This Is Why Renée Zellweger Doesn't Have Any Children

Although it is truly no one's business, over the years, Renée Zellweger has been asked many times whether or not she plans to have children of her own. She's won countless awards for her work as an actress, made a lot of money throughout the years, and helped charitable causes. There are a lot of things to ask her about, yet people are still asking if she plans to have kids.

In 2016, Zellweger did an interview with Extra promoting Bridget Jones's Baby. In the film, Zellweger's character finds out that she's pregnant, which prompted the interviewer to ask the real-life counterpart if playing the role led to "craving" a baby of her own. "I've never really thought like that about anything in my life, really," she said. "I've always been kind of open to whatever may be, curious to see what's next. I've never been that deliberate about my life and the things that I would require in order to be happy."

After shutting down that question, Zellweger explained how the title character has inspired her own life. The actress said, "She makes it OK to be imperfect." She continued, "She makes it OK to be human at a time when we feel probably that there's a lot of social pressure to be a certain way, to look a certain way, to have established certain things in your life by a certain phase in your life experience. She's sort of challenging those notions." 

In a 2008 interview with The London Times (via Elle Australia), Renée Zellweger addressed the possibility of motherhood, saying, "Motherhood has never been an ambition. I don't think like that. I never have expectations like 'when I'm 19 I'm going to do this, and by the time I've hit 25 I'm going to do that'." That being said, she didn't completely rule out the idea of becoming a mom, adding, "I just take things as they come, each day at a time, and if things happen, all well and good. I just want to be independent and be able to take care of myself. Anything else is just gravy."

In 2009, Zellweger broached the topic again in a since-deleted Daily Star interview. She shared (via Express), "My brother has two children now, so I've been playing aunt Renée. They're two and four. It's chaos." She continued, "Moms out there, kudos to you. The cool thing about being an aunt is like, I can leave. No offense to my big brother Drew, but that is slavery. I dare you to take a shower. You can't do anything unless they let you. It's a dictatorship. They're little dictators in their crib."

While she acknowledged how tough it is to be a parent, she doesn't mind helping out. She added, "Every now and then I'll step up and say, 'You know what, everybody sleep in, because you guys need some sleep and aunt Renée is going to take charge."

During a 2009 interview with InStyle, Renée Zellweger was asked, "What makes you feel like a kid?" In response, the Judy star said, "Oh, being 50! I feel energized and full of wonder and excitement about what's ahead. And, of course, driving down the Pacific Coast Highway with the windows down and the music loud! There's that!" 

When the interview turned to age, the Academy Award winner said, "It's not aging. It's growing! It's [the] acquisition of the most valuable things: experience and knowledge and grace and insight." She is not inhibited by the preconceived notions that come with reaching a certain age. Instead, she said she would "rather celebrate each phase of [her] life and be present in it than mourn something that's passed. I don't want to miss this moment to be something that I used to be."

Unfortunately for Zellweger and other females — public figures or not — the questions about if and when they're going to have children are not going to die down anytime soon. Regardless, it's her body, her life, and her choice, no matter what anyone has to say about her.