The complete timeline of Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster's relationship: from Broadway friendship to red carpet debut.&nbsp;

Hugh Jackman and <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/pop-culture/who-is-sutton-foster-surprising-facts">Sutton Foster's</a> relationship has been years in the making, even if they didn't know it yet. The two Broadway stars first crossed paths in 2003, reconnected multiple times over the following decade, and finally co-starred in&nbsp;The Music Man from 2021 to 2023. It was during that run that their longtime friendship reportedly shifted into something more.
In January 2025, the couple confirmed their romance after months of speculation. Both had recently filed for divorce from their respective spouses&mdash;Jackman from <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/pop-culture/hugh-jackman-ex-wife-deborra-lee-furness-betrayal-after-divorce-sutton-foster-girlfriend">Deborra-Lee Furness</a> after 27 years of marriage, and Foster from Ted Griffin after 10 years. The timeline and circumstances sparked controversy, with sources claiming the relationship began during The Music Man.
From their first meeting to their 2026 Met Gala debut, here's a complete look at Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster's relationship timeline.

<h2 style="text-align: center;">2003: &nbsp;The First Meeting</h2>

<h2 style="text-align: center;">2008: &nbsp;Backstage at Shrek</h2>

Getty Images.

The pair reconnected when Jackman visited Foster backstage at Shrek: The Musical on Broadway, where she was playing Princess Fiona. A photo from that evening shows them smiling together, cementing a friendship that would span more than a decade before evolving into romance.

During the 68th Tony Awards, hosted by Jackman himself, a playful moment between the two went viral. As Jackman danced through the audience in one of the ceremony's most memorable segments, he paused to share a brief dance with Foster.

<h2>March 2019: The Music Man Announcement</h2>

The news broke that Jackman and Foster would co-star in the Broadway revival of The Music Man.
Foster's excitement was palpable. "Talk about charisma," she said on <a href="https://www.aol.com/hugh-jackman-sutton-foster-relationship-194447745.html">People Now</a>. "I'm just so excited to be in the room with him and learn from him and work with him and to be able to do this classic musical."

<h2 style="text-align: center;">December 2021: Back to Rehearsals</h2>

After an 18-month pandemic-induced halt to Broadway, rehearsals for The Music Man finally resumed. Jackman posted an Instagram carousel featuring photos of him and Foster from their first workshop in March 2020, writing: "I'm beyond excited...Deliriously joyful, grateful and petrified all at the same time. Wouldn't want to be standing beside anyone else but Sutton and this extraordinary cast and crew."

<h2 style="text-align: center;">Febuary 2022: Opening Night</h2>

On February 10, 2022, The Music Man made its Broadway debut at the Winter Garden Theatre. The opening night was a star-studded affair, with Blake Lively, Anne Hathaway, Donna Karan, and Andy Cohen in attendance.&nbsp;
Foster captured the significance of the moment in an Instagram post the next day, sharing a photo of her and Jackman from the red carpet premiere: "This man. An honor to be by your side. You. Are. The. BEST."

<h2 style="text-align: center;">May - July 2022: The "Carpet Chats" Era</h2>

For Foster's birthday on March 18, Jackman orchestrated a surprise during that evening's performance, getting the entire audience to sing to her. Foster posted a video of the moment, calling Jackman "an evil, horrible, WONDERFUL human."
His <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CbPpIpzuYE5/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link">Instagram</a> tribute to her was equally warm: "Happy birthday to a great friend and the best onstage partner in the world. @suttonlenore you make the world a better place."
During a joint appearance on <a href="https://youtu.be/f7yT169hcEk?si=9AOM-QjckGFZg05j" target="_blank" data-vars-ga-outbound-link="https://youtu.be/f7yT169hcEk?si=9AOM-QjckGFZg05j" data-vars-ga-ux-element="Hyperlink" data-vars-ga-call-to-action="Late Night with Seth Meyers" data-node-id="29.1" class="body-link css-1xnf0nh emevuu60" rel="noopener">Late Night with Seth Meyers</a>&nbsp;in May, the pair revealed endearing details about their working relationship. Foster admitted she was initially intimidated by Jackman, who countered by praising her impressive Broadway credentials: "This is a six-time Tony nominee, two-time winner."
In a revealing interview in June of that year, Foster told <a href="https://www.vogue.com/article/sutton-foster-music-man-interview">Vogue</a> that she and Jackman had "just spent Memorial Day with our families," indicating a level of intimacy that raised fans' eyebrows. She called him "one of my best friends," adding: "He disarms everyone, and he doesn't make anything about him."
In July, Foster appeared on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=MrgzPoRVj02RDKUP&amp;v=hGSPQUM0CtQ&amp;feature=youtu.be" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Live with Kelly and Ryan</a> and shared details about their pre-show ritual. "Hugh and I actually have, we call it 'carpet chats', but for some reason we hang out in my dressing room before every show and just catch up, but somehow we end up&mdash;maybe because my dressing room is a mess&mdash;sitting on the carpet," she explained. "It's become one of the best parts of the whole thing is that I've made this wonderful new friend."&nbsp;

