Back in the fall of 2013, stars Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore finalized their divorce, putting an end to six years of marriage. The split came after intense speculation that Kutcher had been cheating on Moore, accusations of which continued to follow him in the tabloids. Now, the actor is happily married to Mila Kunis and the father of two adorable children, Wyatt and Dimitri. Kutcher has overcome a lot to get to this stable place, which is part of why he was awarded the Robert D. Ray Pillar of Character Award on Saturday.
In his acceptance speech, the 39-year-old spoke about his childhood and his wife, as well as finally addressing the cheating rumors that haunted so much of his divorce.
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"I’m also probably the first person to get this award for character who had, like, his name splashed across every gossip magazine as an adulterer like five years ago," he said in the beginning of his speech. However, in his view, overcoming something like that ended up making him stronger, and is what's responsible for the important lessons he's learned.
"Character comes when those magazines tear you apart for something you may or may not have done and you gotta go out and perform tomorrow — with everyone looking at you like you might be an adulterer," he said.
In fact, in the year following the divorce, Kutcher had to bounce around between Airbnbs while things got back on track.
"I went to Europe and I flew in and got in in the middle of the night," he said back 2016. "I arrived at the Airbnb at 2 a.m. The person had left me dinner and a glass of wine."
This simple act of kindness from a stranger meant the world in the midst of all his personal chaos.
"It was … the magic and the love that I needed in that moment," he continued. "I was shocked that someone would care that much about a total stranger."
All these little moments added up to make the person who stood in front of an audience and accepted such a prestigious award.
"Because life doesn't happen to you, it happens for you," he added. "Every. Single. Time."