A number of celebrities have managed to keep news that they're expecting a child under the radar during pandemic until they drop the surprise baby news.
- Oct 4, 2020
AceShowbiz - Quarantine baby seems to be one of the blessings in disguise amid this ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. While many parents-to-be can't hide their excitement and can't wait to share the news with everyone, it's not always the case with some some celebrities who choose to keep their personal lives private. Fed up with being hounded by paparazzi, they understandably want to keep this special moment to themselves without much public scrutiny.
In normal time, it may not be easy for public figures to hide a bump and cover a track to a doctor's appointment under the prying eyes of the media, but this is all made possible these days due to the coronavirus pandemic. As many people are in lockdown or self-quarantine, these expecting celebrities don't get exposed as much as they used to be.
In the wake of growing number of stars dropping surprise baby news lately, let's take a look at those who managed to keep news that they're expecting a child under the radar during the pandemic.
1. Billie Lourd & Austen Rydell
While Billie Lourd is widely known as an actress who follows the footsteps of her mother, the late Carrie Fisher, her love life doesn't get as much as exposure as her relationship with her mother's. But the "Scream Queens" alum didn't try to hide the fact that she's now a mother. On September 24, she introduced her son, Kingston Fisher Lourd Rydell, whose name seems to be a tribute to her late mother.
The news came as a surprise since the 28-year-old had never announced that she's expecting a child with her fiance, actor Austen Rydell. Nevertheless, the news was welcomed with delight by her friends and fans, including "Star Wars" actor Mark Hamill, who wrote on Twitter, "Congratulations to #BillieLourd & #AustenRydell on the arrival of their firstborn child: Kingston Fisher Lord Rydell!!! I can't think of another baby with both 'KING' AND 'LORD' in their name. Nice."
2. Kristen Wiig & Avi Rothman
Kristen Wiig is also a first-time mom. The "Bridesmaids" star and her fiance Avi Rothman welcomed not just, but two babies at once, via a surrogate earlier this year in January, but the news was only revealed in June. While the comedian never shared her attempt at having a child, she hinted at becoming a mom when hosting "Saturday Night Live" during the show's Mother's Day "At Home" episode in May.
She later opened up about her new life as a mom while in quarantine in an interview with InStyle. "Having two 9-month-olds is a lot! But they're growing, and I can't wait to see them every morning," she said, before adding, "It's not all just lying around and smiling at babies, though. It's overwhelming to think about everyone else who's struggling, and it's hard to be good knowing that."
3. Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater
Another star who has been keeping everything low key, Lily Rabe made use of the lockdown to keep her pregnancy under the radar. In August, a representative for the "American Horror Story" actress confirmed that she and her longtime boyfriend Hamish Linklater welcomed their second child together in June. The baby news came only one week after she teased it with a throwback picture from her pregnancy. "Looking back at a day in May. #wearamask #wearadamnmask #tbt," she wrote along with a photo of her sporting a baby bump.
Lily has not shared any details regarding her newborn baby, including the name and gender. She and Hamish welcomed their first child, a daughter, in March 2017. "The Crazy Ones" alum has another child, also a daughter, from his previous relationship with playwright Jessica Goldberg whom he married in 2002 until their divorce in 2012.
4. Iggy Azalea & Playboi Carti
News about Iggy Azalea expecting her first child with Playboi Carti had been swirling since late last year, but neither the Australian femcee nor her rapper beau ever confirmed the rumors. The speculation never died down, even after the "Black Widow" hitmaker posted numerous pictures on Instagram showing her with her flat tummies, as if trying to convince everyone that she wasn't eating for two. Yet, not even once she was spotted with a baby bump while the couple was reportedly holed up in Atlanta.
In June, Iggy eventually admitted to being a mom to a baby boy, more than a month after news emerged that she had given birth in late April. In her Instagram Story post, the 30-year-old explained, "I want to keep his life private but wanted to make it clear he is not a secret." Not immediately sharing details of her son, she later revealed in July that the baby boy is called Onyx.
