(CNN) — Ashton Kutcher shared his reflections on one of the most difficult periods of his public life: his 2011 split from then-wife Demi Moore.
In a new interview with Esquire published on Tuesday, the actor recalled how his “life changed” when he began his relationship with Moore in 2003, amid a tabloid frenzy.
“I was twenty-six years old and I took on the responsibility of an eight-year-old, a ten-year-old and a twelve-year-old,” she shared, referring to Moore’s three now-grown daughters with ex-husband Bruce Willis, Tallulah, Scout and Rumer Willis, with whom Kutcher is still in a relationship.
Kutcher and Moore eventually divorced in 2013, which Kutcher said made him feel like a “failure.”
Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore seen here in 2011 in New York City. Credit: Charles Eshelman/FilmMagic/Getty Images
“Nothing makes you feel like a failure like a divorce,” she said. “Divorce feels like a total failure. You failed at marriage.”
Following that relationship, Kutcher dated his former “That ’70s Show” co-star Mila Kunis, and they married in 2015. They have two children.
Kutcher told Esquire that he was upset when the release of Moore’s tell-all memoir in 2019 brought renewed tabloid attention to him.
“I was really upset,” he said. “I had finally gotten to a place where the press had really left me and Mila and my life and my family alone. And then the next day, (the paparazzi) are at my kids’ school.”
Kutcher now has a lot to be thankful for, though: He’s starring in a new rom-com with Reese Witherspoon, “Your Place or Mine,” premiering next month on Netflix, marking his return to the big screen nearly nine years after his last leading role in a film.
He also recently appeared in the first episode of the Netflix reboot “That ’90s Show,” in which he again plays Kelso, the role that first put him on the map on “That ’70s Show,” which aired on Fox. from 1998 to 2006.
