Actor Hugh Jackman addresses gay rumors

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LOS ANGELES, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- Australian actor Hugh Jackman says persistent rumors claiming he is gay are starting to irritate Deborra-Lee Furness, his wife of nearly 17 years.

"Just recently, it bugs her," Jackman told The Hollywood Reporter, noting his spouse sees a lot of the gossip when she is surfing online. "She goes: 'It's big. It's everywhere!'"

"I have seen him with Deborra since the beginning of their trip to Hollywood, and I've been on five movie sets with him and have never seen him stray, have never seen him eye anyone. I met him when he did 'Oklahoma!' [at London's Royal National Theatre in 1999]. He was genuine, hugely talented. He was in love with his wife that day and still is," producer Lauren Shuler Donner, with whom Jackman worked on the "X-Men" movie franchise, told the entertainment industry trade newspaper.

Jackman is up for the Best Actor Oscar for his work in the movie musical, "Les Miserables."