But nowhere was anyone putting their hand up and addressing the elephant in the room:should we be scared (not excited) that Robert De Niro is having a baby at 79?
The Peter Pan syndrome of famous men is not new;you can’t kick a rock down Hollywood Boulevard without hitting a guy born before the First World War but whose girlfriend is on TikTok.
And coming up with a list of examples is easy because the minute De Niro announced his baby news,the algorithm kicked into gear. Aware that people would be searching online for “old actors with young babies”,websites started pumping out listicles.
Thanks to US Weekly’sCelebrity Dads Who Had Children Late in Life,I know that Alec Baldwin had two kids at 62,Richard Gere had one at 69 (and again at 71),and Steve Martin became a father for the first time at 67. Yeah,the guy from Parenthood (1989) waited until 2012 to actually give it a go.
The age-old problem we have here is that these men do not see old age as a problem at all.
While we may roll our eyes at the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio and his penchant for dating women under the age of 25,what De Niro is doing is more irresponsible.
Putting aside the issue of what constitutes an acceptable age gap,surely common sense suggests that once these Peter Pan men hit a particular age – let’s say 50 – they should approach sex in the same way they approach steep hills;safely.
Undoubtedly,there will be those who believe this entire column is ageist and everyone should be free to do whatever they want,whenever they want,however they want.
But at 79 years old,certain things should be off the table completely:parkour,spicy foods and becoming a parent.
Loading
I’m under no illusion he will be changing nappies or getting up for feeds. One of the perks of being rich is hiring people to help with the tricky bits,which is fine.
My wife and I regularly daydream about how much easier things would be if we were insanely wealthy. But all the money in the world can’t buy you more time,and time is what matters most.
The sad reality is that Robert De Niro’s seventh child will be on borrowed time with her father,making the decision selfish.