“Can’t fix it”: Hugh Jackman ignored by kids amid Sutton Foster romance

NEED TO KNOW

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• Hugh Jackman and Deborra-lee Furness split in September 2023.
• Hugh went public with Sutton Foster in January 2025, and wedding bells are ringing.
• Hugh and Deb’s kids, Oscar, 26, and Ava, 21, were said to be “devastated” by their split.

Last week marked three years since their parents’ shock split, but Oscar and Ava Jackman still can’t seem to move past their dad finding happiness with another woman.

Now friends say Hugh’s secretly hurting over his strained relationship with his grown children, as well as their ongoing reluctance to accept his partner, Sutton Foster, in their lives.

“The big fear is that Hugh’s become estranged from his kids since the divorce,” an insider tells New Idea of the fallout of his split from Deborra-lee Furness in 2023.

“This is not Deb’s fault either. She hasn’t ‘done an Angelina’ and manipulated her kids against their dad – if anything, she’s trying to help them rebuild their damaged relationship.

“But Ava and Oscar were devastated enough that mum and dad were getting a divorce, and when they found out about Sutton, something did change, and Hugh’s not been able to fix it.”

The actor, 57, hasn’t been photographed with Oscar, 26, since December 2024, and Ava, 21, since April this year.

On their last trip to Australia together for Christmas 2024, things appeared tense between the trio during an outing at Sydney’s Bondi Beach.

“Hugh is more guarded when talking about his kids, which is why a growing number of friends think things are a lot worse than he’s letting on,” the source adds.

“He’s always hopeful that time will heal, but it will be agonising for Hugh if his kids are avoiding him.”

Oscar and Ava’s unwavering loyalty to their mum is understandable given the humiliating public divorce and Deb, 70, describing the end of their 27-year marriage as “a traumatic journey of betrayal”.

Yet, the sting of their dad playing happy families with Sutton, 51, and her adopted daughter Emily, nine, has been difficult, too.

“Hugh insists on putting on a brave face. Oscar and Ava have met Sutton, and everyone was polite, but it’s not easy seeing their dad with someone else – and being a stepdad to another kid,” the source adds.

“Until he actually marries her, there’s a feeling they don’t want to expend any effort getting close to Sutton.”

That day may come sooner rather than later. The actress has recently spent time with Hugh’s mother, Grace McNeil, only fuelling whispers that the committed couple are taking steps towards the aisle.

“Awe Sutton with her (future?) MIL!” one fan commented under an Instagram photo of the trio.

There could be two important guests missing from any Jackman-Foster nuptials, if the relationship between his grown kids and his rumoured fiancée remains fractured.

“He’s had to give them their space to come to terms with the new situation, but he doesn’t want it to carry on as it has. He wants to marry Sutton and preferably with his kids’ blessing,” the source adds.

“His mum’s grown to love Sutton – he knows Ava and Oscar will too if only they would give her a chance.”