Navigating life as a blended family is tough. There can be residual hurt feelings, unfortunate but unavoidable awkwardness, and just a general weirdness that comes with bringing a divorced couple and their new families together.
But if you’re looking for some prime examples of blended families being done right, look no further than these celebrities. The former couples below have found a way to exist amicably in each other’s lives and develop bonds — both with their ex and their ex’s new family. There are so many sweet examples, from Jennifer Garner, who has bonded with Jennifer Lopez’s daughter over a shared hobby, to Demi Moore and Bruce Willis, who show an incredible, touching support for one another, to Drew Barrymore, who calls her kids’ stepmother her “favorite person” and says she loves when they all hang out.
While it’s likely never easy and must take a lot of work to get there, we’re so impressed with how diligently these former couples have worked to keep life peaceful, fun, and loving for the whole family.
Gisele Bündchen, Tom Brady, & Bridget Moynahan
Soon after Gisele Bündchen and Tom Brady began dating, the former NFL quarterback found out his ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan was pregnant.
Bündchen stayed by her now-ex husband’s sid and helped raise his first son, Jack, 15. Bündchen admitted to Vanity Fair that she and Moynahan didn’t always get along. In fact, they didn’t meet until more than a year after Jack was born. With time, and as they continued to co-parent, they built a relationship that Bündchen now describes as “great.”
“My goal was always, how can I be the most helpful? How can I make it the easiest I possibly can?” the Brazilian model said. “I put myself in her shoes and I was like, ‘How can I support her?’ Because at the end of the day, we are team players in ‘How are we going to do this so [Jack] can have the best life?’ ”
Drew Barrymore, Will Kopelman, & Allie Michler
Drew Barrymore and Will Kopelman may have divorced in 2016, but they have remained committed co-parents to their kids, Olive (10) and Frankie (8). The bond grew even stronger with the introduction of Kopelman’s wife Alexandra “Allie” Michler, who Barrymore calls “my favorite person” — they even celebrate Mother’s Day together. In a Dec. 2022 interview with People, Barrymore said, “Will has his side of the street so beautifully buttoned up with our gorgeous stepmother. We’ve got an awesome family dynamic that proves that life goes on. Allie is my favorite person. I love her. I love us all being together.”
Demi Moore, Bruce Willis, & Emma Heming Willis
Demi Moore and Bruce Willis are still happily a part of each other’s lives, even though they divorced in 2000. The Die Hard star and Ghost star share three daughters: Rumer, 34, Scout, 31, and Tallulah, 28. Willis is also dad to Mabel Ray, 10, and Evelyn Penn, 8, with wife Emma Heming Willis. The whole family seems to remain close, offering sharing supportive moments with each other. They even celebrated Christmas together this year!
In a heartwarming family photo of Willis, Heming Willis, Moore, their five daughters, and Tallulah’s dog Pilaf, everyone is smiling and hugging in front of the Christmas tree. “We are FAMILY!! Getting into the holiday spirit!” Moore captioned the photo. Moore has her arms wrapped around Willis, as Heming Willis and Moore touch heads in a sweet embrace. Heming Willis commented on Moore’s post, writing, “What a fun evening 😍❤️.” They genuinely seem to enjoy each other’s company!
There are many other examples of this family supporting each other. In March 2022, Moore celebrated Willis’s birthday by sharing a photo of the two of them posing in the kitchen together. “Happy birthday, Bruce! Thankful for our blended family 🤍,” she wrote.
And when Willis was diagnosed with aphasia, which impacts cognitive ability, Moore showed love to him in a sweet joint statement from the whole family. It read: “This is a really challenging time for our family and we are so appreciative of your continued love, compassion and support. We are moving through this as a strong family unit, and wanted to bring his fans in because we know how much he means to you, as you do to him. As Bruce always says, ‘Live it up’ and together we plan to do just that.”
Kate Hudson and Danny Fujikawa
Kate Hudson has been engaged to Danny Fujikawa since Sept. 2021. But before they get married, they’ve been navigating their blended family! The Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery star and her fiancé share daughter Rani Rose, 4. But Hudson is also mom to Bingham, 11, with ex Matt Bellamy, and Ryder Robinson, 18, with ex-husband Chris Robinson, who she divorced in 2007.
In a Nov. 2022 interview with The Sunday Times, Hudson talked about her unique family life. “It might not look traditional from the outside, but on the inside, I feel like we’re killing it,” she said. “The unit that I’ve created with three children with three different fathers is a seriously strong unit, and it’s ours. I’m not interested in forcing some conventional idea of love or marriage. I’d like to be able to grow intimately with my partner for a long time, but I also don’t have rose-colored glasses on. My goal in life is that I want to feel love and I want to give love, but I’m also practical, so, one day at a time. I work really hard at relationships because I like them. My parents have done an amazing job of continuing that dance.”
