13 Celebrities Who Chose to Be Childfree and Honestly Explained Why

Everyone makes their own choice to have children or not. However, those who consciously choose to be childfree often encounter tactless and irritating comments and questions. This is why it’s so important that childfree celebrities explain their reasoning behind this choice. So they can delicately change public opinion on the matter.

At CHEERY, we are delighted with the celebrities who are not afraid to talk about their personal choices and honestly explain why they decided to be childfree.

Renée Zellweger

The 53-year-old actress spoke about her plans for the future already in the 2000s. She said, “Motherhood has never been an ambition. I don’t think like that. I never have expectations like ‘when I’m 19, I’m going to do this, and by the time I’ve hit 25, I’m going to do that.’ I just take things as they come, each day at a time, and if things happen, all well and good. I just want to be independent and be able to take care of myself. Anything else is just gravy.”

John Cena

The actor and professional wrestler supports children via numerous charities. But John Cena doesn’t plan to become a father, he explains, “I really enjoy my life, it is hard work. It is hard work to balance the time I need to run myself correctly. It’s hard work to be the best husband I can be to my loving wife. It is hard to keep connections with those in my life I love and it is also hard to put in an honest day’s work.”

Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey doesn’t regret her choice, she says, “If I had kids, my kids would hate me. They would have ended up on the equivalent of the Oprah show talking about me; because something in my life would have had to suffer and it would’ve probably been them.”

Sandra Oh

The Killing Eve star confessed that she’s happy with her role as an aunt. This is why she feels content without children, “I went through that period, I’d say in my mid to late 30s into 40s, where it was like, I make a great living and I could have children on my own, and I didn’t. I have an extremely fulfilling life as an aunt, not only to my nieces and nephews but also to a lot of my friends’ children.”

Lily Tomlin

The American actress revealed in 2006 that her career was more important to her than the possibility of becoming a mother. “I didn’t want to — and I’m glad I don’t — have any children. God only knows what I would have done with them, poor things,” Lily Tomlin joked. “I really do like kids, but there wouldn’t have been room in my life to raise children. I was so involved with my career and I would have had to give up the career in large part because I could not possibly have shortchanged the child.”

Allison Janney

A year ago, the actress revealed why she didn’t want to have children, “I think if I’d found the right guy at the right time and wanted to have kids, I probably would have with the right partner. Because I wasn’t ever really confident that I wanted to have kids, and I would rather regret not having kids than have kids and regret it.”

Issa Rae

The actress and writer confessed that she wanted to dedicate all her time to her professional achievements, and motherhood could distract her from her goals, “I want to do as much as I can while I still can. I know it’s not the proper mentality to think that kids will slow you down, but I do feel that way.”

Anjelica Huston

When she was younger, Anjelica Huston tried to have a child together with actor Jack Nicholson, but it didn’t work out. In hindsight, the actress said, “The truth is, I could never imagine being a mother. I can imagine lots of things, but I could never imagine carrying a baby.”

At 40, the actress tried to become a mother again and even underwent a series of IVF treatments but to no result. Huston believes it was all for the best, “There have been times when I wanted children and other times I’ve been grateful not to have them. I don’t know how I would deal with kissing my children as I left for work. I know there are women who are able to do that. I don’t know if I could.”

Keanu Reeves

When Keanu Reeves was asked if he wanted to settle down, the actor said that he was too old for that, “I’m 52. I’m not going to have any kids.”

Helen Mirren

The Academy Award winner confesses that she loves children and finds them funny and sweet but she’s never wanted to be a mother, “I’m just not interested. I’ve no maternal instinct whatsoever. And I don’t think I’m so unusual. I think an awful lot of women don’t really want children but feel they ought to. They think there’s something wrong with them if they don’t want to, but it’s not true.”

Jared Leto

Eternally young and handsome Jared Leto confessed that he doesn’t plan to become a father, “I think it’s really important to be present if you have children. I have a lot of other things to take care of.”

Kim Cattrall

The Sex and the City star admitted that she thought about having children but decided against it because of her hectic shooting schedule, “I thought to myself, ‘Wow, I have 19-hour working days. My Monday morning would start at 4:45 a.m. and go to 1 or 2 in the morning. How could I possibly continue to do that, especially in my early 40s?’”

Jennifer Aniston

The iconic actress had to answer questions about children and motherhood in public many times. During one of her interviews, Aniston said, “I think people maybe want me to have a kid now. If it happens, it happens. I’m calm and peaceful with whatever the plan is. It’s not something where I’m going, ‘I gotta have a kid!’”

What do you think about the choice of being childfree? Share your opinion in the comments below.