15 Celebrities Who Were Raised by Single Mothers, and Are Proud of It

The number of families where children are raised by a single parent is growing year by year. Scientists decided to find out whether single parenting has negative effects on children’s behavior. It turned out that the children raised in such families behave just like their peers who have both parents.

At CHEERY, we found facts that prove the scientists’ conclusions are correct because some of those famous and successful people were raised by single mothers.

Sarie Kessler, the mother of Margot Robbie

Margot Robbie is the third child out of 4. The actress doesn’t like to speak about her father who left them when she was 5, “Just because it’s hard to briefly mention it without make it sound like ‘My dad’s awful and...’ That whole thing. But yes, Mum and Dad split up.”

But the actress is strongly attached to her mother. “She was a single mother raising my brothers and my sister and me by herself and we didn’t make life easy for her. We were always fighting and my mum had to be a very strong woman to hold things together,” Margot says. “She’s an amazing woman.”

Mandy Teefey, the mother of Selena Gomez

Mandy Teefey became a mother at the age of 16. When Selena was 5, her parents got divorced, and her mother raised her daughter alone. Their small family often struggled financially. “I remember my mom would run out of gas all of the time and we’d sit there and have to go through the car and get quarters and help her get gas,” Selena shared.

According to Selena, her mother gave up everything for her, she had 3 jobs, supported her, and actually sacrificed her life for Selena.

Mary Lee Pfeiffer, the mother of Tom Cruise

Tom Cruise describes his father as a “bully and coward.” When the future actor was in the sixth grade, his mom left his father, taking Tom and his 3 sisters with her. To support her big family, she worked 3 part-time jobs.

Mary Lee Pfeiffer never complained about her hard life. On the contrary, she always tried to encourage her children. For example, she supported Tom’s interest in theater because she had once harbored acting dreams of her own.

Donna Gosling, the mother of Ryan Gosling

Ryan’s parents divorced when he was 13 years old. After that, his mother raised him and his elder sister alone. And this has had a huge influence on Ryan throughout his life. The actor is very proud of his mother, this is why, according to him, he likes to play in the movies with strong female characters.

“I feel like I think like a woman because I grew up with my mother and my sister so I’ve just been programmed to think like a girl,” Ryan Gosling says.

Dina Lohan, the mother of Lindsay Lohan

Lohan’s parents got married in 1985, and a year later, they had their first child — Lindsay. When the girl was 3 years old, the couple split for the first time. Later they would reconcile a few times for a short period of time, and they finally separated in 2007.

So, Lindsay was raised solely by her mother most of the time. Moreover, she also was the manager of the young actress and her 3 siblings. All 4 children became quite successful actors.

Patricia Taylor, the mother of Keanu Reeves

Keanu Reeves’ father left his family when the boy was only 3 years old. Reeves last met his father at the age of 13. But his stepfather, film director Paul Aaron, was much closer to Keanu, offering him advice and recommending acting jobs to him.

However, Patricia Taylor’s second marriage didn’t last long, and she had to raise her son alone again. When Keanu became a grown-up man, she married 2 more times.

Evelyn Foster, the mother of Jodie Foster

Jodie Foster’s parents divorced even before she was born, so she was never close to her father. Her mother had to raise the future actress and her 3 elder siblings alone.

Evelyn Foster managed her youngest daughter’s career. At the age of 3, Jody appeared in her first commercial. The mother guided her daughter’s career until Jodie received her second best actress Oscar win in 1991 for The Silence of The Lambs.

Elizabeth Jackson, the mother of Samuel L. Jackson

Samuel was the only child of Elizabeth Harriett and Roy Henry Jackson. His father lived away from the family, and Jackson met him only twice during his life.

Even though Samuel was a child to a single mother, he never felt lonely because he was raised by his maternal grandparents and their extended family when the mother was at work.

Eva Perez Suarez, the mother of Eva Mendes

Eva’s mother raised the future actress and her elder siblings alone. Eva Mendes’ childhood wasn’t easy, but this experience made her strong and optimistic.

“I was poor. I came from a lower-middle-class family so I would imagine all kinds of things. I thought I was going to be an astronaut and an opera singer when I was really little,” the actress says.

Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King, the mother of Stephen King

Stephen King was raised in a poor family. His father was a salesman and left his family when King was a little boy. His single working mother influenced him a lot. When the future writer was 12 years old, she gave him his first typewriter because she believed he would become a talented writer.

“My mother gave me room to be what I wanted to be. She didn’t laugh at my ambition to write stories,” Stephen King says.

Terria Joseph, the mother of Alicia Keys

The future singer’s mother revealed she was shocked when she found out she was pregnant. She wasn’t married, nor in a relationship. When Alicia was 6 years old, Terria thought that Craig Cook, Alicia’s father, wanted to be with her and form a family together, but eventually this never happened.

Alicia adores her mother who managed to raise her all alone, “Your life is so precious to me... You gave me everything... I owe you everything... You are so much fun, smart and intelligent... You make me laugh, you make me better, you made me everything I am.”

Anne Cocking, the mother of Guy Pearce

The actor’s father was a test pilot. He died in a flying accident when Guy was 8 years old. After this tragedy, Anne Cocking had to raise her son alone.

“After dad died, people would often say with big puppy-dog eyes, ‘Oh, I’m so sorry...’ Mum found it unbearable. She needed a way to shut them up so she would say. ‘It’s not like he left me!’ That always stuck in my head,” Guy Pearce says.

Hanne Søborg Coster, the mother of Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau grew up in a small village near Copenhagen with a population of only 17 people. His mother was a librarian, and his father had a career in what the actor vaguely refers to as “administrative services.”

His parents divorced when the boy was 6 years old, then they reconciled for a short period of time, but later they divorced again. “Just to make sure the trauma hit home,” the actor says half jokingly.

Rose Gerard Pacino, the mother of Al Pacino

The legendary actor’s parents divorced when he was only 2 years old. His mother moved to Bronx with him where her parents lived in order to help her raise her son. His father moved to California and lived away from his family.

His parents’ divorce deeply affected his future life. Al Pacino never got married, but he desperately wanted to become a father and begged his girlfriend for kids. Eventually, she became a single mother too at 51.

Coni Momoa, the mother of Jason Momoa

Jason Momoa was born on Hawaii into a family of artists — his mother was a photographer, and his father was a painter. His parents split when he was still a baby. His mother raised her son alone and influenced him a lot.

“I was raised by a strong single mother. My mom’s an artist in every way. She’s a wanderer, always searching, always seeing. I guess you could say my mom gave me her eyes,” Momoa said.

What are the main difficulties a single parent has to deal with, in your opinion? Tell us in the comment below.