Hugh Jackman MAGA Links Resurface After Private Performance Raises Eyebrows

Hugh Jackman's performance for billionaire media tycoon Rupert Murdoch's 95th birthday has prompted renewed scrutiny of the actor's perceived MAGA links.

The Wolverine star sang several numbers from his 2017 movie

The Greatest Showmanat the Grill—a restaurant in the Seagram Building in midtown Manhattan—on Saturday to celebrate the News Corp. and Fox Corporation founder's latest lap around the sun.

Joining him for the black‑tie celebrations were Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner. Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair, U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft were also in attendance. Newsweek has contacted a representative for Jackman for comment via email.

According to a source quoted by People, Ivanka Trump "was cheering him on" during the performance. Jackman has long acknowledged his friendship with Trump and Kushner, previously addressing it in a 2018 interview with Variety.

"I've known those guys for 15 years," he said at the time. "And we don't talk politics at birthday parties."

Resurfaced footage and reports have again placed Jackman's relationship with the Kushners under scrutiny. Ivanka Trump is the eldest daughter of President Donald Trump and served as his adviser during his first term. She has since rebranded as a food waste entrepreneur and has authored a book called *Women Who Work. *Kushner, a business owner and investor, also served as an aide in Trump's first administration.

The president, who could not attend the event, shared a video message to wish Murdoch a happy birthday, the *New York Post *reported.

Some fans have expressed discomfort online over the star's perceived proximity to Trump‑aligned figures.

A self‑professed "anti‑everything MAGA" mom named Kristy wrote on Threads: "I just unfollowed @thehughjackman. That'll show him and his 6.9M followers!!!"

The renewed political attention comes as Jackman's personal life continues to make headlines, with reports suggesting his wedding plans with partner Sutton Foster have hit a pause.

According to the Daily Mail, Jackman's children—Oscar, 25, and Ava, 20—need time to process their father's new relationship following his divorce from their mother, Deborra‑Lee Furness, which was finalized last June.

"Even though Hugh is excited to start this next chapter with Sutton, he has to be sensitive to his kids. They're incredibly protective of their mother," the outlet quoted a source as saying. The source added, "He wants to be respectful of that."

Jackman and Furness met on the set of Corelli, an Australian TV show, in 1995. They married the following year and later adopted two children.

The couple announced their separation in September 2023 after 27 years of marriage, before filing for divorce in New York in May 2025.

Jackman and Foster first worked together after being announced as co‑stars in Broadway's The Music Man in 2020, though pandemic delays meant they did not debut as Harold Hill and Marian Paroo until February 2022.

In October 2024, Foster filed for divorce from her husband of 10 years, screenwriter Ted Griffin, People reported.

In May 2025, Furness shared a statement with the media: "My heart and compassion goes out to everyone who has traversed the traumatic journey of betrayal."

The remarks further fueled unconfirmed rumors of infidelity, which neither Jackman nor Foster has publicly addressed.

In January 2025, Jackman was photographed holding hands with Foster in Santa Monica, and in October 2025, the couple made their red‑carpet debut at the Los Angeles premiere of Jackman's film Song Sung Blue.

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