When you picture your perfect partner, you probably think of someone who is your age or at least in the same generation as you. But love doesn’t always work that way, and some couples make it work despite a huge age gap.
These May-December romances, as they’re called, have faced their share of criticism, but they’re still going strong.
Alec and Hilaria Baldwin
Age gap: 26 Years
Alec Baldwin, 60, and Hilaria Baldwin, 34, may have gotten some side-eye when they started dating in 2011, but they’ve made it work despite their age gap. The couple got married just a year later in 2012, reports Us Weekly. And they just welcomed their fourth child together, Romeo, reports People.
Solange Knowles and Alan Ferguson
Age gap: 23 years
Solange, 31, and her video director husband, 54, seem madly in love. “To the love of my life, Solange Knowles, [you’re] my inspiration,” Alan said during the 2012 BET Awards. He also described his wife as “a woman who will hold you down.”
David Foster and Katharine McPhee
Age gap: 34 years
At 34, Katharine is literally half her boyfriend’s age. The two played coy for a while, but Katharine admitted to ET in early May that they’re a couple.
Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart
Age gap: 22 years
Harrison and Calista, who have been married since 2010, don’t seem to notice their age gap. “It doesn’t faze me. Sometimes I even say, ‘Wow, I keep forgetting that he’s 22 years older than me,’” Calista told Hello! Magazine. “It doesn’t factor into our relationship at all. I like the way he looks first thing in the morning. It’s not handsome, it’s more cute. He looks like a little boy.”
Sarah Paulson and Holland Taylor
Age gap: 32 years
Sarah, 41, and Holland, 73, started dating in 2015 and went public the next year. “What I can say absolutely is that I am in love, and that person happens to be Holland Taylor,” Sarah told ET in 2016.
Bruce Willis and Emma Heming
Age gap: 23 years
Emma says on her website that she first met Bruce at their trainer’s gym in 2007, and the couple got married two years later despite their 23-year age gap. They have two daughters together.
George Clooney and Amal Clooney
Age gap: 17 years
Beloved couple George and Amal Clooney have a pretty significant age gap between them. When the two met in 2013, “I thought she was beautiful, and I thought she was funny and obviously smart,” George told the Hollywood Reporter in an interview, and then joked that Amal “probably thought I was old.”
The two were married in 2014, and welcomed twins Alexander and Ella later that year.
David Cross and Amber Tamblyn
Age gap: 19 years
David and Amber got married in 2012 when he was 48 and she was 29. The couple had a daughter in 2017. Amber told the New York Post that their first date involved biking over the Brooklyn Bridge, followed by wine and cheese while watching the sunset. “There’s nothing more romantic in the entire city than that. That’s how he got me!” she said.
Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones
Age gap: 25 years
People were shocked when Catherine and Michael first started dating, mostly due to the fact that he’s 25 years older than her. But the couple has been married for 18 years. “I think understanding, listening, being friends, all helps,” Catherine told ET of their successful marriage.
Sylvester Stallone and Jennifer Flavin
Age gap: 23 years
Jennifer was just 19 when she started dating Sylvester, then 42. The couple split for a while after six years of dating, but eventually got married in 1997. “I’ve never had more fun. I learnt that from my wife…It took me 19 years to realize she’s always right,” Sylvester told The Telegraph. “I realized that women have a knack, at least Jennifer, for making incredibly erudite, wise, smart decisions. I always leap without looking. She always looks and never leaps. She’s incredibly safe. So now finally, I say: ‘Honey, you make all the decisions. Done, done, done. I trust you.’ I never had that before. Ever.”
Eddie Murphy and Paige Butcher
Age gap: 19 years
Eddie, 57, and Paige, 38, have been a couple since 2012, reports E! News. The couple has kept a pretty low-profile, but in 2013, Paige opened up to Vanity Fair about why she has steered clear of social media: “I’m in a relationship with a celebrity, so I felt like there’s already enough of me out there,” the Australian star said. “I felt like I was giving out too much information. I was giving people too much access. I like to keep as much private as possible now.”
They have one daughter together—Izzy Oona.
Dane Cook and Kelsi Taylor
Age gap: 26 years
Dane, 45, and Kelsi, 19, have been together for a year. “My girl @itskelsitaylor is one of my favorite people on the planet. She’s a talented singer but more importantly, she’s a genuine person. Check out her music and get to know her. She’s gonna go far!” Dane captioned a photo of Kelsi on Instagram in April.
Elon Musk and Grimes
Age gap: 16 years
Elon, 46, and Grimes, 30, went public at the 2018 Met Gala. According to The Cut, they first connected after Elon realized Grimes had already made a joke about artificial intelligence that he planned to tweet.
