16 Celebs Who Dated People Who Could Be Their Parents

Is age really just a number? It's a question that causes a lot of controversy when it comes to dating and relationships. Is there such thing as 'too old' when it comes to a potential partner? What do a couple of decades matter when you're in love with someone? Well, it depends who you ask. Some people will only date people of the same age. Others prefer an older man or woman, while some like to look out for somewhat younger partners! As long as they're happy, what does it matter?

It's not just us 'regular folk' who come across these kinds of questions in our dating lives. Quite a few celebs have dated men or women who are more than a couple of years older than them. In fact, a lot of them have enjoyed relationships with people old enough to be their parents - or grandparents! Such pairings have enjoyed differing levels of success: relationships with age gaps can work for some people and be totally disastrous for others. It all depends on the individuals involved. Here are just some of the celebrities who've being involved with people old enough to be their mom or dad. Did it go well for them? Well, you'll have to read on and find out!

16 There's Almost A Quarter Of A Century Between Actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson and His Wife

Despite their pretty big age gap, actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson and his director wife Samantha seem to have a pretty strong relationship. There are 23 years between them: they met when Sam was 42 and Aaron just 19. Despite the media constantly picking up on this pretty unusual age dynamic, Aaron Taylor-Johnson has stated multiple times that he doesn't even notice the age gap anymore due to his mature nature. He credits Sam with 'saving him' during his destructive teenage years. For her part, Sam Taylor-Johnson has claimed that while the couple's age gap is unusual, their relationship has lasted a lot longer than her friends in more 'conventional' partnerships. She's not wrong: The Taylor-Johnsons have been together since 2009 and married since 2012. They have two daughters together, and Aaron also cares for his wife's elder daughters from a previous marriage. All in all, they seem to be one big, happy family.

15 A Twenty-Year Gap Hasn't Been An Issue For Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Jason Statham

All things considered, actor Jason Statham and model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley make a pretty unlikely couple. She's descended from aristocracy and distantly related to Queen Victoria. He's the son of a market trader and is twenty years her senior. However, this couple has proved that opposites really do attract. Statham and Huntington-Whiteley began dating back in 2010 when they were 43 and 23 respectively. Nobody expected their relationship to last - but it did! The two got engaged in 2016 and welcomed their first child - a son - last year. While it's unclear whether they've married yet or not, Huntington-Whiteley has been spotted wearing a pretty impressive ring in recent months. Whatever the case, age really is just a number for this couple. They're happier than ever despite the two decades between them.

14 The Olsen Twins Have A Thing For Older Guys - Especially Ashley

Former child stars Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen seem to have a thing for older guys. Back in 2015, Mary-Kate married Olivier Sarkozy, a banker 17 years her senior. Prior to this, she dated artist Nate Lowman, with this gap being a more moderate 7 years. However, it's Ashley who's really pushed boundaries when it comes to having other partners. Back in summer 2016, she began dating artist George Condo. She was 30; he was 59. Now that's an age gap and a half! The relationship fizzled out after just a few months, but Ashley quickly moved on. She dated financier Richard Sachs from fall 2016 to early 2017, this time boasting a 28-year gap with her partner. Again, this fling didn't last long, with Ashley reportedly breaking things off to focus on her career. Will she ever date someone her own age again? We'll have to wait and see!

13 Actress Sarah Paulson Is 32 Years Younger Than Her Partner, But They're Seriously In Love

In recent years, bisexual actress Sarah Paulson seems to have had a penchant for dating older women. After her split from ex-fiancee Tracy Letts - the last man she seems to have dated - Paulson moved on with actress Cherry Jones, a woman 18 years her senior. This relationship lasted for five years before the two sadly split back in 2009. Since 2015, Paulson has been linked to fellow actress Holland Taylor, and the couple seems to be ridiculously in love! They regularly gush about each other in interviews and aren't afraid to engage in PDA. The relationship has garnered some negative press over the years, with many being shocked by the 32-year age gap between the two women. However, Paulson doesn't think it's a problem - in fact, she was surprised that so many people seemed to care about it! The actress hasn't let other people's opinions threaten her relationship. Good on her!

12 After Her Split From Ryan Reynolds, Scarlett Johansson Tried Dating Older Guys

I bet you'd forgotten that Hollywood hunk Ryan Reynolds used to be married to talented fellow thespian Scarlett Johansson! Way before Reynolds struck up a romance with Blake Lively, he and Johansson enjoyed a four-year romance. When their marriage ended, Reynolds pretty much immediately started dating future wife Blake. Johansson, on the other hand, decided to play the field a bit… Specifically with some older men.

In the Spring of 2011, Johansson had a pretty public fling with legendary actor and filmmaker Sean Penn. Their age gap didn't go unnoticed: Johansson was 26, while Penn had just turned 50. Sadly, things fizzled out between the two after a couple of months. Whether their difference in age had anything to do with their split is unknown. Johansson doesn't seem to be very lucky in love - her divorce from second husband Romain Dauriac came through late last year. Here's hoping 2018 brings her some joy!