5. Anderson Cooper
Congratulations were in order for Anderson Cooper after he surprised everyone with news that he has become a father on April 30. The 52-year-old journalist welcomed his first child, a baby boy named Wyatt Morgan Cooper, on April 26 through a surrogate. Along with pics of him holding his bundle of joy, the silver fox shared a touching post in which he expressed how he wanted to share this moment with his loved ones who already passed away.
"I do wish my mom and dad and my brother, Carter, were alive to meet Wyatt, but I like to believe they can see him," Anderson wrote in the lengthy caption. "I imagine them all together, arms around each other, smiling and laughing, happy to know that their love is alive in me and in Wyatt, and that our family continues."
6. Amanda Seyfried & Thomas Sadoski
Similar to Lily Rabe, Amanda Seyfried gave an insight into her secret pregnancy only after she gave birth to her second child. On September 28, the actress, who is married to fellow actor Thomas Sadoski, shared the first picture of her newborn baby boy which also served as the birth announcement. The baby's name has not been revealed.
Making use of the moment to highlight charities INARA and War Child USA, she and her husband wrote in an Instagram post, "Since the birth of our daughter 3 years ago our commitment to the innocent children that are so brutally (affected) by conflict and war has been a driving force in our lives. With the birth of our son the work of INARA and War Child has become our North Star."
7. Donald Glover & Michelle White
Donald Glover is also back on diaper duty during the coronavirus pandemic. The "Solo: A Star Wars Story" actor opened up about his new chapter as a father during a GQ discussion published in late September, saying, "You know, I had [a kid] during the coronavirus." He added that his new bundle of joy was born amid the protests over George Floyd's death.
"Yeah, it was nuts. I was in the hospital bed. My son had just been born, like, an hour before and I was watching the George Floyd video. It was such a weird moment," so he recalled. The newborn baby boy, who is also named Donald to honor his late father Donald Glover Sr., joins his elder sister Legend, who was born in 2016, and his elder brother, born in 2017, whom the actor also shares with his longtime partner Michelle White.
8. Rooney Mara & Joaquin Phoenix
Rooney Mara and Joaquin Phoenix are notoriously very private about their love lives, so it's no surprise that they wanted to keep her pregnancy a secret. Though reports emerged in May that she had been expecting her first child together with her fiance, the couple never confirmed nor denied it and there's not a single evidence backing the speculation either.
But the cat's out of the bag when Russian filmmaker Victor Kossakovsky revealed in September 27 that the engaged couple is now parents to "a beautiful son" named River after his late brother River Phoenix. Victor shared the happy news to explain the "Joker" star's absence from the screening of new film "Gunda", for which he served as the executive producer, at the 2020 Zurich Film Festival.
9. Ed Sheeran & Cherry Seaborn
Ed Sheeran confirmed he's now officially a father just weeks after reports emerged that his wife Cherry Seasborn was pregnant with their first child together who was due anytime soon. "Ed and Cherry are over the moon. They're very excited, but have kept things very low key. Lockdown was a perfect excuse not to be seen out and about too much," a source told The Sun about the pregnancy in August, adding that the couple only shared the news to friends and family.
True to the reports, the "Thinking Out Loud" singer announced on September 1 that he and his wife had welcomed a daughter named Lyra Antarctica Seaborn Sheeran. Alongside a snap of the baby's socks and a colorful blanket, the new father wrote, "a quick message" to his fans on Instagram, "Last week, with the help of an amazing delivery team, Cherry gave birth to our beautiful and healthy daughter - Lyra Antarctica Seaborn Sheeran."
10. Jessica Biel & Justin Timberlake
Jessica Biel and Justin Timberlake have been trying to shield their family from the prying eyes of the media even before the COVID-19 outbreak, and it's only made easier when they were holed up in Montana amid the pandemic. While there was no single report about the "Total Recall" actress expecting another child with the singer, Daily Mail broke the news in July that she had given birth to their second son.
Jessica and Justin remain mum on the news, but the former NSYNC member's friend Brian McKnight confirmed it when discussing the "Cry Me a River" crooner's music career. "He just had a new baby. I think that's going to be really inspiring for him and he'll have some new music based on that, I'm sure," said the R&B legend. Justin's former bandmate Lance Bass shared more details of the new addition to the Timberlake family as he gushed in September, "The baby is cute of course, it's Justin and Jessica!"
