”

Hugh Jackman and Deborra-lee Furness attend the 10th Annual Governors Awards gala hosted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at the the Dolby Theater at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, California on November 18, 2018
PHOTO: VALERIE MACON/AFP
Hugh Jackman and Deborra-lee Furness are going their separate ways.

The couple announced the amicable ending of their marriage in a statement shared exclusively with PEOPLE in September 2023.

“We have been blessed to share almost 3 decades together as husband and wife in a wonderful, loving marriage. Our journey now is shifting and we have decided to separate to pursue our individual growth,” the statement read. The pair added that their family is their “highest priority” and requested privacy as they navigate “this transition in all of our lives.”

The Greatest Showman star first met his future wife on the set of the Australian TV show Correlli and immediately knew she was the one.

“I knew very early, I knew before Deb knew. Even when she tried to break up with me, I knew,” he later recalled. “She kind of [broke up with me], a little bit. Early on, three weeks in. I managed to talk her out of it, thank God. I’m a very indecisive person, Deb really knows this about me. I can count on my hand the amount of times in my life anything has felt that clear to me, and when it happens it’s such a relief for me.”

Jackman added, “I just knew 100 percent, I even knew when she was trying to work out reasons to break up with me.”

After getting married in April 1996, the pair welcomed two children together, a son, Oscar, and a daughter, Ava.