Most people dream of having children, but for a variety of reasons — including medical conditions, age, or being a member of the LGBT community — it’s not possible for the couple to conceive through natural methods. But thanks to modern medicine and willing surrogates, anybody who wants to be a parent has this opportunity. Here are 10 celebrities who have gotten to experience the joys of raising children as a result of surrogacy.
Anderson Cooper
Thanks to a surrogate, the prominent CNN host, who came out of the closet in 2012, welcomed his son Wyatt — named after his father — on April 27, 2020. Anderson, who stated that as a kid who understood that he was gay, he never imagined that he’d ever be able to have a child of his own. But he was very grateful to the surrogate as well as the professional medical staff who made it a reality. Although he has since broken up with his partner, both are very much involved in Wyatt’s life.
Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka
When Harris and spouse Burtka were ready to have children, the process of searching for an ideal surrogate was simple: they looked through profiles until they came across the right woman. It turned out that she had previously been a surrogate for another gay couple and thus was familiar with the process. Each of them donated sperm to an egg and both happened to fertilize, resulting in Gideon Scott and Harper Grace. They have chosen not to know which child is whose.
Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade
Actress Union spent years trying to conceive through fertility treatments, but had to overcome her feeling of failure after subsequent miscarriages. She finally accepted the idea that having a child through a surrogate is nothing to be ashamed of. Thus in 2018 she and the future NBA Hall-of-Famer welcomed daughter Kaavia James into their lives. Wade also has three children — Xavier, Zaya and Zaire — from his previous marriage to Siohvaughn Funches.
Alec and Hilaria Baldwin
In March 2021 the Baldwins announced completely out of the blue that they were welcoming a new daughter via a surrogate — named Maria Lucia as a nod to her mother’s fake Spanish ancestry — when just 6 months earlier Hilaria had given birth naturally to Eduardo Pao Lucas, which coincidentally is the name of our favorite Spanish resort town.
Kristen Wiig and Avi Rothman
In June 2020 it came out that the comedic actress and SNL alumna had used a surrogate to give birth to twins with now-husband Avi Rothman. The couple were first spotted together on a beach in Hawai’i back in 2016 and were confirmed to have been engaged in 2019. Wiig announced in 2021 that they were married.
Jimmy Fallon and Nancy Juvonen
The Tonight Show host and wife Nancy attempted to have children on their own for several years, but with no success. Fallon has stated that it was an emotional experience to not be able to have children. Finally, in 2013 they had daughter Winnie Rose through surrogacy. One year later Francis Cole was born through the same process. Although careful not to devolve too much information about the surrogate due to confidential laws, he did make reference to “angels in Dallas” who helped make it possible to be a parent.
Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick
Parker and Broderick have welcomed twin daughters, Loretta and Tabitha, through surrogacy on June 22, 2009. Their first child, James, was born to them naturally in 2002. Parker explained that she had taken advantage of the opportunities to enjoy her life without all of the challenges that come with raising babies (such as a lack of sleep), but had reached a point where she was ready to add to the family.
Kanye West and Kim Kardashian
The now-separated couple, who are the full biological parents of son Saint and daughter North, were unable to have additional children together due to a medical condition Kardashian suffered from while giving birth to their first two. As a result, they relied on the help of a surrogate to expand their family by two more children. In January 2018, daughter Chicago was born, and a year later son Psalm entered this world.
Elton John and David Furnish
In a New York Times interview in 2016, the legendary musician stated that he and his filmmaker husband had originally planned to adopt children, but then decided that surrogacy was the route they would prefer. As a result, Zachary Jackson Levon was born on Christmas Day 2010 while Elijah Joseph Daniel was born on January 11, 2013. Both of them share the same surrogate mother.
George Lucas and Mellody Hobson
The man who created the Star Wars franchise, ruined it, and then subsequently sold it to Disney to ruin even further has three adult children through adoption, but he and his wife Mellody, who got married in 2013, were eager to raise one together through a surrogate. Their daughter Everest was born later that year in August 2013.
