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It has been seven years since Ian Somerhalder and his wife, Nikki Reed, retired from acting and moved out of Hollywood to live on a sustainable farm in the countryside near Santa Barbara, California.
The 47-year-old Vampire Diaries alum had run into severe financial trouble while working for an unnamed clean energy company start-up after making eight figures of personal guarantees to a bank.
'It all came crashing down,' Somerhalder recalled to E! News on Wednesday.
'I left an insanely lucrative career in television after financial upheaval from building a business that I didn't build properly. And due to fraud, it put my wife and I into an eight-figure hole.'
The Louisiana-born businessman said the debt was 'a hard hole to climb out of' but his 37-year-old wife 'really negotiated us out of this deal.'
'We sold houses, paintings, cars, watches, everything,' Somerhalder admitted.
Ian Somerhalder, 47, revealed that he and wife Nikki Reed, 37, racked up crushing 'eight-figure' debt after they retired from acting
The Vampire Diaries alum had run into severe financial trouble while working for an unnamed clean energy company start-up
He previously credited Reed, who starred in the Twilight franchise, for rescuing him from the 'terrible' business situation in 2021.
'I've never disclosed this publicly, but this woman worked selflessly for two years to build me out of a terrible business situation I got myself into', he wrote on Instagram.
'This woman here decided that she didn't want to see her husband ruin his body/mind/spirit and pulled up her bootstraps and got down in the trenches assembling a team to get to the negotiating table to find a way out. She devoted her life to getting me out of that mess and it almost killed her along the way,' he confessed.
'I am where I am BECAUSE of this woman. Brothers Bond Bourbon is actually here today because of this woman. I was able to start my life over because of this woman.'
On Sunday, the inseparable pair celebrated their 11th wedding anniversary, and they're proud parents of eight-year-old daughter Bodhi and a two-year-old son whose name has not been made public.
Somerhalder and Reed - who both played vampires - originally began dating in 2014, just a few months after she filed for divorce from American Idol alum Paul McDonald.
In 2023, the power couple launched a pharmaceutical-grade powdered supplement brand called The Absorption Company with business partners Zeke Bronfman and Nate Medow.
Somerhalder previously co-founded Brother's Bond Bourbon in 2021 with his Vampire Diaries 'sibling' Paul Wesley, and they successfully secured $7.5 million in funding last year.
'It all came crashing down,' Somerhalder recalled to E! News on Wednesday, adding, 'And due to fraud, it put my wife and I into an eight-figure hole'
Somerhalder said the debt was 'a hard hole to climb out of' but the Twilight alum 'really negotiated us out of this deal' and 'we sold houses, paintings, cars, watches, everything'
In 2023, Somerhalder and Reed launched a pharmaceutical-grade powdered supplement brand called The Absorption Company with business partners Zeke Bronfman and Nate Medow
The Actor Award winner previously co-founded Brother's Bond Bourbon in 2021 with his Vampire Diaries 'sibling' Paul Wesley, and they successfully secured $7.5 million in funding last year
Somerhalder - who just purchased his first plane (above, on March 18) - is scheduled to sign autographs and take pictures with fans at his next booze event happening at Pavilions in Burbank, California, on May 7 from 1-3pm
Reed founded her own sustainable jewelry company, Bayou With Love, in 2017
The Actor Award winner - who just purchased his first plane - is scheduled to sign autographs and take pictures with fans at his next booze event happening at Pavilions in Burbank, California, on May 7 from 1 to 3pm.
Meanwhile, Reed founded her own sustainable jewelry company, Bayou With Love, in 2017.
The homeschooled LA native - who boasts 7.2 million social media followers - is also every bit the influencer with paid partnerships for brands like Joi Women's Wellness, Leica Camera, Prenuvo, Genexa, Cleobella, Stetson and 1 Hotel West Hollywood.
Somerhalder and Reed haven't had an acting gig since co-starring as Dr. Luther Swann and Rachel Thompson in Netflix's 2019 sci-fi series, V-Wars.
The happy couple was initially introduced by a mutual acquaintance and remained friends for several years before they began their relationship.
Reed was previously married to American Idol contestant Paul McDonald, with whom she wed in 2011.
The pair remained together for three more years before they separated and divorced in 2015.
Somerhalder was also romantically involved with his co-star from The Vampire Diaries, Nina Dobrev, from 2010 until 2013.
Somerhalder and the homeschooled LA native have not had an acting gig since co-starring as Dr Luther Swann and Rachel Thompson in Netflix's 2019 sci-fi series, V-Wars
Somerhalder played the broody heartthrob Damon Salvatore in the supernatural teenage drama The Vampire Diaries from 2009 until 2017. Above, with Nina Dobrev in the show
Reed is best known for playing Rosalie Hale in the Twilight film franchise, which she starred in from 2008 until 2012
The pair moved very quickly with their relationship and moved in with each other after only three weeks of dating.
The couple announced that they were engaged in February of 2015, and they went on to tie the knot that April.
Reed is best known for playing Rosalie Hale in the Twilight film franchise, in which she starred from 2008 to 2012.
Meanwhile, Somerhalder played the broody heartthrob Damon Salvatore in the supernatural teenage drama The Vampire Diaries from 2009 until 2017.
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