By Wonderwall.com Editors
8:13am PST, Nov 12, 2018
Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne star as a married couple looking to adopt a young child — but they ultimately end up caring for three siblings (including a rebellious 15 year old) — in "Instant Family," which is inspired by the life of writer-director Sean Anders. In honor of the dramedy's debut on Nov. 16, 2018, Wonderwall.com is taking a look back at some of the famous faces who've chosen to adopt over the years, starting with the Anders clan…
RELATED: Celebs and their cute kids in 2018
"Instant Family" is based on the life of writer-director Sean Anders, who wrote "Hot Tub Time Machine," "We're the Millers," "Dumb and Dumber To" and "Daddy's Home," which he also directed. In 2012, the funnyman and his wife, Beth, started fostering to adopt three siblings: an 8-month-old boy, a 3-year-old girl and their 6-year-old brother. The couple officially adopted the trio the following year.
RELATED: Stars who were adopted
Cate Blanchett and husband Andrew Upton adopted daughter Edith from America as an infant in February 2015. (They also have three older biological sons.) A month later when the Sydney Morning Herald asked the Australian star how it felt to have a newborn in her arms again, she replied, "It's extraordinary. It's been an absolute gift and we're utterly besotted."
"Sex and the City" star Kristin Davis became a mother to daughter Gemma through domestic adoption in 2011. Kristin adopted Gemma as a single mom, telling People that it was a dream come true. "This is something I have wanted for a very long time," Kristin said. "Having this wish come true is even more gratifying than I ever had imagined. I feel so blessed." In May 2018, entertainment reporter Marc Malkin broke the news that Kristin had expanded her family again with the adoption of a baby boy.
Charlize Theron surprised us all when she announced that she'd adopted 9-day-old Jackson in March 2012. But the actress has said she's "always" known she would adopt someday. "My mother found a letter that I wrote when I was 8 years old that said, 'Would you please take me to an orphanage, so that I can go and adopt a baby?'" she told "Access Hollywood." In 2015, Charlize adopted daughter August.
Michelle Pfeiffer has two kids with husband David E. Kelley: daughter Claudia and son John. John is their biological son. Claudia is adopted. But Michelle has been staunchly opposed to people referring to Claudia as her "adopted daughter." She once schooled a reporter on the topic, telling The Independent, "As mother of both an adopted child and my own birth-child, there is absolutely no difference in the huge amount of love I feel for both my children. I always knew I wanted to adopt a child and also have one of my own. There is no difference at all."
Viola Davis was already a stepmom to husband David Tennon's two children, but in 2011, the couple welcomed a child of their own when they adopted newborn daughter Genesis. Motherhood has had a huge impact on Viola, who told Us Weekly, "Everything falls into place. My whole purpose in life has changed now, and that's really hard for an actor. Before that it was about me. Now it's gone."
Madonna's adoptions of two children from Malawi — son David in 2006 and daughter Mercy in 2009 — stirred up controversy. Why? Because Malawi requires that adoptive parents be residents of the country before taking home a child. "I could get my head around people giving me a hard time for simulating masturbation onstage or publishing my 'Sex' book, even kissing Britney Spears at an awards show, but trying to save a child's life was not something I thought I would be punished for," she told Harper's Bazaar in 2013. "Friends tried to cheer me up by telling me to think of it all as labor pains that we all have to go through when we give birth. This was vaguely comforting. In any case, I got through it. I survived." In 2017, Madge added to her family again: She took to Instagram on Feb. 7 to confirm the happy news that 4-year-old twin sisters Estere and Stelle — also from Malawi — were joining her family. "I can officially confirm I have completed the process of adopting twin sisters from Malawi and am overjoyed that they are now part of our family," she wrote. Madonna also has two biological children, daughter Lourdes Leon and son Rocco Ritchie.
Six kids in seven years! Kirk Cameron and wife Chelsea Noble certainly filled up their house quickly, adopting their first four children in succession — Jack in 1996, Isabella in 1997, Anna in 1998 and Luke in 2000 — and welcoming biological children Olivia and James in 2001 and 2003, respectively.
