Joe Manganiello is done suffering in silence. Excerpts from the Joe Manganiello memoir Bloodlines, scheduled for release on October 13, reveal a brutal seven-year battle with a mysterious autoimmune illness that nearly killed him — and, in his own account, reshaped his marriage to Sofia Vergara. Excerpts obtained by outlets including People and The Hollywood Reporter reveal a story he says he told so people could finally “truly know him,” according to coverage in Parade this week.
A seven-year health nightmare that cost him 60 pounds
According to People’s reporting on the memoir, Manganiello writes that his health began to deteriorate after his wedding to Vergara. The symptoms were relentless: an ulcerated digestive tract, excruciating abdominal pain, fevers, blistering rashes, headaches, rectal bleeding and crushing fatigue. He lost 60 pounds and, at his lowest, believed he might not survive from one week to the next.
“It happened to me, and it’s the truth, and I have all the scars to prove it,” he told People, per multiple outlets. “[Autoimmune] conditions are a dumping ground for things [doctors] don’t understand. They start running you through this gauntlet of drugs.”
The medical fallout was extreme. Manganiello underwent multiple surgeries and colonoscopies; part of his intestines was surgically removed, and he ended up relying on an ostomy bag. Doctors prescribed him aggressive medications for Crohn’s disease and colitis, and he writes that the pain management regimen left him dependent on hydrocodone, fentanyl patches, and medicinal cannabis, according to the excerpts.
Inside the Joe Manganiello memoir: the Deathstroke fitting secret
One of the most startling details comes from an excerpt obtained by The Hollywood Reporter and reported by TMZ on October 8: Manganiello secretly wore his ostomy bag to a costume fitting for his Deathstroke role in the since-shelved Ben Affleck Batman movie.
According to TMZ, he stopped eating the afternoon before the fitting to keep the bag empty, cleared the room so no one would see the bag or his scars, and panicked when asked to strip down to tiny blue briefs for a 3D body scan. It’s a raw, humbling image — one of Hollywood’s most imposing physical presences going to extreme lengths to hide a medical device just to keep a job.
Manganiello did eventually appear as Deathstroke in the post-credits scene of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, TMZ notes — a blink-and-you-miss-it moment that now carries a much heavier backstory.
The Joe Manganiello memoir’s take on the Sofia Vergara split
Manganiello’s recollections of his marriage to Sofia Vergara are, by his own framing, his side of the story — Vergara has not responded to these claims in the coverage reviewed so far, so they should be read as one-sided memoir excerpts, not established facts.
In the book, Manganiello claims the physical strain hollowed out the marriage; he writes that it became “devoid of any emotionality whatsoever.” He alleges that Vergara refused to hug him even when he begged, during the worst of his illness, according to ComingSoon and ComicBasics coverage of the excerpts.
He also claims Vergara ridiculed him over Bubbles, the 5-pound chihuahua he adopted in 2019. The detail is devastating in context: Manganiello writes that he was contemplating suicide at the time, had given his gun away because of those thoughts, and found that caring for the tiny dog flipped his role. “I went from being the patient to the caretaker,” he writes.
The baby debate: his version of why the marriage ended
The split’s cause remains contested. Vergara told El País in 2024 that the marriage ended because Manganiello, who is younger, wanted children and she did not want to be an older mom. Manganiello publicly called those reports untrue in a July 2024 Men’s Journal interview, and according to ComicBasics, he addresses the dispute directly in the memoir. As with the hug and dog claims, this is his recollection versus hers — the truth likely sits in the space between two versions neither of us will ever fully hear.
A new chapter with Caitlin O’Connor
The memoir’s heaviest chapters belong to the past. Manganiello’s present looks notably lighter: he is engaged to TV host and actress Caitlin O’Connor, with the engagement announced on June 24, 2025. People profiled O’Connor on October 7: she’s LA-born, raised in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, a UCLA English major who once worked at Disneyland as Sleeping Beauty — a meet-cute origin story if there ever was one.
Why he finally told the story
Parade’s October 8 coverage quotes Manganiello, via People, saying he wrote the memoir so people would finally understand who he is beyond the action-hero exterior — and the private struggles he faced. Seven years of pain, surgeries, a hidden ostomy bag, and a marriage collapsing around him: that’s a lot of private struggle.
Whether the Vergara passages in Bloodlines read as honest reckoning or a one-sided score-settling will be up to readers when the book lands October 13. But the health story alone — the gauntlet of drugs, the 60 lost pounds, the secret bag under the Deathstroke suit — is the kind of disclosure that reframes a celebrity entirely. For a man whose brand was built on invincibility, admitting he felt “reborn” just by surviving is the boldest thing he’s ever written.
Read next: Dove Cameron and Damiano David’s Tuscany Wedding | Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes’ Arkansas Marriage License
Frequently Asked Questions
When is Joe Manganiello’s memoir “Bloodlines” released?
Bloodlines is scheduled for release on October 13. Manganiello has said he wrote it so readers would “truly know him” and understand his private health struggles.
What illness does Joe Manganiello describe in his memoir?
He describes a seven-year battle with a mysterious autoimmune illness — with symptoms including an ulcerated digestive tract, abdominal pain, fevers, rashes and fatigue — that led to intestinal surgery and reliance on an ostomy bag. He says doctors never gave him a conclusive diagnosis.
What does Manganiello claim about Sofia Vergara in the book?
In his recollections, he claims Vergara refused to hug him during his illness and ridiculed him over his 5-pound chihuahua, Bubbles. These are his one-sided memoir claims; Vergara has not responded in reviewed coverage.
Is Joe Manganiello engaged now?
Yes — he’s engaged to TV host and actress Caitlin O’Connor, with the engagement announced June 24, 2025.
Sources: People; TMZ (Oct 8); Parade (Oct 8); The Hollywood Reporter (excerpts); ComingSoon; ComicBasics. Claims about Sofia Vergara are Joe Manganiello’s own memoir recollections; she has not publicly responded.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.