Nearly two months after filing for divorce from Sofía Vergara, Joe Manganiello wasn’t brooding; he was reportedly in a hot tub at a Hollywood afterparty, chatting with Caitlin O’Connor. That night in September 2023, at an unofficial gathering for HBO’s Winning Time, sparked a connection that’s now led to an engagement.
Per US Magazine, Manganiello filed for divorce from Vergara on July 19, 2023, citing “irreconcilable differences.” The ex-couple shared in a joint Instagram statement:
We have made the difficult decision to divorce. As two people that love and care for one another very much, we politely ask for respect of our privacy at this time as we navigate this new phase of our lives.
By February 2024, his divorce was finalized. By March, a source told Us Weekly the relationship with O’Connor was moving full steam ahead, revealing:
They’re going to get engaged soon [and then] start trying for kids. Marriage is definitely in their future.
The engagement became official months later. At the San Diego Film Festival on October 16, 2025, Manganiello called O’Connor his “fiancée”, TMZ reported. She confirmed the proposal had happened in June, captioning an Instagram post: “June 24th, 2025” alongside a ring selfie and their dog.
Joe Manganiello Shared the Real Reason for His Divorce from Sofía Vergara
In January 2024, Sofía Vergara told El País her version of what led to her divorce from Joe Manganiello:
I’m newly divorced from my second husband, who I was with for 10 years. 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 feel it’s not fair to the baby. I respect whoever does it, but that’s not for me anymore.
While headlines ran with Sofía Vergara’s quote about not wanting to be an “old mom,” Manganiello gave the deeper context and some sharp contradiction. In his interview with Men’s Journal, he dismantled the idea that he walked away over kids.
There’s been a lot said in the press about me wanting a family… That’s simply not true.
He explained that the two of them tried having kids during the first year and a half of marriage, and had spoken openly about it early on. “I said, ‘If you’re done with kids, then I understand. Just tell me, and I’ll know what this is, and that’s okay,‘” he recalled saying during their first month of dating.
That wasn’t the case with her.
Manganiello emphasized that he never issued ultimatums.
It’s because two people grew apart, and sometimes that happens. To be painted as if I had some sort of midlife crisis, and after nine years, turned to somebody and gave them an ultimatum of, ‘Do this potentially unhealthy thing to your body, or else I’m gone?’ That’s never who I was.
Manganiello and Vergara got engaged in 2014, married in 2015, and finalized their divorce in February 2024 after announcing their separation in July 2023. Vergara is now reportedly dating Justin Saliman, while Manganiello is planning a future with Caitlin O’Connor.
Who Is Joe Manganiello’s Fiancée? Surprising Facts About Caitlin O’Connor and Their First Meeting
Joe Manganiello met Caitlin O’Connor, a TV host and actress, in September 2023, at an “unofficial” post-premiere party for HBO’s Winning Time. O’Connor starred as Dyan Cannon in the series, and it was there, in a hot tub, that their romance began. “We hit it off right away,” O’Connor recalled (per PEOPLE).
They went Instagram official in February 2024, made their red carpet debut in December 2023 at the COAF Gala in NYC, and got engaged in June 2025. Their connection was immediate and hasn’t cooled down since. An insider told Entertainment Tonight:
They’re in the honeymoon stage and in complete and utter bliss. They’ve been traveling together, going out on fun date nights… They’re looking forward to taking more trips and making more memories.
Quick Profile: Caitlin O’Connor
Speaking to City Scene, she explained:
I didn’t really know what I wanted to do in high school. But when I got into UCLA, I started to form a new outlook. As an English major, I could go on to do a lot of different things — creative writing, screenwriting, journalism. It felt like a broad enough path to explore.
And now? She’s a fiancée. In under two years, Joe Manganiello went from heartbreak to headline-making engagement. Is it too fast or just fast enough?
What do you think? Is Caitlin O’Connor the real match Joe Manganiello’s been waiting for, or just the next page in his very public love story? Drop your hottest takes in the comments below!
