By Wonderwall.com Editors
8:36am PDT, May 12, 2017
Mamas after 40! Plenty of stars are opting to join the parenthood club later and later these days, with many waiting to welcome little ones until after their fourth decade! Whether they're just getting started at age 40 or continuing to add to their brood, relying on fertility treatments or letting nature take its course, these are the Hollywood moms who've welcomed babies later in life! First up is birthday girl Janet Jackson. The superstar turns 51 on May 16, 2017. Janet was 50 when she gave birth to son Eissa with estranged husband Wissam Al Mana on Jan. 3, 2017. Keep reading to see more of the celeb moms in the over-40 baby club!
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Mariah Carey, 42
After a heartbreaking miscarriage in 2008, Mariah Carey and husband Nick Cannon welcomed twins Moroccan and Monroe in April 2011 when the songstress was 42. "It's going to be a delicate balance between raising them around glitz and glamour and keeping them grounded," Mariah — who delivered on her third wedding anniversary — told OK! shortly after their arrival. "One thing I'm sure of is that I'll be grateful for the twins every day, no matter what."
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Halee Berry, 41 and 47
Halle Berry had both of her children after 40. She was 41 and dating model Gabriel Aubry when she delivered their daughter, Nahla, in March 2008. She announced she was expecting a child with Olivier Martinez, whom she'd wed a few months later, at age 46 in 2013. Halle gave birth to their son, Maceo, that October at the age of 47.
Meryl Streep, 41
Oscar winner Meryl Streep welcomed her fourth child, Louisa Gummer, when she was 41. Her baby girl is part of the reason Meryl later signed on for the singing-and-dancing role she played in the 2008 film version of "Mamma Mia!" She took Louisa, then 10, to see the Broadway version and found it to be "a reminder about where the joy of living is — singing and dancing and being in love," she told Good Housekeeping. "We were all up dancing in the aisles."
Christie Brinkley, 41 and 44
It's hard to believe Christie Brinkley is 63! She gave birth to son Jack Taubman in 1995 when she was 41, then had daughter Sailor Brinkley-Cook (left) at age 44 in 1998. (She also has an older daughter, Alexa Ray Joel (right), from her marriage to Billy Joel.)
Uma Thurman, 42
After having two kids with then-husband Ethan Hawke — Maya and Levon — Uma Thurman didn't plan on more. So when she and then-boyfriend Arpad Busson (who also has two kids with Elle Macpherson) welcomed their daughter in July 2012 when Uma was 42, the actress went a little crazy when it came to naming her. Her moniker? Rosalind Arusha Arkadina Altalune Florence Thurman-Busson — but the little one goes by Luna.
Tina Fey, 41
Even though Tina Fey — who gave birth to second daughter Penelope in 2011 when she was 41 — is a writer and actor, she doesn't want Penelope or big sister Alice following in her footsteps just yet. Although Tina and husband Jeff Richmond allowed Alice to appear on an episode of "30 Rock," Alice "lost her mind" when she found out that "Beasts of the Southern Wild" star Quvenzhané Wallis was a professional actress who was just 9, Tina told People. "There's a 9-year-old?! There's a 9-year-old?!" Tina recalled her daughter saying. "I made her write out a poll so everyone who came to our Oscar party had to [vote], 'Should Alice be allowed to be in movies?' And I was the only person that said 'No.' I was like 'Unfortunately for you, I am the only vote that counts.'"
Julianne Moore, 41
Julianne Moore was 41 when she welcomed her second child with husband Bart Freundlich, daughter Liv, in April 2002. She's also mom to son Caleb, who was born in 1997. Just don't ask her about it. Julianne famously took issue with being questioned about motherhood in the June 2013 issue of DuJour magazine. "Do we have to talk about parenthood?" she asked the mag. "Men aren't asked about age. Men aren't asked about their children."
Salma Hayek, 41
Salma Hayek was 41 when she gave birth to daughter Valentina in September 2007. She says pregnancy changed the way she saw herself — for better and for worse. "I gained so much weight, I got an opportunity to see myself completely disfigured in many different ways — for a very good reason — and I don't regret it for a second," Salma, who's married to French billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault, told Glam Belleza Latina's June 2013 issue. "That's when I started appreciating my body. The things that I used to criticize, they were not that bad after all."
Susan Sarandon, 42 and 45
Susan Sarandon didn't think she could have kids after she was diagnosed with endometriosis in the early '80s. But she proved doctors wrong. "I had my kids really late," she once said. She was nearly 40 when she delivered her first child — daughter Eva Amurri — with director Franco Amurri. But she didn't stop there. During her 23-year relationship with Tim Robbins, Susan welcomed two boys: Jack (left) when she was 42, and Miles when she was 45.
