Here are some new photos of Sam Taylor-Wood (44) and Aaron Johnson (21) at last night’s BFI London Film Festival Awards. As you might remember, she’s pregnant with her fourth child – her second with Aaron. She gave birth to their daughter last year, and quickly got knocked up with Aaron’s second kid in the Spring of this year. He’s blonde and mustached because he’s currently filming Anna Karenina. Just last month, I think he finished filming Savages (or “The Savages” – whatever) with Blake Lively and Olivier Stone. His career continues to grow by leaps and bounds – he’s probably one of the most in-demand young British actors out there. This awards season, he’ll be seen in Albert Nobbs with Glenn Close.
The question I always have about the possible longevity of Sam and Aaron’s relationship has less to do with their ages and more to do with the differences in their respective careers. Sam is an established photographer, director and artist, and has been for many years. Aaron is basically just starting out. Even though Sam claims that Aaron is the one who “brought family values” to their relationship, and he’s the one prioritizing their family, what happens when the pull of his career is too much? When he gets a job that has him in some far-flung country for five months? I do worry about these two.
But for now, they look happy and loved-up. Good for them?
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I am rooting for them even thoughh I think they’re not going to make it in the long run due to their age difference + the professions they’re in.
Why is he a blonde now? He’s a very good actor, I definitely like him. I try not to think this relationship is weird, because if they genders were flipped it wouldn’t be.
I really think this is wrong. Anyone that young should not be involved with someone who is double their age. The age difference is ridiculous. I just see one big Freudian mess when I look at them!
I think he’s cuter with the dark hair and hope that this color is strictly for a movie. I’ve seen him in “Angus” and in “Kick Ass” and have enjoyed both movie. I just hope that his voice deepens because it is so high pitched and squeakily.
older men do not get this level of crap when they date much much younger women-that seems expected, so whats with the double standard? these two seem to genuinly love each other so i say good on them.
I think we all hope she fares better than Demi Moore. She’s a cancer survivor and she’s been through a lot. She deserves to be happy!
they are ugly though, arent they?
His career’s not that hot – pretty much all his films either underperform or, in the case of the film she directed him in, Nowhere Boy, tank like the proverbial lead zeppelin. Oliver Stone hasn’t had a real hit since Natural Born Killers, while the cast list of Savages reads like a whos-who of Box Office poison. Hell, I’m surprised Nicole Kidman’s not in it!
Good luck to them as a couple though, for the sake of their kids if nothing else.
She simply doen´t deserve him! He is gorgeous, young and up&coming.
She is old, ugly and got REALLY lucky she got knocked up.
@gee – you don’t really take the time to read, huh? read the description and you’ll find out why he’s a blonde.
i love this dude as an actor and a person, and i waish them nothing but the best!
He does not suit blonde AT ALL!
They’re a really interesting couple. I hope I have a hot piece like that on my arm when I’m her age 🙂
@What!?, you’re totally right.
Power to her for snatching such a hottie, men do it all the time.
Sorry, still think this relationship is creepy. And, I think that ANY 40-something that cradle robs and dates a teenager is gross, whether it’s a man or a woman.
I agree with Scarlett. creepy
It’s not the age difference that bothers me about them, it’s HIS age, period. He’s 21! She let him knock her up the first time when he was 19! I think I’d feel better about this if he’d at least been 26 or 27. How does a 40+ year old woman justify, in good conscience, cutting short an adolescent’s youth and saddling him with children just because her biological clock’s winding down? I don’t care if he’s an “old soul” or that he’s crazy about her, she’s the older, more experienced person and in situations like this it’s her responsibility to make the mature decisions for both of them (she could’ve started with “no, grow up a little, then come see me again”). Oh, well, he might actually enjoy becoming a granddad before he turns 40.
Looking at these two together makes me throw up in my mouth a little. Probably because I’m 41 and I have a son that’s 22. I could never imagine in a million years dating one of his friends or worse yet, one of my friends dating my son! I’d cut a bitch!! The age gap is too big. When he hits his prime in a few years she will be going through menopause, mark my words; this relationship will be SOOOOO OVER!
I do think this age dif is kinda difficult to overcome…kudos for them for not being gross a la Stoden, they do look decent together.
@Lola, missed that! LOL oops.
Nothing like some friendly snark in the morning.
@tapioca: It’s not because a film grosses a lot money that it’s a good film (e.g. Pirates sequels, F&F sequels, The Tourist, Catwoman!!!, Meet The Fockers…). They go for cheap entertainment without thinking of a decent plot, right casting or even about the message it’s trying to bring over. Even a comedy can bring over a message imo (e.g. Little Miss Sunshine, Juno, The Big Lebowski, Knocked Up, Thank You for Smoking) They too expect the audience to eat it and rip of their money BUT they give you something valuable in return. It’s quality and it’s something that will stand the test of time and will be remembered for it’s creativity and ingeniosity.
