Annette Bening "Always" Knew She Wanted To Be A Mom & Went On To Have 4 Kids

Many years before Annette Bening was nominated for an Oscar for her powerhouse performance as legendary swimmer Diana Nyad in Netflix’s Nyad, she was almost as well known for her personal life as she was for her immense talent (let’s never forget she has been nominated for five Oscars and has outrageously never won.) Bening is a mother of four as well as being an incredible actress, and has long made it clear that her family is her number one priority. Here’s what else you need to know.

She always wanted to be a mom.

Bening told People in 2022 that motherhood “was something I always wanted to do, ever since I was a little kid, the minute I could start babysitting, like 12 or 13, I was the neighborhood babysitter. It just always felt natural to me. Nothing comes close.” So it is perhaps not surprising that she became a mom of four.

She married famed bachelor Warren Beatty in 1992.

Actor and director Warren Beatty met Annette Bening when he chose to cast her in his biopic Bugsy, where he played gangster Bugsy Malone and she played his love interest Virginia Hill. After having lunch with Bening, Beatty later recalled to The New York Post in 2014, “It took about 10 minutes [to fall in love with her]. Maybe five. I was so elated to meet her, and yet at the same time, I began to mourn the passing of a way of life.” The pair were married in March 1992 in a private ceremony, two months after becoming first-time parents.

Son Stephen Beatty is 32 years old.

Bening and Beatty welcomed their oldest child, son Stephen Ira Beatty, in January 1992. At the time, Beatty was trying to protect his family’s privacy and faxed a statement to People that read, “As you might have guessed, I’m still avoiding talking to the press about personal things, but I can tell you I couldn't be happier about having a baby with Annette.”

Annette Bening is “very protective” of Stephen as a transgender man.

When Bening’s oldest son Stephen shared that he had transitioned in a video for We Happy Trans in 2014, his parents were very supportive. “He;s managed something that’s very challenging with great style and great intelligence,” Bening told AARP at the time. “He’s an articulate, thoughtful person.” The actress was also very protective of her son’s privacy. “At the beginning, I felt very protective of his privacy, because he’s the son of these two famous people,” the Nyad actress told The View. “So I felt very protective, and I felt it was his right to say what he wanted to say publicly, or not.” She has since gone on to become an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ+ rights.

Son Benjamin Beatty is 29 years old.

The couple welcomed their second son Benjamin in August 1994. Benjamin has followed in his parents’ acting footsteps, starring in Hail, Caeser! in 2016 and UFO in 2018.

Daughter Isabel Beatty is 27 years old.

Bening and Beatty welcomed daughter Isabel in January 1997. Isabel works as an actress and writer on several TV shows, and frequently shares photos of her family life on Instagram.

Daughter Ella Beatty is 23 years old.

The couple’s youngest daughter Ella Beatty was born in April 2000, and much like her siblings, she has followed in her parents’ footsteps in the entertainment industry. Ella attended Julliard, and Bening opened up to People about her reaction to becoming an empty nester when Ella went off to school. “Sometimes it's hard for me to let go and just remember, 'Oh, that's not my job anymore.' I'm so proud of these adult children, who aren't children, but they're my kids,” she said. “They're all so different and they're all out there discovering themselves and their voices. We think we're there to teach them, and, of course, what we realize is that that they teach us everything.”