18 Celebs Who Stepped Up As Stepparents
The parents or guardians a child is surrounded by as they mature makes such a strong impact on their development. Whether it's biological, foster, adoptive, or stepparents, these are often the most important figures in their lives.
And having a loving, dedicated stepparent around makes a huge difference for kids. These 18 celebrities have been very involved as stepparents and supportive toward their stepchildren.
1.Russell Wilson
Russell and Ciara have two children together, Sienna and Win. They also share Future Jr., a son from Ciara's previous relationship with the rapper, Future. In a 2020 Good Morning America interview, Russell described how his role as a stepfather has opened him up to learning more about love.
"Being a stepdad ... has taught me, really, what love is like, what life is really like, [and] how God intends us to love," Russell said. "One of the greatest gifts in the world is children."
2.Jada Pinkett Smith
In addition to having two children, Jaden and Willow, with Will Smith, Jada is a stepmother to Trey, Will's son from his first marriage. This role required her to develop a bond with Trey's mom, Sheree Zampino, she explained in a 2014 Facebook post, per Closer.
"When I married Will, I knew Trey was part of the package. Period!" Jada wrote. "If I didn't want that, I needed to marry someone else. Then I learned if I'm going to love Trey, I had to learn to love the most important person in the world to him — his mother."
The Girls Trip star went on to state the importance of including a partner's children from their previous relationships in their lives.
"I can't support any actions that keep a man from his children of a previous marriage," Jada wrote. "These are the situations that separate the women from the girls. ... We can't say we love our man and then come in between him and his children. THAT'S selfishness — not love."
3.Kate Bosworth
Through her ex-husband, director Michael Polish, Kate became a stepmom to his daughter, Jasper. The pair called it quits in 2021, but Kate has continued her role as a stepparent. During a 2022 chat on The Talk, Kate called being a stepmom "the thing [she's] most proud of in [her] life" as she promoted Along for the Ride, a film in which she portrays a stepparent.
"I've been a stepmom for almost 11 years," Kate said. "My stepdaughter's name is Jasper, and I have watched her grow up from about 12 years old until, she's 24 now, and she is the light of my life. She really is. I'm so proud of her."
Kate's character in Along for the Ride, Heidi, is a stepmom who has a good relationship with her stepchild's biological mother. This reflected Kate's own experiences and further drew her to the part.
"And so, it was a real sort of personal choice to take on this role ... we kind of shattered the stereotype of like evil stepmother pitted against biological mother," Kate said. "I'm very close to Jasper's biological mom, so there was a lot of parallels, and I think it's really all about love."
4.Eva Longoria
In 2017, while being interviewed by E! News, Eva was asked about the possibility of having children with her husband, businessperson José Bastón. The Desperate Housewives star said she wasn't sure if they would have children together and discussed her joy in being a hands-on stepmother to José's kids from his previous marriage.
"Right now I am a stepmom to three amazing kids, and I've had my hands full, and they are amazing and wonderful ... It's been a lot of fun, a lot of fun being a stepmom," Eva said.
The couple later welcomed a son, Santiago, in 2018.
5.Jason Momoa
Jason became a stepdad to Zoë Kravitz when he dated and went on to marry her mother, Lisa Bonet. The pair, who announced their separation in 2022, also have two children together, Lola and Nakoa-Wolf.
Following his split from Lisa, Jason has continued to be supportive of his stepdaughter. This includes him, Lola, and Nakoa-Wolf attending the premiere of The Batman in March 2022.
"We're just so proud," Jason said about Zoë's role as Catwoman in the film. "Lisa couldn't be here so we're representing, me and the babies. We're very excited to just be here ... It's still family, you know?"
6.Catherine Zeta-Jones
Catherine and her husband, Michael Douglas, have two children together, Dylan and Carys. They also have one son, Cameron, whom they share from Michael's first marriage. In 2009, Cameron spoke highly of Catherine and explained that the Mask of Zorro star "is someone who has cemented the family together."