A year after Calista Flockhart adopted son Liam as a single parent in 2001, she started dating Harrison Ford. Already a father of four from two previous marriages, Harrison happily took on the role of dad to Liam too. "[Calista is] the best [mother] in the world," Harrison told Reader's Digest two years before they wed in 2010. "She's devoted herself to Liam and has done a really wonderful job raising him. I'm happy to now have a part of the job."
After being told that mixed-race children were the hardest to place with adoptive parents, Hugh Jackman and wife Deborra-lee Furness felt that it was a "no-brainer" to take that path. "It was like, where's the need?" he told Barbara Walters in 2009. "The need was obviously mixed-race children. And that was it." Hugh and Deborra-lee have since adopted two children: Oscar (born in 2000) and Ava (born in 2005).
Kate Capshaw adopted a son, Theo (right), in 1988, and after marrying director Steven Spielberg, he made things official and adopted Theo as well. They went on to adopt one more child together, daughter Mikaela, in 1996, to mix in with their brood of biological kids — Sasha, Sawyer and Destry (left), whom they share together, as well as Max, Steven's son from a previous marriage, and Jessica, Kate's daughter from a previous marriage.
Another director who opted to adopt? George Lucas! He added three kids to his brood via adoption: He had Amanda with ex-wife Marcia Lou Griffin in 1981 and adopted two more kids as a single parent — daughter Katie in 1988 and son Jett in 1993. George also shares biological daughter Everest, born in 2013 via surrogate, with current wife Mellody Hobson.
Diane Keaton adopted daughter Dexter in 1996, then added to her family with son Duke in 2001. "Adopting my son and daughter late in life — and single — had a transformative effect on me," Diane told British website Yours in 2017. "I'm not doing what seems to be the normal route of being 71. I have a 16-year-old son and a 21-year-old daughter. They're still forming in some way, so you have to stay really interested and energetic and open to new thoughts and ideas all the time because of them."
In February 2017, Hoda Kotb surprised "Today" viewers when she called in with the news that on Valentine's Day, she'd adopted a baby girl! Hoda named her daughter Haley Joy Kotb. "We applied for the adoption," Hoda explained of the secretive process. "And while we were waiting to see if this will ever come to be, I would just scribble in my journal because I've loved this child before this child was born. I've loved you since forever, and it was like I knew that she was sleeping under the same moon and stars somewhere out there. We were meant to be together."
Actor Ty Burrell and his wife welcomed two daughters through adoption. The "Modern Family" star adopted Frances in 2010 and Greta in 2012. Early in their marriage, he and wife Holly didn't think they'd ever be parents. "In a weird way, it wasn't planned. It's a weird thing how adoptions can sometimes be as irrational as regular birth," he told Stuff in 2016. "My wife Holly and I were on an airplane, on a flight from L.A. to New York, and when we got on the flight we had intended to never have kids. When we got off in New York, we were crying that we were going to have a kid, so it was unplanned."
Despite being single and already having two kids with ex-husband Charlie Sheen, Denise Richards still felt pangs to have another baby. So in 2011, she decided to adopt. Daughters Sam and Lola were given a big responsibility: choosing the baby's first name! (The girls settled on Eloise, and Denise added Joni as the little one's middle name in honor of her late mother.) The actress's decision to adopt has rubbed off on her two older girls: "They want to adopt when they get older and become moms," Denise told People in 2012.
Mariska Hargitay and her husband, Peter Hermann, had their own baby boom in 2011 when they adopted not one but two kids. That April, they welcomed newborn daughter Amaya, and in October, they adopted son Andrew, who was born during the summer. "We never in a million years thought it would happen this quickly, but something inside of us knew that this was right, and we said, 'Yes, yes, yes!'" Mariska told People in 2011. "We knew this was our guy. Everything about it felt right. It felt divinely right." Amaya and Andrew have an older brother, August, who is Mariska and Peter's biological son.
Connie Britton is yet another star who opted to adopt as a single mom. The "Nashville" alum welcomed 9-month-old son Yoby (a nickname for his given name, Eyob) in 2011. "I didn't think I'd have a baby on my own. But there's a lot that comes out of having a plan and then seeing that there's another way you can go," Connie told Ladies' Home Journal in 2013. "If you hold hard and fast to the plan regardless of where you're at, then you go against the flow of your life. Even after a long, difficult day, coming home and being with Yoby just washes any stress away."
