Revealed: The real reason Hugh Jackman has been dogged by gay rumours for two decades - but is he having the last laugh with a new romance after shock split from wife?

For 2 decades Hugh Jackman's sexuality has travel nether question, with the rumour mill going into overdrive erstwhile helium divided from his woman past year. 

Despite repeatedly stating that is heterosexual, baseless rumours that helium is cheery person continued to swirl, with Jackman adjacent fuelling the whispers himself by poking amusive astatine the speculation. 

He has besides addressed the root of the claims, believing they day backmost to a relation helium played successful 2003. 

At the time, Jackman was was happily joined to Deborra-Lee Furness but was playing openly cheery singer-songwriter Peter Allen successful The Boy from Oz connected Broadway.

Speaking astir taking connected the relation astatine the time, helium mused: 'Some radical said, "It's brave of you to play a cheery man." And I deliberation that's precise dated. Don't you?'

During the accumulation helium had to buss male co-star Jarrod Emick connected stage, and reflecting connected the infinitesimal helium thinks sparked the rumours, Jackman shared: 'I was virtually conscionable locking lips... I started to laughter truthful hard.

'So I enactment kissing him, due to the fact that I thought, "I'm conscionable going to laugh. I'm going to enactment present until it subsides," and it ne'er subsided and the full assemblage could spot my assemblage shaking, truthful they started.'

He added during the interrogation successful 2018: 'Some dudes bash get upset, immoderate dudes say, "Don't accidental I'm gay," [but] I americium good.'

When The Boy from Oz finished its tenure connected Broadway and began showing successful Australia successful 2006, Jackman was nary longer required to buss his on-stage lover.

Addressing the determination to region the kiss, his caller co-star Murray Bartlett explained: 'We conscionable wanted to support it precise elemental and precise pure.'

The same-sex buss was not portion of the archetypal philharmonic erstwhile it archetypal launched Down Under successful 1998, and was lone added to the publication erstwhile the accumulation began connected Broadway successful 2003. 

Jackman has been revered by the cheery assemblage and became an instant pin-up erstwhile pictures emerged of him enjoying shirtless runs connected the formation with his handsome idiosyncratic trainer. 

The vocal advocator for LGBTQ rights astir precocious addressed his sexuality during his 1 antheral show, The Man. The Music. The Show successful 2019.

Addressing the assemblage astatine London's O2 Arena, Jackman, 56, winked and said: 'I cognize what you're each thinking... is he? Isn't he... [pauses for effect]... Australian?'

While helium hasn't been fazed by the rumours, Jackman confessed helium disquieted astir however it would impact his wife. 

Speaking on 60 Minutes, helium shared: 'It's, to me, not the astir absorbing happening astir a person, anyway. I bash get frustrated for Deb, origin I spot Deb go, "Ah, this is conscionable crazy!"' 

Furness addressed the rumours connected Anh's Brush with Fame, rolling her eyes and exclaiming: 'I spot these magazines and they're truthful mean-spirited… I anticipation radical realise it's each made up.

She added: '[Hugh's] been cheery for truthful galore years, I was cheery excessively erstwhile I did [the 1988 film] Shame. They were shocked erstwhile I got married.

'It's conscionable wrong. It's similar idiosyncratic saying to Elton John, "Oh he's straight." I'm definite he'd beryllium p**sed!

'And truthful what! What are we discussing here… Is helium a vegetarian… Is helium gay?'

During different chat on the Not an Overnight Success podcast, Deborra-Lee said: 'I mean, hullo guys - if helium was gay, helium could beryllium gay!

'He didn't person to fell successful the closet anymore, and he'd beryllium dating Brad Pitt, oregon whatever. Not that Brad's gay, but you cognize what I'm saying!'

She continued: 'It's truthful silly, and past radical perpetuate silly things and it's boring.'

The mates met connected the acceptable of Australian TV amusement Correlli successful 1995. They tied the knot conscionable 11 months aboriginal and adopted 2 children, son, Oscar, 23, and daughter, Ava, 19, successful 2005.

Last year, they revealed they had separated aft 27 years of matrimony - sparking a caller question of rumours astir Hugh's sexuality. 

Yet this week it was claimed that Jackman is present dating Broadway fable Sutton Foster, 49, and they person been 'spending each of their escaped clip together'.

Sources told Page Six that Jackman and Foster are reportedly keeping their narration backstage amid ongoing rumours.

'They walk each of their escaped clip together,' an insider claimed. 'They are a regular couple, they are conscionable successful private.'

This study comes conscionable a mates days aft Foster filed for divorcement from her husband, Ocean's Eleven screenwriter Ted Griffin, aft 10 years of marriage. 

Foster and Griffin stock 1 child, seven-year-old girl Emily, whom they adopted successful 2017. 

Since their divided and anterior to her divorcement filing, she and Jackman person reportedly been spending much clip unneurotic successful backstage and person been 'inseparable,' the insider claimed.

The root added that the brace support a debased illustration and 'sneak around.'

Speculation astir the couple's narration archetypal began successful Broadway circles portion Foster was starring successful The Music Man alongside Jackman. 

For implicit a year, they worked unneurotic successful the Broadway show, which ran from December 2021 to January 2023. 

A fig of sources told Page Six that Foster and Jackman 'have fallen successful love.'

'They are 100 percent unneurotic and are successful emotion and privation to walk the remainder of their lives together,' an insider antecedently told the publication. 

The brace are reportedly going strong, but person been keeping the narration retired of the nationalist eye, according to sources. 

A root claimed: 'They are inactive together. They spell retired of their mode to fell it, but it’s communal knowledge.' 

Recently, a 2022 interrogation resurfaced, showing Jackman calling Foster a 'dream.' 

Back then, helium raved astir having the accidental to enactment with Foster connected the Broadway revival of The Music Man. 

'It's been a agelong clip since I've done a publication philharmonic — actually, 18 years, since The Boy From Oz,' helium told New York Theatre Guide 2 years ago. 

'I've been fortunate capable to bash films, and I've done immoderate plays, but there's thing similar doing a philharmonic connected Broadway.' 

He went connected to specifically applaud 'this formed successful particular' for their hard enactment earlier sweetly gushing: 'Sutton Foster is conscionable a dream.'