Meryl Streep may be accustomed to the flashes of cameras and glamor of red carpets, but when it comes to her children, she has always remained fiercely private.
The 75-year-old's decision to protect her kids from the spotlight came from the advice of her friend Robert Redford. "'They are not your props'. I really admired the way he protected his family," she shared with Good Housekeeping in 2008.
The Oscar winning actress shares four children – Henry, Mamie, Grace and Louisa – with her ex-husband Don Gummer. The former couple were married for 45 years before they decided to discreetly call time on their relationship. A representative for Meryl told People in 2023: "Don Gummer and Meryl Streep have been separated for more than 6 years, and while they will always care for each other, they have chosen lives apart."
When asked whether motherhood or acting was more challenging, Meryl told The Washington Post: "Mothering. Definitely. Acting — that's praise, money, fulfillment."
"Mothering — they don't even say, 'Thank you.' There's no comparison to acting. I can't really call acting work, since it's secretly so fun."
Despite their mother's concern, Henry, Mamie, Grace and Louisa ultimately followed in her footsteps and garnered a taste for the limelight. HELLO! takes a closer look at the lives of the actress' children and reveals what they're doing today.
Born in November 1979, Henry is Don and Meryl's eldest child and only son. The 45-year-old decided to pave a different path for himself after dropping out of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts after two years.
Henry is a composer, singer, and songwriter whose work has been included in some of his mom's most famous movies – Julie and Julia and Ricki and the Flash. Discussing his passion for music, Henry told The New York Daily News: "For me, music was more stimulating from day to day. It was something that I didn't need to be working on a project to practice. I can do it whenever and I get satisfaction from completing songs that I never really got from acting."
Meryl's son has also been open in the past about the pressure he's faced due to his parents' success. "The fact that my mom is who she is can be overshadowing. Sometimes I worry that my story isn't good enough. Sure, my mom is part of the story and I don't get pissed when people ask me about her, but I wish I had something that could eclipse that as far as compelling storylines."
Henry tied the knot to Tamryn Gummer in 2019, and the couple share two children, daughter Ida June Gummer, born in July 2020, and son Quinn William Gummer, born in May 2022.
Unlike her brother, Mamie chose to pursue a career in acting and landed her first role at only 20 months old in her mom's 1986 film Heartburn. The 41-year-old proved to be a natural talent as she went on to star in The Lifeguard (2013), The Collection (2016), The Ward (2010), The Good Wife and The Good Fight.
In 2007, Mamie revealed what it is like to have such a famous mother. "At home she's not Meryl Streep — she's Mum; she's great and I love her a lot."
It seems the love is mutual as Meryl often gushes over her daughter: "She's brave and fearless and funny and free. She's a free talent. It doesn't have any cover-up — she's the real deal."
Meryl's daughter was the first out of her siblings to become a mother as she welcomed a baby boy with her now husband Mehar Sethi in 2019. The actress was previously married to Ben Walker but the pair divorced in 2013.
It comes at no surprise that Grace is also an actress and her first appearance came alongside her mom in the 1993 film House of Spirits. However, Grace also pursued a higher education as she followed in her mom's footsteps by attending her alma mater, Vassar College. The 37-year-old studied art history and Italian. Following her graduation, Grace starred in Frances Ha (2012), Aaron Sorkin's The Newsroom (2012-2014), Mr. Robot (2015-2019), American Horror Story (2011), and Good Girls Revolt (2015).
Grace enjoyed a whirlwind marriage with her ex-husband Tay Straithairn in 2019 as the pair divorced one year into their partnership. However, the star found love again with Mark Ronson in August 2021, and the couple share a daughter.
The apple clearly doesn't fall far from the tree as Louisa also graduated from Vassar while she pursued a career in the arts. The 33-year-old has a degree in psychology along with a fine arts master's degree in acting from the Yale School of Drama.
Louisa uses her middle name as her surname due to Screen Actors Guild rules that state you cannot go by the same name as an already established actress. Meryl's youngest child's big break came in The Gilded Age as Marian Brook.
However, Louisa goes by a different name by her mom. During an interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the budding actress revealed her mom calls her "Pickle".
Louisa confirmed her relationship with Anna Blundel in June 2024 via Instagram. "I am so lucky to work in the industry that I do. That I'm in a community of artists who also identify as LGBTQ," she told People in February 2025.
"So it’s just a warm, lovely welcome that I am blessed to have. I don’t take that for granted."
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