Marie Osmond has a big family filled with both adopted and biological kids! First, she welcomed a biological son, Stephen James Craig, in 1983 with first husband Stephen Lyle Craig (whom she remarried in 2011). Then she adopted five kids with second husband Brian Blosil — daughter Jessica in 1987, son Michael in 1991, son Brandon in 1996, daughter Brianna in 1997 and daughter Abigail in 2002. In the midst of all the adoptions, she also welcomed biological daughter Rachael in 1989 and biological son Matthew in 1999.
During Ewan McGregor's marriage to Eve Mavrakis — they split in 2017 — they adopted daughter Jamiyan, who's now a teen, from Mongolia at age 4. Jamiyan joined older sisters Clara and Esther. In 2011, Ewan and Eve added daughter Anouk to their family.
Katherine Heigl and Josh Kelley adopted their first child, daughter Naleigh, from South Korea back in 2009. They then welcomed daughter Adelaide via domestic adoption in 2012. The happy family added one more kid to the mix — biological son Joshua Bishop Kelley Jr. — in 2016.
Mary-Louise Parker expanded her family in 2007 with the adoption of a baby girl from Ethiopia. The actress, who was already a mother to son William with ex Billy Crudup, was elated to formally adopt Caroline "Ash" Aberash. (The actress is pictured here with her kids and mother, Caroline Parker, in 2016.) "I can't adopt 500 children, but I did adopt this one beautiful little girl and it was an amazing thing," Mary-Louise told People. "Especially after having been to a Third World country, and having seen the desperation there, and the need, and all the children, and holding those children and seeing them and touching them."
After turning 40 and surviving a bout with cancer, Edie Falco made a big decision: She wanted to have kids. Although IVF was an option, she decided to adopt. Son Anderson came in 2005, and daughter Macy was born in 2008. "The second you are handed a newborn, it is yours. It doesn't matter what body it came out of," she told Anderson Cooper in 2012. "I've never felt more strongly about anything in my life."
Sheryl Crow had a rough year in 2006: She broke up with longtime flame Lance Armstrong and battled cancer. But the following year brought much happiness as she adopted son Wyatt. "Everything about me has changed. My point of reference has changed," she told People in 2009. "[Wyatt] is the first thing I think of in the morning and the last thing I think of at night, and it's just a lot of joy in my life." Sheryl loved being a mom so much that in 2010, she brought home another son, Levi.
Rosie O'Donnell has five children, and four of them are adopted! While with former wife Kelli Carpenter, Rosie expanded her family with Parker in 1995, Chelsea in 1997 and Blake in 1999. Kelli gave birth to their daughter Vivienne in 2002. Later, while married to second ex-wife Michelle Rounds, who's now deceased, Rosie added daughter Dakota to the mix in 2013.
Doubly blessed! In May 2017, Thomas Rhett and wife Lauren — who was pregnant at the time — brought home daughter Willa Gray Akins from Uganda. The couple had decided to adopt after Lauren went on a charity trip to Uganda with the group 147 Million Orphans. Four months later, Thomas and Lauren made Willa a big sister when Lauren gave birth to daughter Ada James Akins.
Sharon Stone adopted her first son, Roan Bronstein (seen here), in 2000 with then-husband Phil Bronstein. After the couple divorced in 2004, the "Casino" actress adopted her second son, Laird, in 2005 and third son, Quinn, in 2006. "I'm grateful my kids chose me. I am a lucky mom," Sharon told People in 2017.
In 2006, Meg Ryan adopted daughter Daisy from China as a single mom. And while the country handles its adoptions by lottery, Meg has said that being matched with her daughter feels anything but random. "She is the daughter I should have. I never felt like I was on a rescue mission or anything like that. I just really wanted a baby; I was on a mission to connect with somebody, and Daisy and I got to meet each other this way at this time," the actress told Redbook in 2007. "We are so compatible." Meg also has an adult son, Jack, with ex-husband Dennis Quaid.
