Sutton Foster's Relationship History, Explained

Actor Sutton Foster is a superstar of the stage and screen. She has starred in television shows such as "Younger" and "Bunheads" and has appeared in countless Broadway musicals. The two-time Tony Award winner became known for her belting voice and comedic timing. But lately, the topic of conversation has been Foster's alleged affair with A-lister Hugh Jackman who she co-starred with in "The Music Man" on Broadway. While they were both married to other people when the "The Music Man" revival began in 2022, both separated from their spouses in the following years.

Jackman ended his long-time marriage to Deborra-lee Furness in 2023 and the scorned wife has dropped sly hints that Foster could be the reason. Foster filed for divorce from her husband in October 2024, seemingly confirming that her hookup with Jackman was the real thing. While the controversial romance between Foster and Jackman was a long time coming, Foster has certainly had her share of highly emotional relationships and marriages. She's been married twice before and has been linked to other actors that she has appeared on stage with.

Sutton Foster's first marriage was to actor Christian Borle, and it's no wonder the two multiple Tony Award winners were drawn to each other. They met when they were both attending Carnegie Mellon University. Foster dropped out after her first year, but the two reconnected a few years later during a production of "The Three Musketeers." Foster told Broadway.com in 2005, "We were just friends then, but it was a special time." They were dating by the time Foster was starring in "Thoroughly Modern Millie" on Broadway, a role for which she won a Tony Award. Borle witnessed Foster's stunning transformation first hand and the couple even acted alongside each other when Borle joined "Thoroughly Modern Millie" in 2003. They married on September 18, 2006.

Unfortunately, the couple divorced in 2009. It was never confirmed why Foster and Borle divorced, but rumors swirled that the couple had gotten too cozy with their Broadway co-stars (Borle with "Legally Blonde" co-star Laura Bell Bundy and Foster with "Young Frankenstein" co-star Roger Bart). Foster opened up in 2015 about how she struggled with the divorce. She told News Tribune (via JustJared), "After my divorce I became someone I wasn't. Because how do you cope? How do you deal? I was acting out trying to overcome a difficult situation," she recalled.

Sutton Foster and Christian Borle are proof that exes can be friends. The two still support each other, speak highly of each other in public, and have even appeared alongside each other on screen. They reunited in 2016 when they appeared together in an episode of "Gilmore Girls: A Year In The Life" and in 2018 for Foster's series "Younger." In 2012, Borle told Time Out that the former couple are on good terms. "As life took its crazy winding turns and we ended up not being married anymore, it was always a priority for us to stay friends," he said. 

Foster told People in 2018 of their post-divorce standing, saying, "We have a really positive, wonderful relationship. We were together for a reason and we separated for a reason. But he was a huge part of my 20s and 30s and a huge part of my life. And to cut him completely out of my life would seem not right. It's a relationship that I fight for, and I think we both do."

Following her divorce, Sutton Foster returned to the stage and met Emmy-winning actor Bobby Cannavale. With Foster being a Broadway mainstay, it would make sense that she and Cannavale would cross paths when he took to the Great White Way. In 2010, they both starred in the Off-Broadway show, "Trust." They were confirmed to be dating in early 2011 when Cannavale was starring in the Broadway play "The Motherf**ker With The Hat" alongside Chris Rock.

That same year, the lovebirds were both nominated for Tony Awards: Foster for best actress in a musical and Cannavale for best actor in a play. Following their nominations, Foster told Broadway.com, "I just think he's an extraordinary actor, and he's enormously inspiring to me on many levels." Foster won in her category for her role in "Anything Goes" and even thanked her famous boyfriend during her acceptance speech. Referring to him as "my love," Foster said in her speech that Cannavale "has changed my life." The two reportedly broke up the following year.

Sparks flew when Sutton Foster was set up on a blind date with "Ocean's Eleven" screenwriter Ted Griffin. She revealed to Us Weekly the moment she knew that Griffin would one day become her husband. "I knew I was going to marry my husband when he bought me a pair of sweatpants. I still wear them and will probably keep wearing them until they turn to dust," she shared in 2019. The two got engaged in 2013 and married in October 2014. "There was something about being with Ted that made me want kids," Foster told People in 2018. "He belonged in my family. I didn't really understand the concept of motherhood until he came around."

While the couple often kept their relationship private, Foster did detail her experience with wanting to become a mother. After failed attempts with IVF, Foster and Griffin adopted a baby girl in 2017, named Emily. "Where IVF was full of disappointment and heartbreak, adoption was so clearly what was meant to be for us," she told People. Ten years after tying the knot, Page Six reported that Foster filed for divorce from Griffin in October 2024. And the reason for the split could have to do with another Broadway leading man.

Broadway fans were excited to hear that "The Music Man" was returning to Broadway with movie star Hugh Jackman and theater favorite Sutton Foster in the lead roles. The revival opened in February 2022 and was a commercial success before it concluded in January 2023. In the months following the show, Jackman shocked the world by ending his 27-year marriage to his wife Deborra-lee Furness. The pair released a joint statement to People in September 2023 confirming the news. Shortly after the separation, rumors began to swirl that Jackman had ended his marriage so he could be with his "Music Man" co-star.

"Sutton and Hugh's relationship is the reason Hugh and Deb got divorced," a source told Us Weekly. "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 overlap." It's apparent that the attraction between Foster and Jackman started early and the dating rumors began earlier than originally thought. An insider similarly told InTouch that since the showmance began, Jackman and Foster "have been inseparable. Everyone in the theater world has seen the chemistry between them. It was only a matter of time before the truth came out." While the fallout of this romance is unusually messy, many think the couple will publicly confirm their relationship now that they have ended their respective marriages.