"When [Catherine] came into our family it could so easily have gone another way. You hear stories all the time about the younger stepmother pushing away the kids from a previous marriage," Cameron told the Daily Mail. "But from the first day I met her, she said, 'I want us to be friends, and I want you to know that you are a huge part of our family and are welcome any time.' She has been as good as her word ... I’ve never seen my father as happy as he is with her. It’s cool to see."
7.Gabrielle Union
Gabrielle is a mom to Kaavia James, whom she had via surrogate in 2018 with her husband, NBA star Dwayne Wade. Furthermore, she is a stepparent to Zaya, Zaire, and Xavier, Dwayne's kids from his previous relationships. When Dwayne got full custody of Zaya, Zaire, and Xavier, Gabrielle stepped up and made the choice to be "consistent in their lives." Their family bond developed even further when the couple wed in 2014.
“I knew that when I married him, I was married to them,” Gabrielle said during a 2021 We Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyle podcast episode, per Yahoo! Entertainment. “What I realized very quickly is you will never, ever, I don’t care if the other parent is dead, you will never be able to replace the other parent. Don’t try to replace the other parent. That is not your job. Your job is to be consistent. If you’re a disciplinarian in your own life, continue to be that. Just be consistent so they know who you are… and kids adapt.”
8.Barbra Streisand
In 1998, Barbra married James Brolin, making her the stepmother of James' children from his previous relationships, Josh, Jess, and Molly Brolin. James also became a stepparent to Barbra's son, Jason Gould. In 2018, when Josh and his wife, Kathryn Boyd Brolin, were expecting their first child together, the actor talked about Barbra's excitement in welcoming a new step-grandchild.
"She's, like, in our face. She's calling all the time, emailing all the time, she has name suggestions," Josh said of Barbra on Good Morning America. "We got her a bracelet that says "Grandma" on it, she started crying. She's into it, man, really, really into it. It's great."
9.Penn Badgley
Penn married singer and doula, Domino Kirke, in 2017. The pair had a son together, James, in 2020, and Penn has become a stepfather to Domino's other son from a previous relationship, Cassius. Domino has revealed that theYou star has done a great job with filling this parenting role.
“He’s a really good stepdad,” Domino told Us Weekly of Penn in 2019. “He doesn’t have to be ‘dad’ so he can have more fun with him. It’s really nice. The stepparent thing is definitely uncharted territory for me ’cause I didn’t grow up with one, but … he takes care of him really well.”
10.Gisele Bündchen
Gisele and her husband, Tom Brady, share one child, Jack, from his previous relationship with Bridget Moynahan. The couple additionally has two children together, Benjamin and Vivian. The supermodel told People in 2018 that being a stepparent to Jack resulted in her “want[ing] to start a family” with Tom, and specifically desiring "Jack to have a brother or sister close in age."
“[Jack] opened my heart in ways I didn’t even know my heart could expand,” Gisele said. “I fell in love with him.”
11.Matt Damon
Matt is a stepfather to Alexia, his wife Luciana Barroso's daughter from her previous marriage. They share Alexia in addition to the three kids they have together, Isabella, Gia, and Stella. Alexia's biological father, Arby, spoke to Star in 2014 about what a beneficial presence Matt has been in his daughter's life.
“I couldn’t possibly have asked for a better stepfather for my daughter than Matt,” Arby said. “He treats Alexia like she is his own flesh and blood. Matt has been an absolute blessing for my daughter.”
“Matt, Luciana, and I all have a wonderful relationship ... Matt is a fantastic stepfather, and Luciana is a terrific mom," he added.
Matt also has Alexia's name, along with his three other kids' names, tattooed on his arm.
12.Ashton Kutcher
When Ashton began dating and eventually married Demi Moore, he became a stepfather to Rumer, Tallulah, and Scout, Demi's children from her previous marriage to Bruce Willis. Though he and Demi separated in 2011, Ashton has explained that his love for his stepdaughters is ongoing.
"I was helping raise teenage girls through their adolescence. I love them," Ashton said on Marc Maron's WTF podcast in 2020, per the Daily Mail. "I'm never going to stop loving them and respecting them and honoring them and rooting for them to be successful in whatever they are pursuing."
