#20. Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise is well-known because of movies like Top Gun (1986), Jerry Maguire (1996) and the Mission: Impossible franchise. Also, his personal life has been under the tabloid’s radar, especially because of his many romantic relationships. During the ‘90s, everyone loved the romance between the actor and the Australian actress Nicole Kidman and they looked adorable together both on and off-screen. The couple adopted two children, Isabella Jane and Connor Antony, but in 2001, their marriage ended in a divorce.
Apparently, the kids wanted to live with their dad and it's rumored that they never called Nicole “mom”. We really don’t know if this is true, but what we do know is that both Isabella and Connor moved with Tom. The actor received the help of his two sisters, especially when he was away because of work. Years later, Cruise had a daughter called Suri with actress Katie Holmes, but apparently, he doesn’t see her often because of strong differences with Katie. Poor girl!
#19. Johnny Depp
The talented actor Johnny Depp and his long-time girlfriend Vanessa Paradis spent over a decade together, although they never chose to get married. In fact, the couple had two children together, both of them born in France: Lily-Rose was born on May 37, 1999 and Jack was born on April 9, 2002. The couple split up in 2012 and the two children decided to stay with their father. They were old enough to make this decision on their own, as Jack was 10 years old and Lily-Rose was already a teenager.
Johnny has always declared that his love for his family is stronger than anything in this world and he proved it in 2007 when Lily-Rose had a severe kidney infection. Depp decided to abandon his professional obligations at that time and stay with his daughter the entire time she was in the hospital. The actor was so grateful to the doctors and nurses that as a thank you, he dressed up like Jack Sparrow, his famous character from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, and spent the entire day playing with the sick children.
#18. Al Pacino
It’s not that we are letting the cat out of the bag when we say that Al Pacino loves his family and that he tries to keep his personal issues away from the public eye. Al Pacino doesn’t talk very much about his children or relationships, but sometimes he can’t help his personal issues coming out to the surface. It happens to be that Al Pacino has two beautiful twins, called Anton James and Olivia Rose, with the actress Beverly D’Angelo. When the couple decided to split up, they started a tough custody battle in which they agreed in sharing their responsibilities and spend equal amount of time with their kids.
In the end, both stars declared they had to leave their differences aside and think about what was better for their children. As regards Pacino, he once confessed to have suffered when he was a boy because he never had a close relationship with his father, and he never wanted his kids to go through that too. Pacino had a third child,Julie Marie, but with a different woman, and today she's a well-accomplished screenwriter and producer.
#17. Usher
Some custody battles do not end as peacefully as Al Pacino and D’Angelo's. In 2009, singer Usher and his former wife Tameka Foster filed for a divorce and started a three-year bitter custody battle over their sons, both claiming sole custody. The couple had two children together, Usher Raymond V who was born in November 2007 and Naviyd Ely Raymond born in December 2008. In August 2012, the court decided to give the full custody of their children to Usher, arguing that the kids had a stronger and closer bond with their dad.
Things weren’t easy for this former couple, as Tameka tried to re-open the custody case a few times, especially when Usher V almost got drowned in Usher’s pool because his arm was caught in the drain. The court denied Tameka the temporary primary custody, and in the end, she even admitted that Usher wasn't to blame for the incident.
#16. Cristiano Ronaldo
The Juventus soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo is famous worldwide because of his talent and millions of fans around the world that want to play and be like him. Cristiano is so famous that every tabloid wants to know everything about his personal life. However, Cristiano likes to keep his private issues to himself, and even to this days, he hasn’t revealed who's the mother of his son, Cristiano Jr. In 2017, he announced he would become father of twins, Eva Maria and Mateo. Shortly after, he announced that he would have sole custody and once again decided not to reveal the name of the mother.
As the case with many international stars, there are plenty of rumors regarding who the mother of his children is, and some believe that the soccer player paid the birth mother to stay quiet. We really don’t know if this is true, but what we do know is that Cristiano is a devoted father and he receives the help of his mother, Dolores Aveiro.
#15. Jamie Foxx
Another male celebrity who keeps his personal life in private is the actor and comedian Jamie Foxx. Even though we all found out about his long-time secret relationship with actress Katie Holmes, we never knew anything about his previous romances or marriages. The only thing he has chosen to reveal is that he has the sole custody of his two daughters, Corrine Foxx and Annalise Bishop. Both of them were born to different mothers but Jamie loves them equally. Up to this day, Jamie has never revealed the identity of the two women.
Corrine is 24 years old and she is a model and actress, just like his father. She is also part of the Creative Artists Agency. Foxx has always been very supportive of Corrine and he's always there by her side at the runways. Annalise, on the other hand, is only 8 years old. Will she grow up to be an Oscar-winning actress just like her father?
