As Helen reported earlier, Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber had their second child, a baby boy, yesterday. They have not released details of the baby’s name, height or weight. The newborn joins brother Alexander Pete Schrieber, 17 months.

Naomi, 40, has a new interview in In Touch published this week in which she talked about her struggle to find the right man before having children. She said that she “found myself at a place in my life where I’d given up on the idea of finding my soulmate and becoming a mother” before she met Liev, 41. It was a happy ending for Watts, but she is candid about the fact that she was so focused on a career she was afraid of losing that she didn’t think her dream of motherhood would come true:

Watts: “I went through hell for many years struggling to get work. Then when I had a career I threw so much of myself into my work that I didn’t leave much time for me. Now my life is in this very beautiful place and it’s all good.”

When did you know you wanted to start a family?
“It wasn’t until my thirties. Of course, that was when I was totally driven by my career because I’d waited so long for the chance to work that I couldn’t bear the thought of stopping for any length.”

What were you afraid of?
“There was this fear that I’d better take advantage of every opportunity because maybe it would all go away.”

In what ways has motherhood changed you?
“I feel so rich inside. I’m so blessed. Ever since my son was born I have felt this tremendous sense of reward and pure joy from being a part of his little world and watching him grow.”

You sound so fulfilled
“It’s almost frightening for me to think now that if I hadn’t met Liev, I might never have a child of my own.”

[From In Touch, print edition, December 22, 2008]

You don’t often hear actresses speaking so frankly about the stresses of finding and keeping work. Some actresses talk about the difficulty getting work after 40, but it sounds like even when Watts was at the top of her game she was worried about her future. It’s got to be a tough career to say the least, especially for the majority of actors and actresses that don’t make it.

As for her future plans, Watts says “I’ll work whenever something really sensational comes along and spend the rest of the time being very nurturing.”

Watts will next star in The International with Clive Owen. It’s out in the US on February 13. She also has three films in pre-production, Need with Nicole Kidman, King Lear with Keira Knightley and Gwyneth Paltrow, and the aptly named Mother and Child, with Annette Bening and Kerry Washington. It’s due to being filming early next year.

Congratulations to Watts and Schreiber on their new arrival. It sounds like Watts was waiting for a long time to be a mother and now she’s been doubly blessed.

Naomi Watts And Liev Schreiber are shown out on 11/26/08. Credit: Fame