Decisions become heavier when you are a parent. Now you have to take your children into consideration with every choice you make, and it can be exhausting. In honor of her own mental health, Anne Hathaway opened up about one “essential” decision she made for her sons Jonathan, 7, and Jack, 3, who she shares with husband Adam Shulman.
In a cover interview with Porter, the Devil Wears Prada star shared that she wants to protect her family life from the spotlight. “It’s something I feel is not just essential for my health – I’m on a team, it’s my family, and it’s not just about me,” Hathaway told the outlet.
Adam Shulman and Anne Hathaway at Clooney Foundation For Justice’s “The Albies” at the New York Public Library on September 28, 2023 in New York, New York. (Photo by Lexie Moreland/WWD via Getty Images)
She added, “My family has needs, and one of the needs of children is that they need to be able to define their own lives. It doesn’t even occur to me to link the two up, except through gratitude that they serve each other so beautifully. But they serve each other through me, and not through a space that’s outside of myself.”
While of course we would love to see photos of her two sons or hear tidbits about their lives, we completely understand and respect Hathaway’s decision to keep their lives private. After all, they didn’t choose to be born to an A-list actress — and they have just as much a right to a normal childhood as anyone.
This isn’t the first time Hathaway’s opened up about making decisions for the best interest of her family. In an Oct. 2022 interview on The Jess Cagle Show, she said that kids have caused “the biggest shift” in her career.
“That’s kind of prioritized everything, so it’s actually made me a bit choosier, because something really has to be so excellent to spend time away from them because they’re so precious to me; they’re the most scared part of my life by a longshot,” she said. “And then when I do accept something, it puts greater pressure on me to make it worth the time that I’ve spent away from them.”
Anne Hathaway at the 2023 CFDA Fashion Awards held at the American Museum of Natural History on November 6, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/WWD via Getty Images)
In her interview with Porter, the Les Misérables star also shared that she’s learned not to be her harshest critic anymore, telling the outlet, “I go easy on myself” and offering some advice: “Be the best friend you ever had.” I think this is something all moms should hear, famous or not. There is no such thing as perfection, and we all deserve to show ourselves a little more (or a lot more) grace. That’s just one more thing that will definitely benefit our kids, too!