#14. Lenny Kravitz
Like many rock stars, Lenny Kravitz lived his life to the fullest. In 1987, he ran off to Las Vegas and secretly married Lisa Bonet, his girlfriend at the time. One year later, the couple welcomed their first and only child, Zoe Isabella Kravitz. Their marriage didn’t last so long and in 1993 they got a divorce, though they ended in good terms. In fact, Lisa then got married to actor Jason Momoa, A.K.A Khal Drogo and Aquaman, and the three of them seem to be very close friends!
The singer declared many times that the birth of his daughter was the best thing that ever happened to him. Both of them seem very close and Lenny has been very supportive of her, especially when she decided to become an actress. You may have seen Zoe in the film Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald or in the HBO series Big Little Lies.
#13. Idris Elba
The future Mr. James Bond, actor Idris Elba, is the father of two children: a girl called Isan, who is 16, and a son called Winston, who's 4. However, the kids were born to different mothers. To begin with, Isan was born shortly after Elba's marriage to the make-up artist Hanne Kim Norgaard, but when the two got divorced, the girl stayed with her mother in Atlanta, Georgia.
In April 2014, Idris and his girlfriend at the time, Naiyana Garth, welcomed their first and only son. Nowadays, Idris and Naiyana are no longer together but the boy lives with his dad. Idris once said in an interview that he loves being a dad and that he's always there for his son. Keep on reading and discover our top 12 celebrity dads!
#12. The Prince Of Wales
Charles, Prince of Wales and Princess Diana were once the most famous couple in the world, and the royal couple welcomed to children: Harry and William. The couple got divorced in 1996, but one year later, Diana tragically died in a car crash and Charles was left in charge of the kids.
You can imagine that it's hard for a royal member to stay away from the tabloids, but in spite of that, Charles always tried to keep his two sons far from the public eye. As to his sons, they are very talented men who now have their own families. As to Harry, you've probably heard that he recently decided to abandon the Royal charter and moved with his wife Meghan Markle and their son Archie to Canada.
#11. Seal
When British singer Seal started to date German supermodel Heidi Klum in 2004, everyone went crazy, especially because Heidi was expecting a baby with his ex, Flavio Briatore. But hey, let's not judge her, you never know when love will come knocking at your door! The couple got married one year later and they looked adorable together. Obviously, fans were devastated when they announced their divorce, but at least they ended in good terms.
Seal is an example of a good and present father. He adopted Heidi’s first daughter Helene Leni Boshoven Klum, and the couple had three more children: Henry Gunther born in September 2005, Johan Riley born November 2006 and Lou Sulola born October 2009. Although Heidi and Seal are no longer together, they often share time together with their children.
#10. David Arquette
Does David Arquette ring a bell? Well, if you don't know him, I'm sure you know his ex-wife, the actress Courtney Cox, A.K.A Monica Geller from the famous TV series Friends. The couple got married in 1999 right when Courtney was on the top of her career, so the event was a trending topic in the tabloids. Courtney and David had one daughter called Coco Arquette, born in 2004. After 11 years of marriage, the couple decided to divorce peacefully and without any major scandals. They remained friends, mainly for the sake of their daughter.
Every now and then, Courtney and David get together to spend some family time together with Coco. When David was part of the dancing competition TV series Dancing With The Stars, Courtney and Coco went to the show to cheer for him. David eventually got engaged to Christina McLarty and they have a son together, Charlie West.
#9. Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Wade is one of the best basketball players of all time as he has been a 3-time NBA champion and an All-Star player. Whenever he’s not playing on the courts, he dedicates his time to raise his two sons, Zion and Zaire. Wade married his high school sweetheart Siohvaughn Funces and the couple stayed together until 2010, when they got a divorce.
The basketball player decided to assume the full custody of their sons and also help in the raising of his sister’s son, Dahveion. Wade declared that he really enjoys spending time with his boys and he wants to be a role model for them so that they become good people. In 2012, he wrote a book called A Father First: How My Life Became Bigger Than Basketball. Wade also endorses a national program that encourages fathers to be more present in their children’s life. You go, Wade!
#8. Ryan Phillippe
You've probably seen American actor Ryan Phillippe in the film Cruel Intentions (1999). While he was shooting the film, he started dating the American sweetheart Reese Witherspoon. Both of them were young and beautiful and everybody thought they were the perfect couple. They got married less than a year later and had two children together: Ava Elizabeth, born in 1999, and Deacon Reese, born in 2003.
The couple stayed together for almost 10 years, until they decided to divorce in 2008. However, the two remained friends, mainly for the sake of their children. Ryan declared many times that he loves spending time with them and the four have even gone on vacations together. The actor then had a third daughter, Kailani, with the actress Alexis Knapp.
