Donnie talked to Country Living about Jenny's support for him, his work/life balance and more in this article:
Donnie Wahlberg Dishes on How ‘Cheerleader’ Wife Jenny McCarthy Holds His ‘Kite Strings’
As he wallowed in the shellshock of CBS series Blue Bloods being cancelled after 14 seasons, Donnie Wahlberg became determined to save the show—encouraging fan petitions, waiting for other networks to pick up the series, and rocking up to CBS with a presentation of reasons why the police procedural should continue.
But it was his wife of 11 years, Jenny McCarthy, who helped him consider and realize the potential for a wonderful new chapter with spin-off Boston Blue, airing 10 p.m. ET/PT, Friday nights on CBS.
“I remember when Jenny got the call for The Masked Singer, she was like, ‘I don't know. Is this going to work?’ and I was like, ‘That's going to be huge!’” Wahlberg, 56, tells us. “She was like, ‘Really?’ and I said, ‘Yes,’ and she re-looked at it.” (For the record, Donnie was right—the singing show will kick off is 14th season in January.)
“That’s how we are,” he continues. “Boston Blue came along and she said, ‘You must do this.’ I was like, ‘I know, but Blue Bloods … I could keep [trying to save] this.’ She said, ‘You have to give it a try.’ She's incredibly supportive.”
The love and support of McCarthy, 52, is one of many changes in Wahlberg’s life since he debuted as detective Danny Raegan in 2010. Meeting on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, then tying the knot at the gorgeous Hotel Baker in St. Charles, Illinois, in 2014, the couple have built a beautiful life together with their children – McCarthy’s son Evan, 23, and Wahlberg’s sons Xavier, 32, and Elijah, 24.
“In every way, she’s a confidant, a cheerleader, a supporter.”
Having just marked their 11th wedding anniversary, Wahlberg struggles to sum up McCarthy’s unwavering support for his ever-evolving acting and music career.
“I don't know if I can answer how she’s supported it as much as I can answer how much – which is a million, billion percent,” he gushes. “In every way, she's a confidant, a cheerleader, a supporter. The way she describes it is that she will hold my kite strings and let me fly.”
Donnie performing during his Las Vegas residency
“And there are times when I'm going to hold her kite strings and let her fly and when she comes down for landing, I'm right there as her support on the ground. That's just what we do for each other. And she's really smart. She's been in this industry for a long time herself, so she's great to bounce ideas off and sound things out with.”
With Wahlberg now juggling starring in and executive producing Boston Blue with New Kids on the Block’s Las Vegas residency, McCarthy’s meanwhile busy with projects like The Masked Singer and her beauty line Formless Beauty. However, Wahlberg notes the most work the couple put in is with their marriage.
“The most work we put into anything is our relationship and our family.”
“It's been really fun this journey we've had,” he says. “There's the professional side and what it looks like to the outside world, but there's also the inside version, which is not that different. We have a lot of fun – but we work for it. The most work we put into anything is our relationship and our family.”
Although their sons are now older and pursuing their own dreams, that family time remains paramount to both Wahlberg and McCarthy. Elijah has followed Wahlberg into music and the proud dad can’t contain his excitement as he prepares to watch him perform during a tour stop in Toronto, where Wahlberg’s filming Boston Blue.
“He’s drumming for a young pop artist named Aidan Bissett who’s playing in Toronto and I'm gonna go and I’m over the moon,” he says. “I can't even wait. I'm so excited! And a bunch of the cast are coming. He and Marcus Scribner [who plays Sean’s police partner Jonah Silver] have talked a bunch on the phone and they have so much in common, so it’ll be good for them meeting in person.”
Xavier is also a musician, with melodeath act Upon Stone, and Wahlberg describes content creator and writer stepson Evan as “wonderful.” The clan got some treasured family time over the summer thanks to New Kids On the Block: The Right Stuff Las Vegas Residency.
“That family time was probably the most joyous and special it’s ever been.”
“If you saw the New Kids in Vegas and thought the show was fantastic, that's an incredible feeling for me,” says Wahlberg. “It's an incredible accomplishment and I'm really happy with the way it turned out and that fans felt it was worth their time, effort and energy to get there to see it.”
“That said, what was happening at the same time was that because I was on the West Coast, I got to be with my sons a lot,” he adds. “Jenny and I got to spend a lot of time with my boys and Evan together. In between all that work and craziness, that family time was probably the most joyous and special it's ever been.”
The Vegas spectacle stunned fans with extravagant stunts like flying into the audience and driving onto stage in a 1971 Buick LeSabre Custom convertible. Wahlberg’s excited to recommence the shows at Dolby Live at Park MGM on November 1 and shares that it was another Vegas residency star who was pivotal to the group’s Sin City takeover – Usher.
“I went to see his show and talk to him about what a residency is like and one of the factors that really helped us decide to do the residency was my conversation with him,” he says. “He told me, ‘It's great. We come in the day before the shows, do a quick rehearsal, do the show again, and then we go off for three weeks or three months and do other things and come back the day before the next lot of shows.’”
“I was like, ‘Cool. I'll come back a week before the show.’ But now I can't because I'm building a TV series. I'm not coming back a week before the show to rehearse because there’s no time!”
So, how does Wahlberg take care of his wellbeing amid such professional highs and hecticness? Once again, it’s McCarthy who is key – encouraging him to relax during her visits to Toronto.
“As long as I’m operating from a place of gratitude, I’ll be happy.”
“Jenny's like, ‘I'm coming to see you,’ and I’m like, ‘Alright, what do you want to do?’ and she says, ‘Bed rot.’ I’m like, ‘What does that mean?’ and she goes, ‘You're not getting out of bed. We're gonna lay there and you're gonna recuperate.’ There’s been a lot of bed rot days.”
Ultimately, Wahlberg’s mental wellness anchors on the gratitude he shares on social media daily.
“As long as I'm operating from a place of gratitude, I'll be happy,” he says. “The minute I can't stop and be grateful for all of this is the minute it's not fun anymore. I'm getting to do all the things that I love to do, and it's a lot. This year has been a lot more than any other year.”
“But I'm trying to continue doing what I always do, which is wake up in the morning and first, be grateful I woke up, and then be grateful I get to do what I love – which isn't even so much about the acting and the performing. It’s about connecting with people and bringing happiness to people. It's what I've tried to do since I was a little boy – heal broken hearts!”
Boston Blue airs 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS on Fridays, and NKOTB recommence New Kids On the Block: The Right Stuff Las Vegas Residency on Saturday, November 1.