Ronnie Wood and Sally Humphreys
Age gap: 31 years
The Rolling Stones guitarist married Sally, who is 31 years younger than him, in 2012, according to E News. The couple welcomed twin daughters just before Ronnie’s 69th birthday.
Steve Martin and Anne Stringfield
Age gap: 22 years
Steve, 72, and Anne, 50, got married in 2007 and had a baby girl together in 2012. “Oh, it’s fantastic,” Steve told the Daily Telegraph, per Vanity Fair, of becoming a first-time dad at 67. “You have all the time in the world. You’re all set and secure in life, and you’re not building your career, so you have a lot of time.”
Kelsey Grammer and Kayte Walsh
Age gap: 25 years
Kelsey, 63, ended his marriage to Real Housewives star Camille Grammer after having an affair with Kayte, who is 25 years younger than him, reports Daily Mail. He later married her, and they have two kids together.
Warren Beatty and Annette Bening
Age gap: 21 years
Warren was a known womanizer when he first started dating Annette, but he told People he was smitten with her immediately. The couple, who are 21 years apart in age, married in 1992. They have four kids together.
Larry King and Shawn Southwick
Age gap: 26 years
Larry, 84, and Shawn, 58, got married in 1997—his eighth marriage. The couple split in 2010 after Shawn allegedly had an affair, per People, but later reconciled.
Rod Stewart and Penny Lancaster
Age gap: 26 years
Rod, 73, and Penny, 47, married in 2007, and renewed their vows in 2017. “She is my whole world. What a girl,” Rod said at the time, per the Daily Mail.
Jeff Goldblum and Emilie Livingston
Age gap: 30 years
Jeff, 64, is 30 years older than his wife Emilie, and the couple have two kids together. “Jeff Goldblum is our rock and continues to be an exceptionally loving and passionate father,” Emilie wrote on Instagram in 2017.
Donald and Melania Trump
Age gap: 24 years
Donald, 71, and Melania, 48, got married in 2005 in Palm Beach, reports Business Insider. They share one son, Barron, together.
Marc Anthony and Mariana Downing
Age gap: 27 years
Marc, 49, and Mariana, 22, have been dating for a year, according to ET. But this isn’t his only experience dating a younger woman: He previously dated Shannon De Lima, 30, reports People.
Patrick Stewart and Sunny Ozell
Age gap: 39 years
Patrick is 39 years older than his wife, and he admits it can be weird at times. “My father-in-law is five years younger than me but he calls me son,” he told the Daily Mail.
Mel Gibson and Rosalind Ross
Age gap: 35 years
Mel, 62, and Rosalind, 27, have been together since 2015, and they have one child together. Due to their immense age gap, the couple has faced some scrutiny over the years, reports Daily Mail. But in an interview with The Mirror Mel said: “Regarding age and relationships, it’s just a number. She is an adult and we dig each other. It might cause a problem and one has a trepidation about these things, but it’s working out great. She is a really special person.”
Dennis Quaid and Santa Auzina
Age gap: 32 years
Santa is 32 years younger than Dennis, but the couple doesn’t seem to mind. They’ve been together since 2016, reports People, and aren’t shy about posting adorable Instas from their vacations together.
Richard Gere and Alejandra Silva
Age gap: 33 years
Despite the three-decade gap between these two, they’re “extraordinarily happy” together, a source tells People. The couple got married in April.
Josh and Kathryn Brolin
Age gap: 20 years
Josh, 50, and his model-wife love gushing about each other on social media. “Good morning, my love. You make it all good,” he captioned a shot of Kathryn on Instagram in 2018. “Back home with my love. Dogtown coffee, PCH drive, oasis sleep. Not even 24 hours back and already had 10000 smiles,” Kathryn captioned an Instagram shot of herself and Josh in April.
Sam and Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Age gap: 19 years
In 2009, Aaron Taylor-Johnson first met his now-wife (who’s 19 years his senior), Sam Taylor-Johnson, on the set of Nowhere Boy, where she was his director. The two announced their engagement that same year, reports Daily Mail.
Regarding the age gap, in 2014, Aaron told Men’s Health: “She’s such a young, beautiful soul that you wouldn’t even know.”
Alexis Roderick and Billy Joel
Age gap: 33 years
The iconic singer married his fourth wife, Alexis Roderick, in 2015, reported People. At the time, Billy was 66 and Alexis was 33. The couple now has two daughters: Della Rose and Remy Anne.
Mary-Kate Olsen and Olivier Sarkozy
Age gap: 17 years
Mary-Kate Olsen, 30, married French baker Olivier Sarkozy, 47, in Manhattan after three years of dating, reports Us Weekly. The two now live in a Manhattan town house together, and Mary-Kate is a stepmom to Olivier’s two children, Julien and Margo.
Culled from Women’s Health Mag.