13.Cardi B
Cardi has two children, Kulture and Wave, with her husband, Offset. The Migos rapper also has three kids, Kalea, Kody, and Jordan, from his past relationships. Offset praised Cardi's devotion to being a stepmom and treating her stepchildren like her own in a 2022 Essence interview.
“It’s a blessing to be able to have [the kids] altogether, and to have a wife who’s open and treats them as if they’re her kids,” Offset said of their family unit. “It could be an issue, but I don’t have to go through that, and that’s beautiful.”
14.Blake Shelton
Kingston, Zuma, and Apollo are Gwen Stefani's three children from her previous marriage to Gavin Rossdale. In 2021, the same year he and Gwen tied the knot, Blake opened up to People about being a stepdad to the three boys.
"I have a stepfather in my life who's one of my heroes. I love my stepfather and I look up to him and he's like a father to me, so I have a good inspiration in my life for how to do this and the kind of stepdad I want to be," Blake said. "And I take it very serious."
"But I also have a blast with it, I'm not gonna lie," he added. "I don't take it so serious that I'm not enjoying this time because I really am, especially now that we're five years into this thing ... I can't imagine my life without these kids now."
15.Kurt Russell
Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn have been in a relationship for nearly 40 years. They have one son together, Wyatt Russell, and share three additional adult children, Oliver Hudson, Kate Hudson, and Boston Russell, from their previous relationships. In a 2021Today interview, Kate opened up about the positive upbringing she had with Goldie and Kurt while addressing not having a relationship with her biological dad, actor and musician Bill Hudson, during her childhood.
"I have a great family," Kate said. "I have a beautiful mother. I have a stepfather who stepped in and played a huge, huge part in sharing what it is to have a dependable father figure in our life. But it doesn't take away from the fact that we didn't know our dad."
16.LeAnn Rimes
Through her marriage to Eddie Cibrian, LeAnn shares two children, Jake and Mason, from his previous marriage to Brandi Glanville. The singer-songwriter revealed what the journey of watching her stepchildren grow up has been like in 2017. She called it both a "really rewarding" experience that at times has "pushed [her] buttons."
"They were two and six when I was first around them, and now they are 10 and 13. To be around them, and to watch them have a childhood, it's been amazing to see," LeAnn told Refinery29. "When I was first around the kids, I didn't know what was expected of me. Little things that were so childlike about them that I didn't have about me. It's been a really big learning experience for me. It's pushed my buttons, which has always made me look and see where I need more healing on myself. It's been really rewarding to see them grow up and know that I have a part in that. That responsibility, to help raise kids, it's something that hits you really hard. It was something I was up for the challenge of. They bring so much joy to my life, and it's a new experience every day."
17.Tina Knowles-Lawson
Aside from her two biological daughters with ex-husband Matthew Knowles, Beyoncé and Solange, Tina has an adult stepchild, Bianca, through her husband, actor Richard Lawson. When Bianca, who is known for her roles in shows like Pretty Little Liars and Queen Sugar, appeared on The Real in 2017, Tina took to social media to celebrate her stepdaughter.
"My beautiful bonus daughter on "The Real" today ! She is killing it on Queen Sugar," Tina wrote via Instagram.
In 2021, she additionally posted a video of Bianca posing during a photoshoot, writing, "Beautiful Bianca @biancajasminelawson strolling on a Sunday afternoon."
18.Antonio Banderas
Antonio was married to his ex-wife, Melanie Griffith, for nearly two decades before their separation took place in 2014. They had one child together, Stella, and shared two children, Alexander and Dakota, from Melanie's past marriages.
When Dakota presented Antonio with a Hollywood Actor Award in 2019, she talked on stage about her stepfather's enduring love for her and her family members, per E! News.
"He loved my mother, and my siblings and I so big, and so fiercely and so loud, that it would change all of our lives together," Dakota said.
During a 2020 interview with E! News, Antonio said that Dakota "was, and she is and she will be very important to [him]."