#7. James Marsden
James Marsden has been in movies like Westworld and the X-Men franchise, where he played Scott Summers. However, you probably didn't know that he's also a devoted and lovely father. James married the actress Mary Elizabeth Linde in July 2000 and together they had two children: Jack Holden, born in February 2001 and Mary James, born in August 2005.
The couple divorced in 2011 and since then, James has become a single dad. Unlike many couples who end their relationships in bad terms, the former couple spends time together with their children and it seems the new family dynamic is working out great. James also became the father of a third child, William Luca. In some interviews, James declared that he wants to teach their sons to be honest and respectful.
#6. Nelly
Let’s take a look at the curious case of hip-hop star Nelly. The singer has two children: a daughter called Chanel Haynes, who was born in February 1994, and a son called Cornel “Tre” Haynes III, born March 1992. Both of them live with their father, but that's not all! Nelly and his children live with two other people. Guess with whom!
On March 2005, Nelly’s sister Jackie Donahue tragically died after fighting against leukemia for several years. Her two children, Sydney and Sean Thomas, were left motherless, but Nelly didn’t hesitate and decided to take full custody of his niece and nephew. Nowadays, they're one big family of two brothers, two sisters and a dad!
#5. Peter Facinelli
You probably know actor Peter Facinelli from the Twilight franchise, where he played Dr. Carlisle, the sexy vampire doctor. Peter rose to fame after the release of the first installment, and shortly after, he got married to Beverly Hills 90210 star Jennie Garth. But 12 years later, the celebrity couple decided to call it quits and filed for a divorce.
Peter and Jennie had three daughters: Luca Bella, born in June 1997, Lola Ray, born in December 2002, and Fiona Eve, born on September 2006. The former couple decided to share their daughters’ custody: while the girls spend most of the year with their mom, they get to spend an entire month with their dad. Peter has declared in an interview that he finds parenting fascinating. Good for him!
#4. Sean Combs
Sean Combs, aka P. Diddy or Puff Daddy, may well be considered as the ultra-mega-single-father of the year. But why? He has five children from three different marriages, yet he manages to spend time with all of them together several times a year. His eldest son, Justin, was born in 1993 to Misa Hylton-Brim. In the ‘90s, he had a long-term relationship with Kimberly Porter and they had a son called Christian and twin daughtersD’Lila Star and Jessie James. Finally, in 2006, he had a daughter called Chance with Sarah Chapman.
Although he only has the sole custody of Chance, he is a very present father to all his children. In fact, we often see them all together and he loves going on vacations with them. In addition, during all those years he and Kimberly Porter were together, he also helped her raise her first son, Quincy, and he even considers him as a son of his own. What a great example of a dad!
#3. Bob Geldof
You may know singer Bob Geldof from the 80’s band The Boomtown Rats or from his hit single Do They Know It’s Christmas. Bob met rock journalist Paula Yates in 1976 and after a decade together, they got married in 1976. The couple had three daughters: Fifi Trixibelle, born March 1983, Peaches, born March 1980, and Little Pixie, born September 1990. In 1996, Yates decided to file for divorce and moved in with INXS singer Michael Hutchence.
Sadly, Geldof's family started to be stricken by tragedy ever since the divorce. In 1997, Hutchence committed suicide and Yates tried to kill herself the next year. Ever since those tragic events, Bob took the sole custody of their daughters, and three years later, Yates died from an overdose. Apart from his three daughters, Bob decided to raise Yates and Hutchence's daughter, Tiger Lily, too. What a man!
#2. Liam Neeson
You probably remember Liam Neeson’s character in the romantic comedy Love Actually, don't you? Well, you should know that his real-life story is tragically similar to that of his Love Actually character. In 1994, Neeson married actress Natasha Richardson and they had two sons, Michael Richard Antonio and Daniel Jack. Both of them were very young when Natasha passed away in a skiing accident. Everyone was devastated but Neeson knew he had to stay strong for the sake of his sons.
Fortunately, the actor received help and company from many family members and friends, including the U2 singer Bono. The singer stood by Neeson’s sons and told them he understood how they felt, as he had lost his mother at a very young age too. In recent interviews, Neeson has declared he loves being a dad but gets worried too easily!
#1. Rick Moranis
Let's take a look at the case of Rick Moranis. You probably remember the actor from films like Spaceballs (1987), Ghostbusters (1984), Honey I Shrunk The Kids (1989) and Little Shop Of Horror (1986). Rick was at the peak of his career when his wife, Ann Belsky died in 1986 after battling cancer for a few years.
Rick was left with their two children, Rachel and Mitchell. If the loss was hard for Rick, imagine for his kids! Rick didn’t hesitate and decided to abandon his career and focus on his family. In many interviews, he has declared it was the best decision for everyone, especially because he could now spend his entire day with his children and help them through such a difficult time. Also, even though acting had always been his passion, he said he didn't miss fame at all! What a brave, noble and touching decision, don't you think?