11 Jennifer Lawrence Dated Director Darren Aronofsky Despite Being Young Enough To Be His Kid

You know that stereotype of lead actresses always falling for their directors? Well, Jennifer Lawrence totally fulfilled it in her most recent relationship. J-Law started dating director Darren Aronofsky after the two met on the set of their movie Mother!. Apparently, Lawrence had harbored a crush on the director for months before they even got to know each other. However, the two decided to keep things professional and only get together once filming on the movie had wrapped.

Sadly, Lawrence and Aronofsky split at the end of 2017 after a year together. Many reasons have been suggested as to why they broke up, the largely negative reaction to Mother! being one. However, most people seem to think that the couple's twenty-year age gap put a huge strain on their relationship. The two were in very different stages of life, and it ultimately made them incompatible.

10 Ally McBeal Star Calista Flockhart Hit The Jackpot With Silver Fox Harrison Ford

If you're not jealous of the woman who got to marry Harrison Ford - aka Han Solo and Indiana Jones - you're lying. The lady in question is Calista Flockhart, an actress best known for playing the titular character in Ally McBeal. Flockhart is 22 years younger than Ford, but this doesn't seem to have impacted their incredibly strong relationship. The two met back in 2002 at that year's Golden Globe Awards. They began dating shortly afterward and tied the knot eight years later. Ford was 67 at the time of their marriage, with Flockhart having just turned 45. However, according to the actress, the couple barely even notices their age gap anymore and it in no way factors into their relationship. Flockhart is clearly devoted to her husband: she remained by his side for days following his 2015 plane crash. If that's not true love, I don't know what is.

9 Mia Farrow Was Just 19 When She Began Dating 48-Year-Old Frank Sinatra

The age gap between Mia Farrow and Frank Sinatra has to be one of the most infamous in celebrity couple history. When this short-lived couple met, Sinatra was 48 and Farrow just 19. They married two years later after a whirlwind romance to the shock of almost everyone. People seriously doubted that the now thrice-married Sinatra would be able to keep Farrow happy, and they were ultimately proved right.

Upon their marriage, Sinatra insisted that Farrow give up her acting career; she begrudgingly agreed. However, just a year later Farrow signed on to star in Rosemary's Baby against her husband's wishes. Sinatra served Farrow divorce papers shortly afterward, and the marriage ended. Farrow now acknowledges that the couple's 29-year age gap was the major reason for her split with Sinatra. She claims that she was an "impossibly immature teenager" at the time of the marriage and that things could never have worked between her and Sinatra. Despite this, the two remained close friends until the crooner's death in 1998.

8 Annette Bening Has Stuck With Notorious Ladies Man and Older Husband Warren Beatty

For years, legendary actor Warren Beatty had a reputation for being one of the biggest womanizers in Hollywood. He romanced huge stars like Carly Simon, Joan Collins, and Madonna before finally settling down with Annette Bening in 1992. Despite Beatty's history of being less than faithful while in relationships, his marriage to Bening has remained strong for over 25 years. The two met on the set of the movie Bugsy back in 1991 when Beatty was 54 and Bening was 33. Despite this 21-year age gap, the couple has shared many happy years together. In fact, Beatty has stated that marrying Bening and having four children with her is the best thing he's ever done. For her part, Bening has claimed that the secret to her long and happy marriage is plenty of love and respect. How wholesome!

7 Legendary Actress Sophia Loren Was Just 16 When She First Met Her Much-Older Man

Legendary Italian actress and singer Sophia Loren was just 15 when she began her career. One year later, her budding talent led to her meeting future husband Carlo Ponti, an acclaimed Italian film producer. Ponti was 37 when he first met 16-year-old Loren, but the age difference didn't stop him from pursuing her. At the time, Loren was having a well-publicized affair with actor Cary Grant - another older man who was an astonishing thirty years older than the teenage star. However, when her relationship with Grant broke down, Loren agreed to marry Ponti.

Ponti and Loren's relationship wasn't plain sailing by any means. Their first marriage was annulled in 1962 when it emerged that Ponti was still technically married to his previous wife. When Ponti's divorce finally came through, the pair married again and remained together until Ponti's death in 2007. The pair's age gap doesn't seem to have mattered to them: they were happy despite it.

6 Kathie Lee Gifford Was 23 Years Younger Than Her Second Husband

In the wake of her divorce from first husband Paul Johnson, Kathie Lee Gifford decided to give dating an older man a go. She coupled up with television sports player Frank Gifford, a man 23 years her senior, beginning a relationship that would last for thirty years. When the pair married in 1986, Kathie Lee was 30 and Frank 53. However, the age gap didn't bother the Giffords at all. Kathie even joked that she'd be the one struggling to keep up with her older husband!

