Diane Kruger Talks Bad Relationships: "I Punished Many Boys for My Lack of a Father Figure"

Actress says therapy helped her get over divorce

By Cinya Burton Jul 05, 2013 5:25 PMTags
Diane KrugerSplash News

Diane Kruger may be in a blissful relationship with beau-of-six-years Joshua Jackson, but she says her road to true love was a long, tough journey.

In fact, she pinpoints  a lot of her problems with men in the past to daddy issues.

"Oh, I'm sure I punished many boys for my lack of a father figure. And I'm sure I dated many men who were much older than the men I should have been dating," she shares in the August 2013 issue of Marie Claire U.K.

One bad relationship well documented in the press was her five-year marriage to French director Guillaume Canet, 40, which ended in a bitter divorce. Afterward Canet quickly moved on with Oscar winner Marion Cotillard, while Kruger swore off saying "I Ddo" ever again.

After her split, Kruger admits to having something of a life crisis.

"For a long time I felt that I was so accomplished. ‘Oh I speak three languages, I travel the world, I've seen so many things.' But when I turned 30 I realized I was an idiot. I don't know s--t about anything," she says.

So, she went to therapy. Something, she credits as a major turning point.

"Therapy's not about getting help; it's facilitating yourself to deal better with life in general," she explains. "At the end of the day, I'm not bitter. I love men. I want a family myself. I'm not angry with him anymore."

It helps that The Bridge actress found love again herself.

"I'm grateful that I met a person who feel the same not just about me but also about our relationship," the 36-year-old gushes about Jackson.

That being said, German-born star still knows that "relationships are hard." Adding: "The hard part is timing. When you meet someone, are you ready to make them your number one priority? There's never going to be a role more interesting than my own life."

Luckily she and Joshua had perfecting timing.