Longtime actress Annette Bening has racked up a slew of awards nominations over the course of her more than four-decade career in Hollywood, including two Golden Globes, two Tonys and five Academy Awards.
And now, Bening is up for her fifth Oscar this year for her portrayal of champion swimmer Diana Nyad in the drama "Nyad" (2023), in which she starred opposite Jodie Foster.
Bening's long and spanning career has made her basically a permanent fixture in the industry. But despite her long resumé, she has also prioritized her personal life. Bening's children have enjoyed life mostly outside of the spotlight, despite having two incredibly talented parents.
Bening married fellow actor and filmmaker Warren Beatty — best known for starring in "Bonnie and Clyde" (1967) — in 1992, and they have been together ever since.
Despite a 21-year age gap between the two, they've been married for more than 30 years, putting them among Hollywood's most successful age-gap relationships.
The happy couple also have four children together. Beatty was 54 when his first child was born, but he told the Washington Post in 2004 he has no regrets having children later in life.
"I never looked back on that," he said. "It was a decision I had made on my behalf, and [Bening] agreed."
Fast forward over 30 years of marriage, and the couple have four adult children together, including rising star Ella Beatty, who recently made her onscreen debut in Ryan Murphy's "Feud: Capote Vs. Swans."
Here's everything we know about Annette Bening and Warren Beatty's children:
Stephen Ira Beatty (32 years old)
Instagram/Stephen Ira Beatty
The oldest of Beatty and Bening's children, Stephen was born on Jan. 8, 1992 — only a month after the opening of the couple's first movie together, the romantic gangster drama "Bugsy" (1991).
When he was around 20, Stephen shared publicly that he identified as a transgender man and had started transitioning from female to male as a teenager.
At first, Bening and Beatty were very protective of Stephen's privacy with the media and refused to talk about him or his transition. But as time has gone on, they've both become passionate advocates for the LGBTQ+ community and been open about their initial hesitations.
"He's a revolutionary, a genius and my hero, as are all my children," Beatty told Vanity Fair in 2016.
"He's managed something that's very challenging with great style and great intelligence," Bening said to AARP in 2019. "He's an articulate, thoughtful person, and I'm very, very proud of him."
In the wake of some legislative efforts to restrict access to health care for trans children and adults in recent years, Bening told The View in January 2024 that she has been more vocal about trans rights.
"At the beginning, I felt very protective of his privacy because he's the son of these two famous people. I felt it was his right to say what he wanted to say publicly or not," she said. "As time has gone on, especially now with what's happening, unfortunately in the political process, trans people are being used, fear and ignorance is being stoked against trans people in the most frightening way."
In his adult years, Stephen has decided to follow a portion of his parents' passions by getting into political activism. (Beatty has long been a champion of progressive causes and campaigned for political candidates early on in his career. Meanwhile, Bening heavily criticized the Trump administration and actively supports Planned Parenthood.)
He often uses his platform to advocate for transgender people. In 2013, Stephen appeared in a GLAAD video to raise awareness for the difficulties that trans people experience in accessing health care.
"I've always known that I wanted to move [to New York City] for the city's vibrant artistic community," he said. "As a trans person, I would hope that I'd be welcomed, but many trans people aren't because we don't have the basic health care coverage that we need to survive."
Stephen is also a writer. In 2022, The Paris Review published his stream-of-consciousness meditation on his experiences of transphobia and homophobia called "How to Wash Your Hands." He also published a poetry magazine, "This Zine Has Everything."
"Stephen has always been a highly literary person," Bening said to the Hollywood Reporter in 2023. "I just read his latest poem that was just published; wow, it is so extraordinary. I'm so proud of him."
Benjamin Beatty (29 years old)
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
Bening and Beatty's second oldest, Benjamin, was born on Aug. 23, 1994.
He made his entrance into the world just before the release of the romantic comedy "Love Affair" (1994), starring both of his parents.
Deciding to follow in his parents' footsteps, Benjamin studied theater at Northwestern University, his father's alma mater, and graduated in 2013.
After graduation, he grabbed a small role in the Coen brothers' mystery-comedy film "Hail, Caesar!" (2016) as a clapper boy. Two years later, he played Lee in the science-fiction thriller "UFO" (2018) alongside Gillian Anderson. However, he hasn't earned any mainstream acting credits since then.
