Ali Wong Thanked Her Ex-Husband & “Best Friend” For Supporting Her As A Working Mom

When Ali Wong won the Golden Globe for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Limited Series, Anthology Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television for her role in Beef, she was sure to thank all of the people who helped make that special moment happen. Including her ex-husband Justin Hakuta, who got a special shout-out for supporting her as a working mom.

Wong and Hakuta were married for eight years before announcing their split back in the spring of 2022. They share two daughters, 8-year-old Mari and 6-year-old Nikki, who they continue to co-parent together. On Sunday night, Wong shared a special message with Hakuta after winning her Golden Globe, saying, “I really need to thank the father of my children and my best friend, Justin, for all of your love and support. It’s because of you that I’m able to be a working mother.”

It was a beautiful shout-out from Wong during her historic win. She was the first Asian American to win a Golden Globe in this category, and wanted to make sure her ex-husband understood his role in helping to make that possible.

This is not the first time Wong has praised her ex-husband. In a 2023 feature in The Hollywood Reporter, she called Hakuta her “best friend” and came to the interview following a pickle ball game with Hakuta. “We’re really, really close; we’re best friends,” she told The Hollywood Reporter at the time. “We’ve been through so much together. It’s a very unconventional divorce.” He even joined her on tour this summer along with their kids, where she included stand-up routines about their divorce. “I’m still workshopping it, but the bones are there and it came to me very fast. This is the first hour I’m doing since I started where I’m single. I think we’re going to call it the Single Lady tour,” she told THR at the time.

Wong has rather famously always made her family life the stars of her comedy specials like Hard Knock Wife on Netflix, so it’s really beautiful to see her take a moment to thank her ex-husband for being a supportive co-parent and giving her the space to create in her work life.

Considering how much we all loved Beef, we should probably be thanking him too.