Jon Hamm is about to become a first-time dad at 55, and fans are already questioning his age and the timing.
The Mad Men actor and his 38-year-old wife, Anna Osceola, are expecting their first child together, with the news confirmed on Monday, August 10.
The couple married in June 2023 after meeting on the set of Mad Men, marking a major shift for Hamm, who once seemed uncertain about marriage and fatherhood.
“Jon Hamm becoming a dad at this age is the most Mad Men ending possible,” one netizen reacted to the news.
Jon Hamm and Anna Osceola are expecting their first child, but his age has overshadowed the happy news
The pregnancy news first gained attention after photos from the couple’s Hamptons beach vacation, first obtained by the Daily Mail, showed Anna with a visible baby bump.
The 38-year-old was seen enjoying a relaxed day by the water with her husband, who wore gold swim trunks as the couple walked along the shoreline.
Other images showed the pair taking a dip in the ocean, turning a private moment into the first public glimpse of their growing family.
The outing also offered a rare look at the couple’s marriage, as they have largely kept their relationship away from the spotlight since tying the knot.
Reacting to the news, some critics pointed to Jon’s age, arguing that he will be in his 70s by the time his child reaches adulthood.
“He gonna be 73 once the kid reaches 18,” one person wrote, while another added, “Men must think 55 is the new 25.”
Someone else joked that Hamm could eventually be mistaken for his child’s grandfather, while another wrote, “55 and having to deal with a newborn god bless you, man.”
One netizen recalled becoming a parent in their 40s and already feeling old, adding that their own child now has friends whose grandparents are around the same age as them.
Hamm and Osceola’s Hamptons beach vacation gave fans their first glimpse of Anna’s baby bump
“I was 40 when our first child was born and 43 when our second child was born, and I felt like an old dad then,” the person wrote.
Others expressed, “When I was ten, my dad was thirty-two, not sixty-five. Wild stuff!!!”
Jon’s current plans for fatherhood are particularly notable because he wasn’t always certain he wanted children.
In a 2008 interview with the Guardian, the actor said, “I don’t necessarily want kids,” while explaining that he wasn’t sure parenthood was for him.
He also connected those feelings to growing up with divorced parents, saying he wasn’t convinced that having children would feel like the same celebration it was for people from stable families.
Later, while promoting a film in 2012, he bluntly told Us Weekly, “I’d be a terrible father! I see my friends who have children, and I’m like, ‘Dude, how are you even upright?'”
However, his outlook changed as his relationship with Anna became more serious.
After their 2023 marriage, Jon openly discussed the possibility of having children together and acknowledged that his age made him an “old dad.”
Social media users question whether 55 is too old for Jon to become a first-time dad and experience certain milestones
Stephanie Augello/Getty Images
“I hope [the marriage] turns into kids,” he told The Hollywood Reporter in 2024.
“It’s not lost on me that I’m 53. I will be the old dad, but so it goes. It could be a good thing. We’ll see.”
He credited intensive therapy and his relationship with Osceola with completely shifting his worldview.
Hamm explained that unpacking his childhood trauma allowed him to finally feel emotionally stable enough to let go of his fears about marriage and fatherhood.
Amy Sussman/Getty Images for Vanity Fair
Still, that explanation hasn’t stopped some fans from questioning whether his age makes becoming a first-time father unusual.
One person imagined Jon attending his child’s future graduation as a 75-year-old father, writing that “it just seems like a weird picture in my mind.”
Others brought up Hamm’s previous long-term relationship, with one critic writing, “Funny how he didn’t want to get married or have a baby with his last girlfriend of many years. Now he’s married with a baby on the way with someone else.”
Not everyone agreed with the criticism, however.
“It’s not lost on me that I’m 53. I will be the old dad, but so it goes…” the actor had candidly admitted in the past
Some people pushed back by pointing out that older parents can still have loving and meaningful relationships with their children.
“My dad was 55 when I was born and I turned out alright,” one person wrote on Reddit.
“A good thing. My dad was in his 50s when I was born. I had a wonderful childhood, and as a family we were very happy.”
Jon becoming a first-time dad at 55 may sound unusual, but older fatherhood is becoming more common in the U.S.
A 2024 study found that fathers aged 50 and older accounted for 1.1% of U.S. births between 2011 and 2022, with the figure rising to 1.3% by 2022.
The study also found that fathers aged 50 to 59 were associated with a 16% higher adjusted likelihood of preterm birth and a 14% higher likelihood of low birth weight compared with fathers aged 30 to 39.
The American Society for Reproductive Medicine similarly notes that advancing paternal age is associated with pregnancy complications, preterm birth, low birth weight and stillbirth.
At the same time, the organization notes that older parents can offer potential advantages, including greater financial stability and emotional maturity.
So while 55 may sound late to some fans, medical experts do not treat a specific age as a cutoff for fatherhood.
“Dealing with teenage angst in your 60s will be hectic… a child over 50 is definitely a choice,” one user wrote
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