Beatty said to People in 2016 that being a father is one of his proudest accomplishments.
"That's the biggest thing that's ever happened to me — and their mother," he said. "That's bigger than fame, and it came not a moment too soon."
Isabel Beatty (27 years old)
Marc Piasecki/GC Images
The happy couple welcomed their first daughter, Isabel, on Jan. 11, 1997.
Beatty told the Washington Post in 2004 that Isabel was witty even as a young child and that she developed a habit of reading his bad reviews.
"'Daddy, what's the meanest thing anyone's ever written about you?'" Warren recalled Isabel asking him. "'Daddy, were you once a brash and rumpled star?'"
When Isabel was 17, she attended the 2014 Debutantes Ball in Paris, with her mother watching proudly.
The young Beatty told Madame Figaro at the time that she was initially hesitant about being a debutante.
"At first, I wasn't very enthusiastic about what I thought would be a somewhat boring aristocratic gathering," she said. "But it's ultimately very international, modern and fashionable! In Paris, what's more. It's magical."
She also told the publication that her mother was her idol: "She is the strongest woman in my life."
When she was 20, Isabel wrote for the improvisational comedy series "Quality Sketch." More recently, she also grabbed a few small roles in short films such as "Murder Tag" (2018), "Admitted" (2021) and "Get Loved" (2022).
"My parents passed on to me an unconditional love for cinema," she said to Madame Figaro.
When she's not acting or writing, Isabel's Instagram indicates she loves to cook with her mother and her sister, watch classic movies and love on her siblings.
Ella Beatty (23 years old)
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
The Hollywood couple's youngest child, Ella, was born on April 8, 2000 - when Bening was 42 and Beatty was 63.
Growing up watching her mother on sets and seeing her father in the director's chair, her parents' passion for the entertainment industry clearly rubbed off on her.
She earned a spot at the prestigious Juilliard School and immediately started performing in plays, including as Leonora in "God's Ear" as a senior.
"Getting to play alongside my family at Juilliard after almost four years of intensive training was insane," Ella wrote on Instagram.
She shared with Women's Wear Daily in 2024 the most important thing she was told at Juilliard: "Stay ready so you don't gotta get ready."
And she took that to heart. Soon after graduating, Ella jumped almost immediately into her professional career upon earning a part in Ryan Murphy's series "Feud: Capote vs. The Swans," which premiered in January 2024.
She plays Kerry O'Shea, the surrogate daughter of Truman Capote (Tom Hollander) in a cast that also includes legendary actresses such as Naomi Watts, Demi Moore and Diane Lane.
Ella told People in 2024 that her accomplished mother gave her advice before she stepped into acting: "Kindness, treat people with respect, work really hard and be grateful."
Speaking to Vogue in 2024, Ella said she recognized her status as a "nepo baby," coming from an A-list Hollywood family.
"I totally acknowledge that there is an inherent privilege and exposure that comes from having well-known actors as parents," she said. "And I really hope that I can offer something meaningful."
But she also told WWD that getting close and personal with successful filmmakers such as her parents gave her valuable insight into the industry.
"When you are the child of such wonderful artists, the best advice that you get is their example," she said. "Just watching my mom backstage, watching how hard she works, even watching how she memorizes her lines, that's how I learn my dialogue now."
Ella says she's super close to her mother. When Bening was nominated for an Oscar for her role in "Nyad," she praised her mom to The Associated Press.
"She's the best in life. She's the best in her work. She doesn't need a trophy to know that she's one of the best," she said "But it's so meaningful to be recognized and I'm just so excited for her. She's my best friend."
Next, Ella is set to replace Elle Fanning as River in Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' acclaimed Broadway play "Appropriate" alongside Sarah Paulson and Corey Stoll. She'll also appear in the A24 film "If I Had Legs I'd Kick You" this year, starring Rose Byrne and A$AP Rocky.
With all their children grown up, Beatty and Bening are now adjusting to life as empty-nesters.
"Sometimes it's hard for me to let go and just remember, 'Oh, that's not my job anymore,'" she said to People. "I'm so proud of these adult children, who aren't children, but they're my kids," she said. "They're all so different and they're all out there discovering themselves and their voices. We think we're there to teach them, and, of course, what we realize is that they teach us everything."