She said that she only has to check in with Robinson “once in a while” now that Ryder is an adult, and she often talks with Bellamy about their 11-year-old son. “Matt is so wonderful — I couldn’t have asked for a better co-parent.”
“For me it’s like, you loved this person. That doesn’t just go away, but you can re-establish a different kind of love,” she continued. “You can have an amazing time with an ex-partner because you’re really only focused on the love of your child.”
Megan Fox, Machine Gun Kelly and Brian Austin Green
After nearly 10 years of marriage, Brian Austin Green and Megan Fox announced that they were going their separate ways. The two established from the outset that they would maintain a strong family unit. “Let’s make sure that we’re always friends with each other and we’re a united front with the kids,” Green said during an episode of his podcast …With Brian Austin Green. “We’ll do family vacations and holidays with the family and really make that a focus with the kids.”
Since splitting, Fox has gotten engaged to Machine Gun Kelly and Green has just welcomed a new baby with his girlfriend Sharna Burgess. The whole family appears to be on good terms, with Fox commenting on a photo of her ex-husband and Green: “Grateful for Sharna.” Burgess replied with two heart emojis.
Ben Affleck, Jennifer Lopez and Jennifer Garner
Jennifer Garner, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are proving that blending families can be seamless. Garner and Affleck, who finalized their divorce in 2018, share three kids — Violet, 16, Seraphina, 13, and Samuel, 10. Lopez has two kids of her own, Emme, 14, and Maximilian, 14.
Lopez, Garner and Affleck have been spotted out with all of their kids, enjoying activities like the batting cages and attending school events together. Garner has even established a special relationship with Emme.
“[Garner] is very hands-on and loves to plant plants and garden, which are things that Emme enjoys too,” an insider told Hollywood Life. “They have formed a unique bond, just as JLo has with Ben and Jennifer’s kids. It is awesome and they all know how lucky they are to be able to have this.”
Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade
Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade are the definition of one big, sweet, happy blended family. Union is stepmother to 20-year-old Zaire, 8-year-old Xavier and 15-year-old Zaya. The couple have their own child, 3-year-old Kaavia (aka #ShadyBaby), who they welcomed through a surrogate.
Union even penned the children’s book Welcome to the Party about families that don’t fit into the stereotypical molds. “I wanted to create a love letter to my daughter to let her know that even though her entry into our family was a bit non-traditional, we love her and wanted her,” Union toldPEOPLE in 2020. “And she is celebrated.”
Union added: “This is also my love letter to every non-traditional family, blended families, that no matter how you became a new family, it is beautiful and real.”
Jonathan Scott and Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Deschanel has acknowledged that it was definitely a journey to navigate life post-divorce with her ex-husband Jacob Pechenik. The former couple share two kids together, Elsie, 6, and Charlie, 4.
“When we went through our divorce, there’s always a little touch-and-go kind of stuff, you know,” she said during an episode of Broad Ideas with Rachel Bilson podcast, perHeavy. We were doing mediation, no lawyers or anything.”
They found their way, though. Deschanel recounted an experience at her son’s birthday party with Pechenik and her boyfriend, Jonathan Scott.
“My boyfriend booked an Elmo performer to do, like, a Zoom thing,” she said. “My ex-husband came over and my boyfriend was there and we were all wearing cowboy hats. It was just the three of us and the two kids, and we’re watching this Elmo performer on Zoom, and the kids were like so happy we were all together and we were all getting along great.”
Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe
Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe broke up in 2006 after 7 years of marriage — but that hasn’t stopped them from being united co-parents to their children, 22-year-old Ava and 18-year-old Deacon.
Last year, Phillippe posted a snapshot of himself with Witherspoon, celebrating their son’s 18th birthday. “Happy 18th birthday to our gorgeous, smart, talented, and caring son,” he captioned the post. “You are a true light in this world and are so loved by all who know you. We are lucky to be your mom and dad. Love you, pup..(I’d say we did pretty good @reesewitherspoon).”
Witherspoon also shared a sweet family photo after Deacon graduated from high school and gave a shout-out to Phillippe.
“Congrats to you @deaconphillippe on Graduating High School! 💫So proud of the thoughtful, talented, kind & generous young man you have become. You light up our hearts and make us proud everyday. We 🧡you!”
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