Jane Krakowski, 42
"30 Rock" star Jane Krakowski welcomed son Bennett with husband Robert Godley in April 2011 when she was 42. "[His hair] was quite strawberry blond when he was born, but it's gone more red now," Krakowski told People. "Both of our moms have red hair so we think he got that recessive gene!"
Naomi Watts, 40
Australian actress Naomi Watts and former partner Liev Schreiber welcomed their second son, Samuel, in December 2008 when Naomi was 40. He joined big brother Sasha, who was born in 2007. Naomi has a sneaky way to avoid getting clobbered by her energetic young boys. "I use the expression, 'Mummy is a delicate flower.' I stole that off a friend who is also a mother of boys, and I thought that was hilarious. They love roughhousing with Daddy, and they need it," she once said. "I've always been more of a tomboy and never much of a prissy girl or delicate flower ever. But I'm just a bit old now and my body doesn't work the same way!"
Madonna, 41
The Material Girl was a woman by the time she made daughter Lourdes a big sister in August 2000 when she gave birth to son Rocco just few days shy of her 42nd birthday. Madonna later married — and divorced — his dad, director Guy Ritchie, but not before they adopted a son, David, from Malawi when Madge was 49. She adopted her fourth child — daughter Mercy — as a single mom one year later. But she wasn't done yet! At age 58, Madonna added twin daughters Stelle and Estere to the bunch after adopting them from Malawi.
Nicole Kidman, 41
After two decades of trying to conceive naturally — first with Tom Cruise, then with Keith Urban — Nicole Kidman's dream came true when she successfully carried daughter Sunday Rose to term in July 2008 when she was 41, shortly after she and Keith celebrated their second wedding anniversary. Daughter Faith arrived via surrogate two and a half years later. Motherhood was not an easy journey for Nicole, whose adopted kids with Tom, Bella and Connor, chose to live with their father after their parents' split. "I had tried and failed and failed and failed. Not to be too detailed, but I've had an ectopic pregnancy, miscarriages and I've had fertility treatments. I've done all the stuff you can possibly do to try get pregnant," Nicole told Who in 2012. "Every woman who has been through all those ups and downs knows the depression that comes with it. So the way it just happened with Sunday was like, 'What?' The percentages were so low. It is the miracle in my life."
Kelly Preston, 48
It took Kelly Preston and husband John Travolta three years to have Ben, whom she delivered in November 2010 at the surprisingly mature age of 48. "I didn't [consider the risks]," she told USA Today. "I just considered that it was difficult." Ben — the spitting image of his famous father — is the couple's third child. Daughter Ella is 17. Son Jett died in 2009 following complications from a seizure.
Iman, 45
Supermodel Iman was 45 when she and husband David Bowie welcomed daughter Alexandria — who goes by the nickname Lexi — in 2000. Iman also has an older daughter, Zulekha, from her second marriage to basketball star Spencer Haywood. "People talk about the miracle of birth. No. There's the miracle of conception. I did IVF, but nothing happened. So I began to think of adoption, and then I got pregnant. It was definitely a miracle," she told Parade. "The difference between rearing a child in your 20s and one in your 50s is one of patience," Iman added. "I was at the height of my career when I had my first child, and I took her with me around the world. Then I had to root her in school. It was difficult to leave her behind. Now this one thinks she has it tough because both her old parents are at home with her all the time." Sadly, David died in 2016.
Marcia Cross, 44
Marcia Cross and husband Tom Mahoney tried IVF the week after their 2006 wedding and couldn't believe their luck when it worked — times two. They welcomed fraternal twin daughters Eden and Savannah in February 2007 when Marcia was 44. "I wanted to be a member of that club so badly, and now I'm in and it's so much better than I even imagined," she told People.
Garcelle Beauvais, 40
After years of battling infertility and miscarriages, Garcelle Beauvais became a mother for the second time at age 40 when she welcomed fraternal twins Jax and Jaid in 2007 with now-ex-husband Mike Nilon, a Hollywood agent. Raising kids a generation apart — son Oliver from her first marriage was a teenager when she had the twins — wasn't as hard as Garcelle expected. "I'm not as stressed as when I had Oliver 16 years ago," the actress told Pregnancy magazine. "My career was just starting and I was younger, so I was a little nervous about that. Now, I think, because people have embraced babies and going back to work, I'm definitely more at ease with it all."
Brooke Shields, 40
Brooke Shields, who's married to writer-producer Chris Henchy, became a mom for the second time at age 40 when she gave birth to daughter Grier in April 2006. She became an advocate for educating women about postpartum depression after battling it herself with Grier's big sister, Rowan.