Nia Vardalos welcomed daughter Ilaria through domestic adoption after she and husband Ian Gomez, whom she filed to divorce in July 2018, struggled with infertility. The "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" actress is now an advocate for adoption. "After 10 years of banging my head against the brick wall of infertility, I accepted there was another plan for me. And (cue music swell) motherhood turned out to be the most meaningful thing I've ever done with my life," Nia wrote in a 2009 Huffington Post blog.
Though many assumed Faye Dunaway gave birth to her son Liam, who was born in 1980, now-ex husband Terry O'Neill later revealed that he was adopted.
While married to Loni Anderson, the late Burt Reynolds adopted son Quinton, who was born in 1988.
Jillian Michaels adopted daughter Lukensia from Haiti in 2012. She made the announcement just days after then-partner Heidi Rhoades gave birth to their son, Phoenix, the same month.
Jamie Lee Curtis and husband Christopher Guest expanded their family in 1986 with the adoption of daughter Annie. The "Halloween" actress, who wrote a children's book about being adopted, welcomed another child through adoption, son Thomas, in 1996. "Adoption is an issue for everybody at all stages," Jamie told Ladies Home Journal. "There's tremendous loss and great love and great warmth."
Kirstie Alley was married to second husband Parker Stevenson when she adopted son William and daughter Lillie. They shared custody of their now-adult kids when they divorced in 1997.
Julie Andrews and husband Blake Edwards adopted two daughters, Amy (pictured between her parents in 1991) and Joanna, from Vietnam in the 1970s. The girls joined older siblings Emma Walton (from Julie's first marriage) and Jennifer and Geoffrey Edwards (from Blake's first marriage). "We wanted a child and weren't being successful," Julie told People in 1977. "It's been wonderful to watch two pale, sad-eyed creatures blossom."
Barbara Walters has one child, daughter Jacqueline, whom she adopted in 1968 with then-husband Lee Guber. Barbara struggled to conceive and suffered through three miscarriages before they brought home Jackie.
Sara Rue and husband Kevin Price were open about their struggles to have a second child. In October 2016, they expanded their family when they adopted daughter Adelaide Rue Price. "We got to a point where we really had to make a choice, and it was a pretty easy decision," Sara — who'd given birth to their first child, daughter Talulah Rue Price, in 2013 — told People.com. "We just wanted another child to complete our family, and it really didn't matter where she came from as long as we were her mom and dad."
Lionel Richie and first wife Brenda Harvey adopted Nicole Richie when she was 9. Nicole — the biological daughter of one of his former bandmates, Sheila E.'s brother — had already been living with them since she was a toddler. Lionel has said of how it happened, "I went backstage and I knew the mother and I knew the father and, of course, they were having difficulties with their relationship. I said, 'While you are having the difficulty, the kid is sitting out here in limbo so I'll tell you what I'll do, just put the kid in my house until the tour is over with and then we will sort this out later.'" Six years later, Lionel legally became Nicole's dad.
In 2014, Rosario Dawson adopted 12-year-old Lola. "It's so life-changing," the super-private actress told Us Weekly in 2018 of adopting her daughter.
Neve Campbell revealed in June 2018 that she and longtime boyfriend JJ Field, who share biological son Caspian, adopted in early 2018. "Sheer joy!!!!….So it's been a secret up until now as JJ and I wanted to wait until it was official but we adopted a beautiful baby boy 5 months ago. His name is Raynor and we are madly in love with him. Our 6 year old son Caspian is over the moon and asks every morning 'Can I hold my baby? Can I feed my baby? Can I play with my baby.' It's the most incredible thing we've experienced. We're so grateful for this beautiful light coming into our lives and we think of and are grateful to his birth family every day for such an incredible gift," the actress captioned a family photo on Instagram.
"The Real Housewives of Dallas" star Brandi Redmond and husband Bryan revealed to People magazine in May 2018 that after years of fertility struggles, they'd welcomed a son, Bruin Charles, through a closed adoption. People pointed out that Bruin — who is healthy after being born premature on Dec. 31, 2017 — has strawberry blonde hair that fits right in with the family of redheads, which also includes big sisters Brooklyn, 9, and Brinkley, 6. "It's crazy," Brandi told People. "He'll always look like he came from me, which he did — he came from my heart."
