Joe Manganiello wouldn’t be an actor if it didn’t "pay the bills".
The ‘Magic Mike XXL’ star – who is married to Sofia Vergara – insists his main priority is to be a "provider" for his family and he wouldn’t have pursued his career if he didn’t think he’d be a success.
He said: "If acting didn’t pay the bills, I would do something else. Bottom line is that being a man and provider always came first to me.
"I wasn’t someone who was going to waste their life chasing an unrequited dream because I needed to be seen and heard by other people.
"I’ve always believed in myself from the beginning and I’ve been tested in ways you can’t imagine when it comes to my career but I stayed the course because I made a better living at this than anything else I could think of doing."
And Sofia – who has 25-year-old son Manolo from a past relationship – understands Joe’s struggles as she’s been through them herself but she believes a positive attitude is essential to survive in their industry.
She said: "This career is hard. I’ve been working towards my dream for more than 20 years.
"I think you can’t be a victim in life. That attracts negative things – with men, with family, with work. A thousand things can happen, but that’s life."
When the couple aren’t working, they love relaxing at home and each have their favourite parts of the house.
Sofia told HOLA USA! magazine: "Joe seeps on the sofa, eats there, watches all his football games there on weekends. It’s his favourite place. He loves it.
"My favourite room is the bathroom – well, that and my closet. It’s not as big as I wanted it to be, but I made some adjustments – I took over the man’s side. I said, ‘Joe, you don’t need a big closet.’ And he said, ‘Yes love, just take it.’"