Celine Dion, 42
After welcoming son Rene-Charles back in 2001, Celine Dion longed to expand her family. After six failed IVF attempts, Celine and her late husband Rene Angelil's wish finally came true when the singer gave birth to twins Nelson and Eddy in October 2010 when she was 42. Says the star: "I never gave up."
Annette Bening, 42
Annette Bening was 42 in 2000 when she gave birth to her youngest child — daughter Ella (pictured here) — with husband Warren Beatty. The couple also have three older kids: Isabel, Benjamin and Stephen, who now identifies as male after being born Kathlyn. Annette once said she learns more from her kids the older they get. "You thought you were supposed to be the one who knew [everything], and that's turned all around," she told Reuters in 2006. "Now they are teaching me every day about life."
Kim Basinger,41
Kim was 41 when she gave birth to her only child, daughter Ireland, in 1995. Now, 6'2″ Ireland has followed in Mom's footsteps, working as a professional model. "My mom's very happy she can finally give me tips," Ireland shared when she started dabbling in modeling. Kim's ex — and Ireland's dad — Alec Baldwin thinks his daughter has the right role model. "Ireland's mother is obviously one of the most beautiful women that ever lived," he told Access Hollywood. "Even divorce doesn't muddy my view of that."
Jane Seymour, 44
Jane Seymour welcomed twins John and Kristopher with now-ex-husband James Keach in November 1995 when she was 44. (She also has two adult kids, Katie and Sean, from her third marriage.) Although they're healthy teenagers now, conceiving and carrying them was a scary time for Jane, who was starring in "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" at the time. "I'd had already two very healthy pregnancies earlier in my life, and I was trying in my early 40s to have in vitro to have a baby and I had two pregnancies that failed about four to five weeks in and we had almost given up," she once said. "But we got really fortunate and I managed to hold a pregnancy. They were born six weeks preemie. I had preeclampsia so it was an emergency C-section to save my life and theirs."
Jennifer Connelly, 40
Jennifer Connelly, who's married to Paul Bettany, gave birth to daughter Agnes in May 2011 when she was 40. She's also mom to sons Stellan, with Paul, and Kai, with photographer David Dugan.
Mira Sorvino, 41 and 44
Mira Sorvino gave birth to two of her four kids with husband Christopher Backus while in her 40s. Son Holden joined big sister Mattea and brother Johnny in June 2009 when Mira was 41, and daughter Lucia (pictured) arrived in May 2012 when Mira was 44. Mira says she's trying to raise her brood to value the important things in life. "They are growing up with a bit of a silver spoon, just because of our lifestyle as actors," Mira told Hamptons Magazine in 2012, "and I'm always trying to keep them grounded and teach them to be good people who are actively helping others."
Marcia Gay Harden, 44
"The Newsroom" star Marcia Gay Harden was 44 when she and now-ex-husband Thaddaeus Scheel welcomed twins Julitta and Hudson in 2004 (big sister Eulala, pictured here, was born in 1998). "I think of babies as a glorious hijacking," she told Hollywood Life in 2010. "It's not just for one year. It's your whole life. Around 4 years old, 5, maybe even 3, some moms are better than others."
Jane Kaczmarek, 41, 44 and 46
Jane Kaczmarek and former husband Bradley Whitford are parents to three kids — and Jane had them all later in life. Frances arrived in 1997 when Jane was 41; George came along when she was 44; and Mary arrived when the actress was 46. "It was an odd coincidence that my career took off the same decade as having babies," said the seven-time Emmy nominee who found fame on "Malcolm In the Middle." "I often wished it had been different, that I had my big career bump in my 30s and my babies in my 40s or vice versa."
Beverly D'Angelo, 49
Beverly D'Angelo welcomed twins Anton and Olivia, conceived via IVF, with Al Pacino when she was 49 in January 2001. Even though she and Al have since split, they make it a point to work together to raise their kids. "These children were very much wanted and it was a purposeful journey we took together," the "National Lampoon's Vacation" star told Celebrity Baby Scoop. "We reached a point where we decided it would be better not to live together. But we co-parent well."
Geena Davis, 46 and 48
Oscar winner Geena Davis and her plastic surgeon husband, Reza Jarrahy, welcomed their first child, daughter Alizeh (pictured), when Geena was 46. She gave birth to their twin boys, Kian and Kaiis, two years later. "I'm a much better mother than I would have been in my 30s," she once said. "I've learned how to fully give myself to another person. But I don't have as much energy as I would like. My kids love to play chase and I'm always like, 'Ugh, can't we draw?'"
