‘Rampage’ Star Joe Manganiello (49) Gets Emotional Crediting Sofía Vergara (54) With Saving His Life

When Joe Manganiello announced his memoir ‘Bloodlines’ in June, few fans realized the ‘Magic Mike’ and ‘True Blood’ star had spent years quietly fighting for his life. The book, released on Oct. 13, pulls back the curtain on a 7-year battle with autoimmune-related illnesses.

Since then, much of the conversation has centered on his claims about his marriage to Sofía Vergara, including allegations that she was emotionally distant while he was ill. But the story he tells about his health is more layered than a simple tale of blame.

In a new Entertainment Tonight interview, Manganiello gets emotional while opening up about the health struggles he faced and about how his now ex-wife saved his life. That moment echoes one of the most striking chapters in the memoir, in which Vergara made a life-or-death decision on his behalf.

The crisis came in 2016, when Manganiello was hospitalized with worsening pain and bleeding that tests couldn’t explain. Vergara was sleeping on a cot in his hospital room at the time, according to his account.

While he was under anesthesia, the medical team contacted her as his next of kin. She approved removing his entire large intestine and creating an opening in his abdomen so that his small intestine could empty into an ostomy bag. When he woke after the 10-hour procedure, Vergara was at the foot of his bed explaining what had happened and warning that the ostomy bag might be needed indefinitely.

Manganiello writes that he understood he had cheated death, but that a creeping fear followed: the life he had worked so hard to build might be over. He also wasn’t cured at that point, since ulcers and severe inflammation lingered. He later underwent another surgery to reconnect his digestive tract.

Joe Manganiello gets emotional opening up about the health struggles he faced and how his now ex-wife, Sofía Vergara, saved his life. His book, ‘Bloodlines: A Memoir,’ is out now. https://t.co/rIj10EzJmF

— Entertainment Tonight (@etnow) October 13, 2026

The memoir also makes allegations that paint a harsher picture. Manganiello claims Vergara refused to hug him when he asked, and that she ridiculed his Chihuahua, Bubbles, whom he adopted in 2019. He describes the marriage as having become emotionally empty during his illness.

Those are his recollections of events, and Vergara hadn’t publicly responded to the excerpts when they were first reported. That context matters, especially because the book presents only one side of a very private chapter.

In an interview with Gayle King on ‘CBS Mornings’, Manganiello said he absolutely credits Vergara for saving his life, even while detailing the painful parts of the story. He also addressed a social media post that Vergara reportedly shared, which allegedly called him a narcissistic man, and suggested that anyone with opinions should read the book first.

The couple married in November 2015, announced their separation in July 2023 and finalized their divorce in 2024. Vergara previously said the marriage ended because he wanted children and she didn’t want to be an older mother. Manganiello disputes that account and says his illness changed his outlook on fatherhood.

He has told People that writing about the divorce wasn’t the point of the book, but that he tells the truth even when it’s painful. It’s a notable framing from someone whose memoir has been dominated by headlines about his ex-wife.

‘Bloodlines’ goes far beyond the marriage. After conventional medicine failed to explain his illness, Manganiello went on a search that took him through shamans, pagan rituals, ancient myths and long-lost family records. That journey led him to his great-grandmother Terviz Darakjian, a survivor of the Armenian Genocide, and to questions about inherited trauma.

He has said the book took 3 years to complete and that he hopes it offers readers a sense of survival and hope. He reports that he is now symptom-free and off medication, and he is engaged to actress Caitlin O’Connor, who he proposed to in 2025.

For readers and viewers alike, the ET interview adds another layer to a story that has often been reduced to a single storyline. Manganiello’s willingness to credit Vergara with saving his life while also detailing the pain of the marriage makes the memoir feel less like a score-settling exercise and more like a complicated, deeply personal account.

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