Joe Manganiello has a few things to say about his ex, Sofia Vergara, and claims the reason she gave for their divorce is not true. The “Modern Family” actress previously said they split in 2023 after seven years of marriage because he wanted children and she did not. However, Joe disputed this in a July 16th interview with Men’s Journal, stating, “It’s simply not true.”

Joe explained that they did try to start a family during the first year and a half of their marriage and had a significant conversation early on. He told Sofia, “If you’re done with kids, then I understand. Just tell me, and I’ll know what this is, and that’s okay.” He added, “I swore to her that I would never leave if it didn’t work out, and I didn’t.”

According to Joe, who recently debuted his romance with Caitlyn O’Connor, the real reason for their split is quite common: two people growing apart. He stated, “To be painted as if I had some sort of midlife crisis and gave an ultimatum of ‘do this potentially unhealthy thing to your body, or else I’m gone’—that’s never who I was.”

However, Sofia, who is currently dating orthopedic surgeon Justin Solomon, previously stated that kids were a deal-breaker in their marriage. She told Spanish newspaper El País in January, “My marriage broke up because my husband was younger, he wanted to have kids, and I didn’t want to be an old mom. I respect whoever does it, but that’s not for me anymore.”

Sofia explained that after giving birth to her son Manolo at 19, she now feels ready to be a grandmother rather than try being a mom again. She said, “When my son becomes a dad, let him bring the baby to me for a while, and then I’ll give it back to him and go on with my life.”

Back in May, Sofia shared how she plans to recycle the tattoo she got as a tribute to Joe during a visit to CBS’s “The Talk.” She explained, “This was Joe’s initial, but now he’s gone, so how lucky can I be that the guy I’m going out with has the same initial?”