Ben Foster opens up about leaving Hollywood for Nashville

Ben Foster turned a sharp corner.

The actor, 44, left Hollywood after a decade to build a new life in Nashville, Tennessee.

“I lived in L.A. for, we’ll call it 12 years. I lived in New York for about the same,” Foster told The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday. “[My ex-wife, Laura Prepon, and I] had two children and my parents are very close with my children. They’ve moved close to Nashville.”

Foster came to the realization of where he wanted to relocate a few years back.

“After the pandemic, I had a cognition that I didn’t need to live on either coast, quite frankly,” he explained. “I love horses and I ride. I love live music. I dig country music. There’s been a shift from both coasts and I’ve found that it’s gentler for me, at least, to hub there. Nashville is just a different way. I’m enjoying it.”

Foster and Prepon, 45, first met as teenagers and were friends with Danny Masterson for several years. The pair struck up a romance in July 2016 and got engaged in October of that year.

Foster and Prepon tied the knot in May 2018.

The “That ’70s Show” star shared the news of their union on Instagram the following month.

“Just Married! Thank you for all the love and support. Wishing all of us the good stuff!” Prepon captioned a wedding picture with Foster in June 2018.

The two went on to welcome daughter, Ella, 8, in 2017 and a son, born in 2020, whose name they have not made public.

By September 2024, Foster had filed for divorce.

The actor filed on Sept. 9, citing “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the breakdown in their marriage. He also asked the court to uphold the prenuptial agreement they signed before their wedding.

In December, Prepon accused her ex of “alcohol abuse.”

At the time, the former flames were fighting over the custody of their kids.

Foster requested that the court set up a temporary custody schedule, claiming he and Prepon couldn’t see eye to eye.

“[Ben] has personally attempted to reach a resolution with [Laura] in setting a parenting plan schedule that affords each with substantive parenting time, but all efforts have been unsuccessful,” the documents, per In Touch, read.

Prepon then responded to her ex’s court filing, slamming his alleged alcohol use and demanding the court order Foster not to drink when he’s around the children, per the outlet.

In the documents, the “Girl on the Train” actress shared her concern over their children staying with their dad in his high-rise apartment complex, claiming he often “day drinks” and has an alleged “longstanding history of alcohol abuse.”

Prepon claimed that at one point in their relationship, Foster “became so inebriated” after their daughter was born that he locked himself out of their New York apartment. She alleged she found him sleeping on their doorstep in his underwear.

Prepon also claimed that the “Alpha Dog” alum seems to “always have a cup or thermos” on him.

“It was discovered through [Ben’s] leaving these thermoses or cups around the house that they contained coffee and whiskey,” the documents continued.

The “Orange Is the New Black” vet alleged Foster gets shaky hands in the morning and often requests several “airplane bottles” of booze when he flys.

Prepon told the court that she’s the primary children’s caretaker, claiming Foster has accused her of “creative sabotage” when she’s tried to discuss important topics with him.

The star demanded Foster be prohibited from consuming alcohol before and during his time with the kids, or that a supervisor be present during their visitation.

However, Foster’s lawyer, Rose Palermo, told The Post: “Laura Prepon’s filing is the definition of falsehood and a disturbing fiction. Her actions will continue to harm the children who have always been Ben’s first priority.”

The divorce was settled in April.