<h2 style="text-align: center;">Febuary 2023: Jackman and Furness Seperate</h2>

Hugh and and his wife Deborra-Lee Furness separate after 27 years of marriage. The couple releases the following statement to <a href="https://people.com/hugh-jackman-and-deborra-lee-jackman-separate-exclusive-7970286" target="_blank" data-vars-ga-outbound-link="https://people.com/hugh-jackman-and-deborra-lee-jackman-separate-exclusive-7970286" data-vars-ga-ux-element="Hyperlink" data-vars-ga-call-to-action="People" data-node-id="49.1" class="body-link css-ohbdae emevuu60" rel="noopener">People</a>:
&ldquo;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. Our family has been and always will be our highest priority. We undertake this next chapter with gratitude, love, and kindness. We greatly appreciate your understanding in respecting our privacy as our family navigates this transition in all of our lives.&rdquo;

<h2 style="text-align: center;">October- November 2024: Second Divorce and Speculations&nbsp;</h2>

A year after Jackman's separation, Foster filed for divorce from Ted Griffin.
<a href="https://pagesix.com/2024/10/23/celebrity-news/sutton-foster-files-for-divorce-amid-hugh-jackman-rumors/" target="_blank" data-vars-ga-outbound-link="https://pagesix.com/2024/10/23/celebrity-news/sutton-foster-files-for-divorce-amid-hugh-jackman-rumors/" data-vars-ga-ux-element="Hyperlink" data-vars-ga-call-to-action="Page Six" data-node-id="52.1" class="body-link css-ohbdae emevuu60" rel="noopener">Page Six</a> speaks to a source who says Foster and Jackman &ldquo;are 100 percent together and are in love and want to spend the rest of their lives together," But it was<a href="https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/hugh-jackman-sutton-fosters-romance-caused-his-divorce-source-excl/"> Us Weekly's</a> report that dropped the real bombshell: the relationship, sources claimed, "is the reason" for Jackman's divorce.
"Sutton and Hugh's relationship is the reason Hugh and Deb got divorced," an insider told the publication. "A lot of people on Broadway knew, and we kept it quiet because both of them are so nice and great people. Everyone respected their privacy. But there was an affair and an overlap. They are really happy now."

<h2 style="text-align: center;">January 2025: Going Public</h2>

On January 4, Jackman was spotted attending Foster's performance of Once Upon a Mattress in Los Angeles. Two days later, they were <a href="https://people.com/hugh-jackman-sutton-foster-step-out-for-dinner-date-exclusive-8746334">photographed</a> holding hands during a dinner outing in Santa Monica: their first public confirmation of the relationship that sources claim had been going on for years.
A few days later, a source gets Hugh's ex Deborra-Lee's insight. "Deborra-Lee feels a sense of relief to be honest with you," a source tells the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-14264339/Deborra-Lee-Furness-telling-comment-replacing-Hugh-Jackman-Sutton-Foster-resurfaces.html" target="_blank" data-vars-ga-outbound-link="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-14264339/Deborra-Lee-Furness-telling-comment-replacing-Hugh-Jackman-Sutton-Foster-resurfaces.html" data-vars-ga-ux-element="Hyperlink" data-vars-ga-call-to-action="Daily Mail" data-node-id="59.1" class="body-link css-ohbdae emevuu60" rel="noopener">Daily Mail</a>. "'She has been plagued with suspicions. She was told it wasn't true and that they were nothing more than close friends who worked together. But something in her heart told her that this was not true."
According to the insider, Deborra-Lee is relieved that Hugh and Sutton's relationship is public so she can finally stop speculating. "She trusted her intuition, and her intuition was right. She finally feels at ease after getting confirmation that her fears and suspicions were warranted. She can now fully close this chapter and move on."

