Show summary Hide summary
Will Forte joked about his wife Olivia Modling’s threat to divorce him over his unfiltered reaction to her new bangs, recounting the awkward FaceTime moment on Late Night with Seth Meyers on Wednesday. The MacGruber star’s honest response—”What happened to you?”—sparked a text exchange that ended with Modling jokingly demanding a divorce.
Quick Facts
- Forte appeared on Late Night with Seth Meyers on June 4, 2026 to share the story of his reaction to Modling’s new bangs.
- Modling had never had bangs before and surprised Forte with the change during a FaceTime call while he was at rehearsal.
- She jokingly threatened divorce after he asked if the bangs were a wig, calling it “the worst possible thing to hear after cutting bangs.”
- Forte and Modling married in 2021 and share two daughters, Zoe and Cecilia.
The Awkward FaceTime Moment
Forte explained that the mishap began when he FaceTimed his wife while at rehearsal. “I FaceTime her, she picks up the FaceTime and she has freshly cut bangs,” he told host Seth Meyers. “She has never had bangs before since I’ve known her. Did not know she was getting bangs. No words were spoken until I said, ‘What happened to you?'”
The actor immediately recognized his misstep. “That was not a great start,” he admitted, but his attempt to recover made things worse. “And then I said, ‘Is that a wig?!” Forte recalled. He tried to justify his confusion by noting that Modling was hunched over slightly during the call, making the bangs resemble Spock’s hairstyle from Star Trek. “It was also right around Halloween, so like, maybe she was going to dress as Spock for Halloween, and it was a wig?” he added, grasping at explanations.
Will Forte jokes about wife’s divorce threat over his reaction to her bangs
Melanie emerges as Love Island USA season 8 standout amid villa drama
The Text Exchange That Led to ‘Divorce’
Before Forte could smooth things over, he had to end the call. “I kind of realized we were in the middle of rehearsal and everyone was like, ‘What are you doing on your phone?’ So I said, ‘Oh! I’ve got to go!’ So that was how it was left,” he said. For the next half hour, he was unable to reach Modling, but when he finally checked his messages, he found a series of texts displayed to the audience.
“Is that a wig? The. Worst. Possible. Thing. To. Hear. After. Cutting. BANGS!”
— Olivia Modling, text message to Will Forte
“And I was like, ‘Ha ha ha ha.’ And then she said, ‘Divorce’,” Forte recalled with a laugh. Despite the dramatic text, the couple resolved the situation. “We got past it!” he assured the audience. The lighthearted story highlighted the kind of marital humor that keeps relationships afloat—even when one partner’s hairstyle becomes an unexpected source of tension.
A Marriage Built on Patience
Forte and Modling have been together since 2018, when they met at a mutual friend’s party. The couple got engaged in 2019 and married in a surprise ceremony on July 31, 2021, while Forte was filming MacGruber in New Mexico. They welcomed their first daughter, Zoe, in February 2021, and later had a second daughter, Cecilia. In a previous interview with People, Forte praised his wife’s patience. “I needed to find somebody who was a very patient person and she’s the most patient, understanding woman in the world,” he said. “I’m feeling very happy and very lucky these days.” The bangs incident serves as a humorous reminder that even the strongest relationships need a sense of humor to weather life’s small storms—and fashion choices.
Sources
- Entertainment Weekly — Full transcript and reporting of Forte’s appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, including direct quotes about the bangs incident and his marriage to Olivia Modling.
- Us Weekly — Additional details on Forte and Modling’s relationship timeline, their 2021 wedding, their two daughters, and prior interviews about their marriage.
