When most people reach their 50s, they start thinking about the joys of becoming a grandparent. It encompasses all of the nice things about being a parent (taking them out for ice cream!) without any of the responsibilities of having to actually raise them (because that’s your children’s job now, see?). But for many celebrities, the 50s is about rewinding the clock and enjoying fatherhood again. There are many reasons for this. Here are 10 famous men who had children in their 50s and beyond.
1. David Letterman
The retired late night talk show host waited until he was 57 before he had his first child – Harry – with longtime girlfriend (and now wife) Regina Lasko. When he made his decision to retire from TV in 2015, one of the reasons he cited was an opportunity to spend more time with his son.
2. Mick Jagger
The lead singer of the Rolling Stones has been making babies for nearly 50 years, with the first being in 1970 when his then-girlfriend Marsha Hunt gave birth to their daughter Karis. Subsequently, he’s had eight children with five different women, including three since turning 50 in 1993. The most recent addition to his family is son Deveraux Octavian Basil who was born in 2016. Here’s a weird bonus fact: Jagger’s first great-granddaughter was born in 2014, meaning she’s two years older than her great uncle!
3. Michael Douglas
Michael Douglas apparently has the power of clairvoyance. According to his wife Katherine Zeta Jones, when they first met in 1999 he told her, “I want to father your children.” At 55, Douglas became a father for the second time with the birth of Dylan Michael in 2000. They also have a daughter, Carys Zeta, who was born in 2003.
4. Jeff Goldblum
While many of the celebrities who made this list were merely adding to their family, Jeff Goldblum didn’t have his first child – son Charlie Ocean – until he was 62. He and his wife Emilie Livingston have since had a second son, River Joe.
5. Billy Joel
Billy Joel isn’t a first time father (he has an adult daughter Alexa Joel with ex-wife Christie Brinkley), but he decided to dive back into parenthood at the age of 66 with the birth of his daughter Della Rose with wife Alexis in 2015. Two years later, they had a second daughter, Remy Anne.
6. George Clooney
Although briefly married before hitting it big, George Clooney didn’t settle down into fatherhood until 2017 – at the age of 56 – when he and his wife Amal Clooney became the parents of fraternal twins Ella and Alexander.
7. Steve Martin
Although one of his most popular movies is 1989’s Parenthood Steve Martin didn’t actually get into the parenthood thing until pretty late in life. In 2012, five years after marrying writer Anne Stringfield, they announced the birth of their daughter. Martin was 68 at the time.
8. Eddie Murphy
Father of 10 children from five different women, Murphy has certainly been fruitful and multiplied. In late 2018, at the age of 57, he and his Australian supermodel girlfriend Paige Butcher welcomed his latest child into the world, son Max Charles.
9. Bruce Willis
Bruce Willis is a seasoned pro when it comes to being a father – having raised three daughters with Demi Moore – but these days he’s giving it a second go. At 57, he and his wife Emma welcomed daughter Mabel in 2012. Subsequently, they had another daughter Evelyn in 2014.
10. Alec Baldwin
Alec Baldwin and ex-wife Kim Basinger have one daughter, Ireland – born in 1995 -but now he’s really making up for lost times, having fathered 4 more children since turning 55 (all with current wife Hilaria) and possible more on the way.
