It may have taken Simon Cowell a while to come around the idea of becoming a parent, but now he couldn't be more of a doting father to his son Eric, named after his grandfather who passed away in 1999.
Eric is the America's Got Talent judge's eight-year-old son with his fiancée Lauren Silverman, who he has been with since 2013. He is also a stepfather to Lauren's son Adam, 17, who she shares with ex-husband Andrew Silverman.
Though throughout his career, the star, 63, has always been known for his icy and stern demeanor, he has previously admitted that having a son has totally softened him, and what's more, it has brought him a total twin! Eric is Simon's true mini-me, as you can see in all of the throwback photos below.
Simon previously gushed about what a wonderful change Eric's arrival in 2014 brought to his life, during an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show in 2021.
"He's the most amazing thing that ever happened to me. I adore him," he endearingly declared to the daytime show host and first-ever American Idol winner.
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"You're like a different dude with a child," Kelly joked, adding: "I think the vulnerable little side of you came out when you had a kid."
Simon relented, noting: "Maybe," before explaining: "After I lost my parents, I genuinely felt, Kelly, I would never feel that kind of love for anyone ever again. I thought that was it… until I saw the scan of him for the first time."
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The music producer then recalled the instant feelings of love he felt when he first saw the sonogram of Eric, and gushed: "From that moment I saw the scan, I was like 'That is it, I'm besotted.' Now I just cannot imagine my life without him."
Seeing as he has loved fatherhood so much, will Simon have another child? He recently confessed to The Sun: "Just two days ago I was thinking, 'It would be nice to have another.'"
He added: "Being a dad is the best thing that's ever happened to me. I love every second I spend with him. So then I'm thinking the next step is he's going to be a teenager. Those years when they're young – I had such an amazing experience all through those years, and I was thinking about it probably because of that."
Simon concluded: "Eric has got a lot of friends and we do a lot of things together as a family. But you never know with kids if they're happy being on their own or how would he feel if there was another one? So look, will it happen? I don't know. But I would love another kid. I really like being a dad."
Scroll below for more photos of Simon, Lauren, and their family.
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