While the Giffords' marriage wasn't threatened by their age gap, it did almost come to an end due to Frank's infidelity. In 1997, a tabloid newspaper reportedly paid a woman thousands of dollars to tempt Gifford away from his wife. Despite this setback, Kathie forgave her husband and remained by his side until his death in 2015.

5 Reality Star Courtney Stodden Became Notorious For Her Relationship With A Man Nearly 40 Years Her Senior

Reality star Courtney Stodden basically became famous thanks to her age gap with her ex-husband. Former beauty pageant queen Stodden was just 16 years old when she married then 50-year-old actor Doug Hutchinson. Their 2011 union raised a lot of eyebrows: Hutchinson's entire family reportedly disowned him following the wedding. It only got more controversial when Stodden and Hutchinson appeared on the reality show Couples Therapy in 2012. Many of the couple's issues were rooted in their age difference, as you'd expect when a teenager marries a middle-aged man!

As of 2018, it's unclear whether Stodden and Hutchinson are actually still together. The two first decided to divorce in 2013 but reconciled shortly afterward. The couple split again in 2017, seemingly for good. However, just last month Stodden posted an emotional Instagram message begging Hutchinson to take her back - a week before the pair were due to divorce. Did they go through with their split, or did Hutchinson listen to Stodden's pleas? Nobody knows.

4 The Love Of Celine Dion's Life Was A Man Way Older Than Her

Singer Celine Dion was just 12 years old when she met her then-38-year-old future husband Rene Angelil. However, there's no need to worry: the two didn't start dating until almost a decade later! At first, Angelil's relationship with Dion was a purely professional one. After hearing a tape of Dion singing, talent manager Angelil invited the young star to audition for him and ultimately took her on as a client. The two became more intimate eight years later when 20-year-old Dion struck up a romance with 46-year-old Angelil.

Despite this rather unusual start to their relationship, Dion and Angelil were a happy couple for almost thirty years. They married in 1994, welcomed their first child Rene-Charles in 2001, and had twin sons, Nelson and Eddy, in 2010. However, in 2016 their love story came to a tragic end. Angelil passed away after a battle with throat and head cancer, leaving Dion devastated. She's given numerous emotional tributes to her late husband, stating her belief that he's still watching over her from up above.

3 Female Wrestler Stacy Keibler Dated George Clooney Before He Married Amal

Before George Clooney married human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin back in 2014, the actor was something of a ladies' man. He had flings with numerous women, including female wrestler Stacy Keibler. Keibler and Clooney first met in 2011, when the former was 31 and the latter 50. Despite this 19-year age gap, things seemed to be going well between the two in the early days of their relationship. They appeared at numerous red carpet events together and made quite a cute couple.

However, these happy times didn't last. Keibler and Clooney broke up in 2013 after over two years together. Their age gap didn't seem to be behind their breakup: in fact, they reportedly split because Clooney wouldn't commit to settling down and getting married. Amal must have really done a number on Clooney considering he did just that with her a mere year after his split with Keibler! Not that Kiebler suffered too much: she's now married to businessman Jared Pobre and has a daughter, Ava Grace.

2 Hugh Hefner Was Old Enough To Be Crystal Harris' Grandfather, Let Alone Father

Forget dating someone old enough to be her father. Crystal Harris went one step further and married someone old enough to be her granddad! Playboy model Harris started dating the magazine's owner Hugh Hefner in 2009, despite Hefner being 60 years her senior. Their first attempt at marriage went horribly wrong when Harris left Hefner just five days before their planned wedding. However, the two reconciled in 2012 and married shortly afterward. They remained together until Hefner's death last year.

As you'd expect, the cynics of the world couldn't quite believe that Harris married Hefner for love. It was suggested that she was more enamored with his bank balance than with the man himself. However, this theory was seemingly debunked following Hefner's death when it emerged that Harris was set to inherit nothing at all from her late husband. She'd signed an "iron-clad" prenup that totally cut her out of the Playboy mogul's will. Did Harris really marry a man old enough to be her grandfather for love? I guess we'll never know.

1 Heidi Klum Had A Child With An Older Man Before She Married Seal

Heidi Klum's most famous relationship so far has been her marriage to now ex-husband Seal. The two were one of Hollywood's most adorable couples and everyone's hearts broke a little bit when they split in 2014. However, one of Klum's lesser-known dalliances was with Italian businessman Flavio Briatore, a man 23 years her senior. Klum and Briatore began dating in 2003 and the model became pregnant shortly afterward. However, the couple split while Klum was still pregnant for unknown reasons. It's unclear whether the age gap had anything to do with it, or whether the couple were just unsuited. Either way, their daughter, Leni, has nothing to do with Briatore and considers Seal to be her father. Seal and Klum actually began dating before Leni's birth, meaning the teen has known her adopted father for literally all of her life!