<h2 style="text-align: center;">May 2025: Moving In</h2>

According to a source who spoke to Australia's <a href="https://www.newidea.com.au/celebrity/hugh-jackman-sutton-foster-living-together/" target="_blank" data-vars-ga-outbound-link="https://www.newidea.com.au/celebrity/hugh-jackman-sutton-foster-living-together/" data-vars-ga-ux-element="Hyperlink" data-vars-ga-call-to-action="New Idea" data-node-id="66.1" class="body-link css-ohbdae emevuu60" rel="noopener">New Idea</a> via <a href="https://pagesix.com/2025/05/27/celebrity-news/hugh-jackman-and-sutton-fosters-milestone-has-shattered-deborra-lee-furness/" target="_blank" data-vars-ga-outbound-link="https://pagesix.com/2025/05/27/celebrity-news/hugh-jackman-and-sutton-fosters-milestone-has-shattered-deborra-lee-furness/" data-vars-ga-ux-element="Hyperlink" data-vars-ga-call-to-action="Page Six" data-node-id="66.4" class="body-link css-ohbdae emevuu60" rel="noopener">Page Six</a>, Hugh and Sutton are living together in his NYC penthouse: the same home he had shared with Deborra-Lee. Despite her amicable public statement, she tells the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-14755345/deborra-lee-furness-breaks-silence-hugh-jackman-divorce.html">Daily Mail</a> she was "shattered" by the news, as "she poured her soul into" the space.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/hugh-jackman-sutton-foster-vacation-in-the-berkshires-excl/" target="_blank" data-vars-ga-outbound-link="https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/hugh-jackman-sutton-foster-vacation-in-the-berkshires-excl/" data-vars-ga-ux-element="Hyperlink" data-vars-ga-call-to-action="Us Weekly" data-node-id="69.0" class="body-link css-ohbdae emevuu60" rel="noopener">Us Weekly</a> reports that Hugh and Sutton went on a romantic vacation to tropical Massachusetts. According to a source, the pair took a &ldquo;little getaway&rdquo; to Canyon Ranch in Lenox.

<h2 style="text-align: center;">October/November 2025: Making it Official</h2>

The moment everyone had been waiting for: Jackman and Foster made their red carpet debut as a couple at the Los Angeles premiere of Jackman's film Song Sung Blue on October 26. Jackman wore a black suit and tie, while Foster opted for a stunning low-cut black satin gown.
A few weeks later, Hugh shares a photo of Sutton performing at New York&rsquo;s Caf&eacute; Carlyle, making them red carpet and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DRhTkQHES9e/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;ig_rid=e0dba3f0-0dff-4311-a487-a02468d2a402">Instagram</a> official.

Jackman and Foster rang in the new year with a trip to Costa Rica. Photos from <a href="https://pagesix.com/2026/01/04/celebrity-news/hugh-jackman-and-bikini-clad-girlfriend-sutton-foster-pack-on-the-pda-in-costa-rica/" target="_blank" data-vars-ga-outbound-link="https://pagesix.com/2026/01/04/celebrity-news/hugh-jackman-and-bikini-clad-girlfriend-sutton-foster-pack-on-the-pda-in-costa-rica/" data-vars-ga-ux-element="Hyperlink" data-vars-ga-call-to-action="came out" data-node-id="67.1" class="body-link css-1xnf0nh emevuu60" rel="noopener">Page Six</a> showed of the pair holding hands and embracing each other while taking a dip in the ocean. Foster wore a blue bikini set, while Jackman opted for a pair of floral swim trunks.

<h2 style="text-align: center;">May 2026: Met Gala Debut</h2>

The first Monday in May 2026 brought Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster's Met Gala debut as a couple. Walking the red carpet at fashion's biggest night, they presented themselves as Hollywood's newest power couple: polished, coordinated, and seemingly unbothered by the scandal that brought them together.

Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster's Complete Relationship Timeline

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