Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis had been friends for a long time when they began dating, a year after Kutcher's divorce from ex Demi Moore.
Kutcher and Moore's marriage broke down in the wake of his infidelity, which soon became gossip mag fodder and public knowledge. This didn't escape Kunis, of course.
Speaking to Esquire, the Dude, Where's My Car? actor remembers his now-wife telling him, "You were an asshole." He answered, "Was I…?" and she deadpanned, "Yeah, you were an asshole for a good two years."
As difficult as his divorce was, Kutcher's relationship with Kunis has been going strong ever since, a marriage and two kids later.
"The thing about Mila that made our relationship accelerate was that I had always admired her," he explained. "Her talents, her skills, her gifts. But I knew that she didn’t need me. And she knew that I didn’t need her."
He continued, "We already knew all of each other’s dirt."
In the interview, Kutcher also described how he felt after his separation from Moore.
"Nothing makes you feel like a failure like divorce," he said. "Divorce feels like a wholesale fucking failure. You failed at marriage."
How he copes? "You own the shit you did wrong, and you go forward," he explained.
Kutcher features on the cover of Esquire to mark the upcoming release of the Netflix rom-com Your Place or Mine, in which he stars alongside Reese Witherspoon. It sounds like it's going to be absolutely delightful, and it will be available to stream on Feb. 10. I cannot wait.