Box office success does not equal a good film. Too bad people don’t realise that otherwise the forementioned films would never have been made. Films like Nowhere Boy will have to battle against the prejudices of people who mostly enjoy moneygrubbing dumb films without even knowing what the heck they’re looking at or what it’s all about.
OK, with the blonde hair and mustache he looks like Gene Wilder’s less endearing little brother.
He reminded me of Gene Wilder from “Young Frankstein”. I think he’s kinda cute.
Well though i’m sure the difference in the status of their career could prove problematic, who are we kidding? One, if not the most major factor in whatever troubles they may have is definitely age related. Even the issue of She being established, and he being a new-commer is age related.
Plus, if its true what she says and he’s the one pushing the family values then i’ll doubt he’d go and choose to work on a movie that will keep him so far away from family for so long.
OK wait a minute – he is 21 and she is 44? Well that gives food for thought. In my opinion, she is too old to be having kids and he is too young to be having kids – are all of them his?
I’ve never heard of each other, but they look like they’re biologically related. I realize they aren’t, but they share a very strong physical resemblance in these photos.
@ What?! (#5): I agree. I mean, didn’t Bruce Willis just knock up his much-younger wife or something? But, at the same time, it seems pretty hard to believe that this is going to last. It would be like me (34) dating a man who’s 57…which is, like, three years younger than my dad and….ew. But I have to wonder what will happen when she gets up there, in her 50’s. I’m not saying that a woman in her 50’s can’t be desirable or loveable, but he’s still going to be relatively young…I’m not saying that all men have wandering dongs, either, but…I don’t know. Maybe they both know it’s not going to last in the long-long-term. Some people are able to grab happiness while they can, and hang the consequences and long-term “what if?” stuff. So good for them, I guess, if that’s the case.
My first thought — and I apologize — is that they are both so fug.
Secondly, didn’t she survive cancer/chemo, maybe twice? SO did she freeze her eggs and hope she’d meet someone to fertilize them? I thought chemo made you sterile. If that’s the case, then double-yuck for snatching this young man.
Sometimes you just get blindsided. When I was 35 I hooked up with a 22 y/o thinking we were gonna have a fun little fling. Instead, we fell ass over tea kettle in love. I wasn’t bothered by other people’s hang ups, because f*ck what they think, although there was plenty of judgement, mostly aimed at me. I wonder if these two started out similarly and decided they couldn’t resist. Relationships are hard to work out even in the most ideal situations. With as many added complications as they’ve got going, the feelings must be undeniable. I think it’s brave.
Hahah @ the Gene Wilder comments. It’s true! And I think it’s supercute. He’s a very pretty young man.
She’s…a lucky old broad.
His mustache is horrible. It is all wonky.
Not to be a complete bitch but it’s not the age difference that makes me think they won’t last, it’s the age difference and the fact that he’s quite clearly so hot and she um is not so much. They just don’t make sense to me, unless it was just a fling but she got knocked up and now they’re ‘making it work’ or something
That kid is gorgeous. He likes to “ugly” himself up like Johnny Depp or Brad Pitt, but he can’t mask the dreamy. Those eyes! He will grow out of this just like Patrick Dempsey did – remember when McDreamy was a teen actor shacked up with an older lady?
I am a bit jealous that she is still able to get preggers at 43. I’m 41 and my eggs are pretty much DOA.
ha ha ha ha!!! He looks like a cartoon character villain!! I am 8 years older than my husband. At first it really bothered me but true love won out. We have been together a long time & the age difference is no longer an issue. However, this is a disparaging age difference & I don’t see it lasting long term.
In a few years time they will be Demi and Ashton 2.0.
Every day there are people procreating who should NOT be, with age being the least of their problems. At least this couple appears to be in love and has enough financial backing to support a family, which puts them head and shoulders above a lot of parents these days.
A child might not notice the age of their parents, but they WILL notice if there is no love in their house or food on their table.
Oh lord, the blond garish dye and mustache definitely do not sit well with Aaron Johnson. Distractedly so!
wait- just so were clear- everyone would be ok with their 19 son coming home with a pregnant 41 your old woman with 3 other kids?
while its nice to see an acceptance of “personal happiness”, there is a sense of hypocrisy that these two would not be as supported/tolerated if the genders were reversed.
personally, that age difference always sends up flags in any relationship.
please stop sayin she stole his adolescence because he is where he chose the fuck to be. she didn’t force him into anything and he should have been more responsible if he didn’t want kids. if your grown son brought home a cougar and you got all holy about it then good for you but stop implying as fact that she trapped him and he is stuck. If he wants to split he could.
