Some men are made for fatherhood, and you can definitely count Alec Baldwin among them. But after he welcomed baby No. 8 in September 2022, many are now questioning what appears to be a “trend” among rich, famous and powerful men expanding the already large broods of children they have – and why.
Alec is a true Hollywood icon. Having started in the 1980s, he’s since appeared in the theater and in numerous movies and TV shows. Baldwin’s first marriage was to movie star bombshell Kim Basinger.
The couple met while playing lovers in the film “The Marrying Man” back in 1990 and went on to marry in 1993. A few years later, they welcomed their daughter Ireland Baldwin. Alec and Basinger separated in 2000, and their divorce was finalized two years later. Today, Ireland is 27 years old and making a name for herself in Hollywood as a model and actress. She has also begun to DJ.
In 2011, Alec began dating the woman he is currently married to – Hilaria Baldwin, a former Manhattan yoga instructor. The couple moved to Greenwich Village in New York in August 2011 and became engaged the following year. They tied the knot in June 2012 and have since welcomed seven children together.
Their seven kids are Carmen, 10, Rafael, 8, Leonardo, 7, Romeo, 5, Eduardo, 3, Lucia, 2, and Ilaria, 1. According to Us Weekly, the children “love having so many siblings to play with.”
However, not everyone has been as thrilled as Alec and his wife about the huge brood. Many critics of the couple took to social media to express their opinions on the famous pair’s choice to have so many children. Read on to find out what they’ve said.
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Alec Baldwin (2020), (Rich Polk/Getty Images via Getty Images)
Alec, 65, and his 39-year-old wife encountered several hardships along the way to their seventh child together. In November 2019, Hilaria revealed she had suffered a miscarriage four months into her pregnancy, making it her second miscarriage that year.
Alec and his wife announced the birth of their fifth child together in September 2020. “We had a baby last night,” Hilaria wrote in an Instagram post. The couple welcomed their sixth just five months later via surrogacy.
Alec became one of several men in the spotlight over the number of children he has fathered. The others include billionaire Elon Musk, who has 10 children, and rapper/actor Nick Cannon, who has 12.
In December 2022., Cannon welcomed his twelfth child with model Alyssa Scott. With the new bundle of joy, Cannon has had 12 children with five women, including songstress Mariah Carey. When Cannon was asked if he was done having children after the arrival of baby No. 12, he said:
“God decides when we’re done (laughs) but I believe I definitely got my hands full. And I’m so focused. I’m locked in. But when I’m 85, you never know. I might.”
Meanwhile, in November 2021, SpaceX and Tesla founder Musk had twins with a top executive at Neuralink, taking his count of children to 10. His other nine children were with his ex-wife and former partner, the singer Grimes.
With the growing cost of having children and raising them until they are 18, many have cast aspersions on the real reason these men have so many kids. Is it a way for them to flaunt their wealth? Amplify their legacy? According to Alec, it’s none of the above.
Hilaria Baldwin, Alec Baldwin (2019), (Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images viaGetty Images)
In an attempt to shut naysayers down, Alec posted a video of two of his infant children with their mom to Instagram on July 19, 2022, with the caption: “People comment about how many children we have and ask why. This is why. The thing in this life that matters most to me are these people.”
Fans backed the actor, with one commenting: “Family is everything and it’s no one’s business how many children you have or why.”
“I think it’s wonderful, all the love is clear to see in your family. Let people talk its all jealousy. You and Hilaria are great parents, life’s for living,” another wrote.
Alec’s Instagram is filled with pictures of his children and wife, many captioned with loving words expressing how grateful he is for his family. He also reposted a video his wife had shared when announcing the arrival of their seventh child together back in March 2022, captioned:
“We were pretty sure our family was complete, and we’re beyond happy with this surprise. I’m sharing with you the moment we told the kids – as you can see, they are super excited! Our new baby is a very bright spot in our lives. A blessing and a gift during such uncertain times. I’ve missed you during my break from social media. … I’m back and looking forward to continuing with you this wild journey that we call ‘life.’”
Despite what some may think of his choices, it appears he is happy with them, which may be all that matters at the end of the day. However, that hasn’t stopped the public from voicing their opinions over Alec’s huge brood.
Alec Baldwin, Hilaria Baldwin, (L-R) Rafael Baldwin, Eduardo Baldwin, Leonardo Baldwin, Romeo Baldwin, Lucia Baldwin, Carmen Baldwin (2021), (Jason Mendez/WireImage via Getty Images)
In August 2022, Hilaria took to Instagram to address the public’s criticism concerning her growing number of children and wrote:
“7th baby: when people ask or comment, we often go to silly and very self-deprecating jokes on my part. I love to laugh at myself—so it’s all good…keeps me sane. All jokes aside, however, I am grateful for this experience. I know too well the joys and the losses, the beauty and the heartache, that motherhood brings.”
She added she felt “so blessed to experience again and again” the miracle of birth.
However, the criticism was not only reserved for the number of children they have but the choice of names for their kids. Some noticed that the Baldwin kids all had Spanish-sounding names, despite the fact that neither Alec nor Hilaria were themselves Spanish.
“Alec and Hilaria Baldwin have named their seventh child Ilaria. Which is kind of ilarious,” one user remarked, while another said, “Hilaria & Alec Baldwin had their 7th child. Not one American name, not even a middle name. 🥴”
Another social media user took their criticism of Hilaria a step further, noting that “alec baldwin’s wife faking being spanish is so crazy.”
“Changing her name from hillary to hilaria, naming all 7 of their kids with those roots, pretending to forget the english word for ‘cucumber’, faking an accent. she should’ve changed her name to hilarious instead,” the user added.
Hilaria’s background first came into the spotlight in December 2020 with a social media post. “You have to admire Hilaria Baldwin’s commitment to her decade long grift where she impersonates a Spanish person,” the post read. In the ensuing replies, users left supposed evidence that Hilaria put on a Spanish accent when speaking in English, even though she grew up in the United States from birth.
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What do you think of Alec Baldwin’s large family? Do you come from a large family yourself? Let us know and pass this on to all your friends and family.
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