“Honestly, the beauty of being an older dad is you get a chance to kinda try it again,” says one star, who became a dad for the eighth time at age 70.
Families come in all shapes, sizes…and ages! While a majority of parents welcome their children in their 20s and 30s, others don’t put a time limit on when they can expand their fam. In fact, quite a few famous fathers have welcomed children in the second half of their lives — and far beyond! Some of these celebrity dads were even well into their 70s and 80s when they announced the arrival of a new bundle of joy. Although being a dad later in life may be a little more challenging, these parents say it also comes with a lot of wisdom, experience and more time for fun with their kids!
Find out what these dads said about welcoming children later in life…
Kelsey Grammer
Kelsey Grammer has been a dad for decades, welcoming eight children amid several different relationships. By the time he married his current wife, Kayte Walsh, he already had four children. Kelsey and Kayte have gone on to welcome four more kids, recently announcing a new arrival just a few months ahead of Kelsey’s 71st birthday. While he may be an older dad, Kelsey says it brings him great joy.
“I’m in a place that I’ve never been happier workwise, and I do have time to see my family a lot. What I regretted earlier in my life was that I seemed to be so busy sometimes that suffered. Honestly, the beauty of being an older dad is you get a chance to kinda try it again. That’s been a real gift,” he told The Guardian.
Al Pacino
Al Pacino is a dad of four, welcoming his children over the course of several different relationships. His youngest son, Roman, whom he shares with ex Noor Alfallah, was born in 2023 when Al was 83. Reflecting on fatherhood, Al says his little boy has given him a renewed sense of vitality.
“I want to be around for this child,” he told the BBC. “And I hope I am. I hope I stay healthy, and he knows who his dad is, of course.”
Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro is a father of seven, welcoming his youngest child with girlfriend Tiffany Chen in 2023 when he was 79. While reflecting on their little girl Gia’s birth, Robert said that he was happy to be living in the moment, calling it a “great joy and relief to just be with her.” Meanwhile, when asked how parenting had changed since he first became a father decades prior, Robert admitted he was still doing the same thing — trying his best.
“In some ways. Of course. I’m trying my best,” he said on Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace. “I’m older, you know, I’m 81…Things just change. I have no choice. Embrace it. Embrace whatever you’ve been given.”
Richard Gere
Richard Gere is the proud father of three children, welcoming his youngest two sons with his wife Alejandra Silva in the past few years. Their children, Alexander and James, were born around the time that Richard turned 70. The family now lives in Spain, Alejandra’s native country.
“Richard is a very devoted and present father. He loves to read them stories. It seems like an idyllic photo, but it’s true. He’s a great dad,” Alejandra told Elle España.
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Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger has eight children from several different relationships, and while he became a dad for the first time in 1970, his youngest child, Deveraux, was born in 2016 when the musician was 73. Despite having so many children, Mick says that the parenting experience has been different for every child he welcomed.
“You get a bit out of practice — it’s not like riding a bike,” he told The Guardian. “The more children you have, the more laissez-faire you get about them, to be honest. And it depends on the child. They have their own personalities and you can mold them to a certain extent, but you see their likes and dislikes and encourage them to do things they gravitate towards. It’s fun to have children, at any age.”
Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood was already dad to seven children when his then-wife Dina Ruiz welcomed their daughter Morgan. At the time, he was 66. After welcoming Morgan later in life, Clint admitted that he was a “much better father” than he was to his older children as he now realized the importance of making sure his daughter took “precedence over everything.”
“I go to all the softball games and look ridiculous out there because almost everybody’s got a much younger father than me,” he said in 2008. “But it’s fun. I think you appreciate [it] a lot more when you get to my age.”
Rod Stewart
Rod Stewart has eight children, his youngest two whom he shares with his third wife Penny Lancaster. When their younger son Aiden was born in 2005, Rod was 66. Reflecting on fatherhood, Rod explained that because there’s such big age gaps between his kids, he has to be a different kind of father at different times.
“I have to be several different fathers because of the different age groups of my kids,” he told People. “You really have to treat all of them as individuals with individual problems…All the [older] kids went through their little bad period of drinking too much and dabbling in drugs…but they all came out on the other side. As a dad, I’ve learned to listen and not blow my top.”
Steve Martin
Steve Martin became a dad for the first time at 67. He and his wife, Anne Stringfield, welcomed their daughter Mary in 2013, and Steve says it was the perfect time for a child to come into his life because he wouldn’t have been ready earlier.
“Oh, it’s fantastic—you have all the time in the world. You’re all set and secure in life, and you’re not building your career, so you have a lot of time,” he told Australia’s Daily Telegraph. “When I was younger, I was selfish and focused on my career. Now I’m just hanging around the house playing with [my daughter]. It’s great.”
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Billy Joel
Billy Joel first became a dad in 1985, but decades later, he and his fourth wife, Alexis Roderick, decided to expand the family. The musician was 66 when they welcomed their daughter Della in 2015 and was 68 when little sister Remy was born. While he initially thought he was “too old” to have any more children, Billy says having his younger daughters has been a joy.
“Having these little kids at this time in my life is such a joy,” he said in his HBO documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes. “I have time to be with them… I wanted to make sure that they got everything they needed from me, so I kind of knuckled down and took fatherhood very, very seriously.”
Elton John
Elton John became a dad for the first time in his 60s. In 2010, Elton and his husband David Furnish welcomed their son Zachary via surrogate and then in early 2013, Elijah was born. At the time, Elton was 65. He now lists becoming a father as one of his greatest accomplishments.
“It’s the greatest thing I’ve ever done. For me personally, I’ve had an amazing life, great career, incredible achievements, music, blah, blah, blah, but I would say that our sons, and David, are the most important things to me,” he said during an appearance on Radio Andy.
Gary Busey
Gary Busey was already the proud father of two children when he became a dad for the third time at the age of 65. In 2010, Gary’s former partner Steffanie gave birth to their son Luke. As for being an older dad, Gary said he had a sense of peace because he had done it all before.
“I’m in [chartered waters] now. I’ve been through this trail. I don’t get like, ‘Oh, God, he’s crying again.’ I knew that came with dinner and it was part of the drill,” he told The Wall Street Journal.
