What to Know
Juggling motherhood and a career is always a challenge. But I think that there’s a new level of challenge when the career you’re balancing is being a celebrity. Think about it — even though they chose a public-facing job, celebrity moms didn’t ask to be famous. And when their personas become public domain, they lose a sense of autonomy. Even if you believe they asked for it, their kids certainly didn’t. Actress Amanda Seyfried recently talked about how her daughter Nina looks out for her while they’re out and about.
Her kids are used to their mom being a celebrity.
Seyfried told NET-A-PORTER her children “know that I’m a recognized person in the world, that I’m an actor and that me being on TV is very normal for them.” However, keeping her life in front of and behind the camera separate for their sake is also a priority.
Her children “also know that they’re safe at home and have their own privacy – and that’s everything,” she added. Maintaining her kids’ privacy is much easier when the family is at their upstate New York farm.
When they leave home, the kids get a first-hand experience of what it’s like to be a celebrity.
Raising kids when you’re in the public eye has to be a constant balancing act.
It can be a “bit jarring” for her kids when they go into the city, and people recognize Seyfried. I can’t imagine trying to shop or take your kid bowling and have a bunch of people taking your picture, or quoting ‘Mean Girls’ while you’re just trying to cross the street without getting hit by a New York City taxi.
Even when people stop Amanda Seyfried on the street, she says her daughter “seems to have an OK relationship with that.” The mom guessed Nina is “more curious” about her mom’s celebrity status than fearful.
Her daughter wants to look out for her mom.
“She does have an eagle eye, so if we’re in a room full of people, she’ll notice when people are taking pictures of me,” Seyfried said about her girl. “It’s not that she’s uncomfortable; she’s just a little bit protective of me in that way.”
It’s sweet that her eight-year-old is protective of her. And what’s cooler is that since Nina’s older, Seyfried can talk to her about what it’s like being in the public eye.
“I’ll let her know that it’s OK, but thanks for looking out,” she explained. “And it’s great to have that communication. Just because it’s comfortable for me and I’m used to it does not mean that she’s comfortable and she should be used to it. … it’s my life and isn’t hers, but it’s starting to become hers in some ways.”
Amanda Seyfried wants a quiet life for her son and daughter.
In a 2024 interview with SheKnows, Seyfried gushed about her family’s life on their farm. “The farm just is tenfold. It’s amazing. There’s so much peace that comes in from mother nature in general,” she said, adding it’s the reason she feels “sane.”
“Nobody follows me. When I lived in LA, there was a time when there were paparazzi around a lot, and that just doesn’t exist upstate,” she continued. “I don’t have to worry about it at all. It doesn’t have to be a one tiny fraction of a thought for me. It’s so much privacy, it’s insane. I love it.”
She added that she “wouldn’t have it any other way” and is “so grateful” that her kids “don’t have to worry about that either.”
