Hugh Jackman shares the 'pact' he made with wife Deborra-Lee Furness that once saved their marriage… as the couple split after 27 years together

Hugh Jackman once revealed how he safeguarded his marriage to Deborra-Lee Furness by making a ‘powerful choice’, years before the pair announced their split on Friday. 

Back in 2019, WHO magazine published an extract from The Father Hood: Inspiration for the New Dad Generation, in which Hugh, 54, described the pact he made with his wife, 67, before they had children.

‘But at those moments, we said we’d ask each other, ‘Is this good or bad for our marriage?’ Or, now that we’ve got kids, ‘Is this good or bad for our family?” the Wolverine star wrote. 

‘And as often as possible, we do the thing that is good for our family.’ 

Earlier in 2019, Hugh revealed that ‘intimacy’ was the key to a happy marriage.

He told People magazine at the time: ‘Without a doubt, it is the most important thing.

‘People talk about intimacy and assume that means in the bedroom. Of course it is that, but really, intimacy is being able to share everything together – good, bad, fears, successes.

‘Deb and I had that from the beginning. We’ve always been completely ourselves with each other.’ 

Close bond: Hugh Jackman, 50, has revealed the ‘simple but powerful choice’ he made as a young man that safeguarded his marriage to Deborra-lee Furness, 63

The shocking news of the longtime couple’s split came on Friday. 

‘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,’ the couple said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE on Friday.

‘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.’

Back in 2019, WHO magazine published an extract from The Father Hood: Inspiration for the New Dad Generation in which Hugh described the pact he made with his wife before they had children  

The former couple signed the statement as ‘Deb and Hugh Jackman,’ adding: ‘This is the sole statement either of us will make.’ 

The Australian couple share two children together; Oscar, 23, and Ava, 18. 

At 67, the Australian blonde is 13 years older Hugh, 54, and they’ve previously stated that they have never spent more than two weeks apart since their 1996 wedding. 

‘But at those moments, we said we’d ask each other, ‘Is this good or bad for our marriage?’ Or, now that we’ve got kids, ‘Is this good or bad for our family?” the Wolverine star wrote 

The New York-based couple met on the set of Australian TV drama Correlli in 1995, when Hugh was fresh out of acting school.

Although the show only lasted for one season, Hugh has said that being introduced to Deborra-lee was the ‘greatest thing to come out of it’.

The couple married in Melbourne in 1996 and, after struggling with infertility, adopted their children, Oscar and Ava, in the early 2000s. 

At 67, the Australian blonde is 13 years older Hugh, 54, and they’ve previously stated that they have never spent more than two weeks apart since their 1996 wedding. Pictured on their wedding day in Melbourne, Australia