@Victoria, Nice! 🙂
REMEMBER THE DEMI
That moustache of his is utterly ridiculous.
Meh, they look happy. The relationship will last however long it lasts, then they’ll both move on. Just like every other relationship on the planet.
the double standards make me sick. No one would raise an eyebrow if the older person was a MAN and he was dating a YOUNGER WOMAN and if she was in great demand.
Why are you so obsessed with them? Get over it.
YUCK!!!! Not right any way you slice it. WAY to big an age difference. This wont last, As if when he is her age and she is 65 he will still be with her – no way!
@Maddox-Hmmmm. You made me change my attitude. Maybe they just couldn’t resist and the hell with the rest of the world.
Yes, if I had a 19 year old son came home with a 40 year old woman I would not have an issue. He is old enough to lose his life in war, he is old enough to make that choice. It would not be my most favorite scenario but if she were a decent good person and he was happy then I would be supportive. Luckily my offspring are still too young to even think about it. He is an actor so he does live in a different environment. My biggest ? is the babies so fast but she is at an age where they had to have to them now or maybe it would never happen.
The difference I see between these two and Demi and Ashton is the fact that she is not a vain actress grasping for 29. If in the end it doesn’t work out maybe it will be like it is for every other divorced couple and not because he’s a tool like Ashton.
Why not just enjoy the fact that love exists in such many-splendored ways?
He is beautiful, she is beautiful, they are happy.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so all of you people out there who use that dried-up, old “fugly” defense? Look in the mirror. I’m sure there is someone out there who thinks the same of you.
Not *just* an ugly hipster (for a role, whatever)…a weird ugly hipster.
People raise their eyebrows at large age differences all the time when the female is the younger one, I don’t see the use in pretending that they don’t. Even after centuries of it being only somewhat east of standard, it still causes a dust-up on occasion. Celine, Shoshanna, Clooney, Hefner, Kutcher anyone James Woods has ever touched–people talk, who says people don’t notice? People don’t get into as much of a flap when it’s the older man, I’m not denying that, it’s frequently taken as a badge of honour in our high-five culture to be able to entice young, female flesh, but the general unspoken assumption is that he is not looking to make a life with the very Little Miss She, and if he is, he’s looking at a tough road to plough in his future. Gold-digger, Sugar Daddy, these terms may have been ‘reclaimed’ to some degree, but they were originally pejoratives and still today there’s kind of an understood trade-off in what you gain in ass, you lose in respect. I’m not suggesting that old perverts merit some kind of ticker tape parade to illustrate their pain to an unfeeling public in slow-moving float and classic car form, I’m merely saying that I’m not buying the notion that old men and young women May-December unions don’t spawn their own fleets of disapproving groans and bemused eyerolls. How often do people first assume ‘Oh, it’s love. I’m sure he’s not wealthy and there’s a good chance she’s homely and a great conversationalist and there’s a lot of integrity in this home’?
If you’re going to date someone, do it or don’t, but quit jumping down everyone’s throats and admonishing them about how much more evolved you are by moaning about what everyone else gets to do, as though one confused response acts as proof that a single overly self-regarding individual signed off on ‘Society’ and is purposefully trying to hold you back. Remember, as uncomfortable as this may make people, they lovers have not actually been prevented from living as they please, there are no institutionalized systems forcing them apart, they are not in any kind of danger and outside of gossip beats, they really aren’t on anyone’s radar (and even so, they’re kind of lower-rung fodder, returning to our collective memory every five months, or so) so perhaps they are in a greater sense, not so terribly persecuted after all, just irriated by the interest?
At any rate, I think you’ll find that beyond the first eyebrow, there’s not a person alive who wants to hear all about your boyfriend (that goes for anyone of any age) forever and ever. Amen. You have to be realistic with your expectations of people–yes, they’re going to find it weird to see a guy impregnate his girlfriend who is more than twice his age before having made it to his twenties– can you really hold it against them? Is it that such a human rights violation to find that odd, must we be so reactionary about everything?
If the roles were reversed, she would be on Teen Mom and we’d be calling for his head, and I honestly don’t think anyone would be mounting a Children’s Crusade. If we can put respective sexes and gender wars down for a minute, we have to accept that it’s a really significant age difference, he was extremely young when they fell in love, there are a bunch of kids in the mix and people are going to respond to that. I’m not sure even the parties involved could have seen that as anything other than inevitable, no matter how stable and mature their union may or may not prove to be. Maybe it’s just good enough that everyone is of seemingly sound mind and over the age of eighteen with full faculty over their state of their pupils and nervous systems.
