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Like all actors, James Marsden, 50, lives his life squarely in the spotlight. His film roles in Hairspray and X-Men and TV roles in Westworld and Dead to Me have made James so well-known to fans. One of James’ most recent hit roles was in the Amazon series Jury Duty, where he played himself. His performance earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.
The actor has, however, managed to keep his three children out of the public eye. James’ sons Jack, 22, and William, 11, and daughter Mary, 18, are pretty under the radar, although they did make a rare public appearance to support their famous father at the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 film premiere in April 2022 in LA.
James shares Jack and Mary with his ex-wife, Days of Our Lives alum Lisa Linde. Following their divorce in 2011, James had a third child, son William, with Brazilian model Rose Costa. James has gushed about his love for fatherhood before.
“Of all my achievements in life, being a father is the one thing I’m most proud of,” he previously told People. “It is the most fulfilling. I’m always self-deprecating, but I don’t have a problem saying that I am a great dad,” he added. Here’s what you need to know about James’ three children.
Jack
Jack Marsden was born on February 1, 2001. He made his first major Hollywood appearance at the 2017 Golden Globes alongside his father. That same year, James brought his look-a-like son as his plus-one to the SAG Awards. The Jury Duty star also opened up about having his son visit him on the set of Westworld. “He’s 16 so he enjoys it, but some of the bigger themes, he’s still a bit young for. But he’s proud,” he told Wonderwall. “Nowadays, Jack, my eldest, is very proud and wants to show up on set and see how it’s all done and everything.”
Jack went in a different career direction than his dad by pursuing modeling and music. He was signed by Wilhelmina Models and walked the Dolce & Gabbana show at Men’s Fashion Week in Milan in January 2018. As for his music career, the 21-year-old released his first album To The Planes in 2020 under the artist name Jack Holden. Jack has been dating his girlfriend Soleil since November 2019.
Mary
Mary James Marsden was born on August 10, 2005. Since Mary is James’ only daughter, they have a very special bond. On her 13th birthday, the Enchanted actor shared the sweetest tribute to Mary alongside photo of the father-daughter duo. “No matter how many years old you grow to be, that magical spirit you lead with will never grow old. It will carry you, through the trees and up into the skies, surrounding you with those colors only your eyes can see,” he wrote on Instagram.
Aside from a few red-carpet appearances with her dad, Mary has lived a quiet life, but James has said that she may have some interest in following in his footsteps. “A little bit. My daughter has [interest], but my boys, not yet. Not so far,” he told People in 2023, when asked if his kids have an interest in following his career. “My daughter is … a very, very talented young lady, and so we’ll see. We’ll see. I wouldn’t discourage them for sure.” He’s also showed off how talented his daughter is, like when he posted a throwback video on Instagram of her playing drums, while he played guitar.
William
William Luca Costa-Marsden was born on December 14, 2012. He is the only child from James’ brief romance with Rose Costa. Although there’s a pretty big age gap between William and his siblings, the 11-year-old seems to be very close with Jack and Mary. James adores his youngest child and previously revealed that he had no issue with caring for a newborn so many years later. “Once you become a father … it’s like riding a bike, once you learn it, you sort of got it,” he told ABC News in February 2014.
James has also opened up about how he loves to spend time with all of his kids around the holidays in a January 2024 interview with People. “I’ve traveled so much and it’s always great and I love what I do and get to move around quite a bit, but there’s something about just feeling like you’re home and doing those Christmas traditions that we do with my kids, to get all my kids together and everybody and just being home,” he said.