‘Mama’ Besser, I enjoy reading your elaborate opinions.
STW went through a lot (cancer) and if I were her age and a young virile man like Aaron came into my life and connected with my on a romantical level, I wouldn’t push him away. Life is too short to think about something petty as age. If it feels good, it feels good. However, given the fact that STW concieved so soon and is again pregnant I expected a more adult take from her. I feel she just goes with it without thinking it through. She knows he’s young and horny. He’s the variable, she’s the constant. I would definitely hold out on babies until he’s wel over 25 because the boy’s mind IS going to chance and when that happens, he won’t stick around for 10 years. He’s going to want to play the field. I don’t think that Aaron was ready to make such a heavy decision to be a parent. STW already been through that, so it’s different for her. Also, because they’re both artist, their brains don’t work in the way non-artistic people think. I suspect their relationship is very physical and torrid which she loves because after such a emotional heavy ordeal as cancer, she is know adored physically and mentally by a young stud. It’s an extreme ego boost. But that will wear out (she menopause and he will grow up and get sick of such a heavy responsibility).
———————–
Personal:
My lady friend was always together with men at least 10 years her senior. Now (she’s 22) she’s emotionally ready to date men her age. Unfortunately, she has 2 kids and she won’t admit it but we all know she’d rather be single, childless and more carefree. She hates the responsibility and the constant having to think about her babies who she left behind and did nothing to get them back. Quite sad…
I can’t blame her for wanting to have children at her age. There is nothing more heart-breaking than a woman with a child wish who can’t have children. The fact that she chose a 19-year old boy to father her child is dodgy to say the least. It reeks of selfishness, but then again he might be very happy being a young dad. Let’s just hope that he won’t resent her for it later on in life.
So why does he look like Willie Wonka now?
@Maddox – same thing happened to me. When I was 39 I met a great guy; he was 24. He actually looked a little like this guy. I had no intention of getting serious with him but we fell in love. We were involved almost 3 years. Ultimately it didn’t work out because he wasn’t ready to have kids, I’ve only started thinking about that recently. But, I had the chance to experience love in this stinky city, and I don’t regret it. The blonde hair and mustache is for a movie he’s in, I think.
EWWWWW. He looks like a young Colonel Sanders.
Which one of them is supposed to be 21?
I hate these stories about people I don’t know or care about.
On that note… The young dude is cute, in a Dirk Diggler kind of way.
I agree creepy and icky also olive oly ish.
I don’t see why people seem to think she stole his life away. Since when did getting married and having children end your life?
HE can totally have it. that dude is flippin’ fine ass HELL! and i’m not even into blondes. DAYUMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!
Ick! No! Just! No! This seems like something from a movie! He is so young especially to have so much responsibility. If this was my 19 year old son and he impregnated a person my age I would be absolutely horrified! I would also be horrified if my 20 year old daughter became pregnant to a man my age so it has nothing to do with the gender balance! In fact I find alot of the comments here talking about creepy older men praying on young girls but in this scenario people are talking about women’s empowerment and good on her etc when it is her cougaring on a young boy! Both are creepy and inappropriate
@NM2005: Thank-you, that’s a sweet thing to say!
I think in the end, all roof-hitting can be traced back to a phrase we’ve all heard in one form of another at at least one point in our years of fertility:
Don’t bring no babies ’round here. (Unrelated: this was effectively the ‘birds and bees’ talk I received from my mother the morning after menarche, save, her version was far more terse…I mean, I *guess* it worked–seeing as how my womb has been emptier that John Galliano’s work schedule–but it was an oddly hushed Rocky And Bullwinkle and walk to my bus stop that ensued. It’s hard out there for pre-teen.)
Can’t fight the freakout, it’s all but encoded in our DNA at this point. I’ve seen enough sitcoms to know that that introduction might as well have gone, ‘Shit, Meet Fan’. Good luck to all involved, it’s always nice when you can end a topic discussion with, ‘Well, it’s not my job to care’ without fear of reprisal.
*
@crazycatlady: That comment kind of cracked me up. Technically, isn’t that true of all of the stories?
They look very happy together ! And that can only be a good thing. I’ve read a bundle of Aaron Johnson interview and he seem so wise for his years. They look so much in love, I’m still a little jealous. He is fabulously handsome. Even with dyed blonde hair and a tash ! They’re relationship seems incredibly genuine and they actually quite suit eachother, They look nice together. Age is just a number, it’s how compatible they are as a couple that’s the most important thing. I still have naughty thoughts about him though !