Hollywood relationships tend to be a little bit more unconventional—and short-lived—than what most of us experience in the real world. In particular, fans have been known to raise eyebrows when celebrities date people much older or much younger than them, like the 22 years between Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart, or Holland Taylor and Sarah Paulson's 32-year age difference. And now, actor and singer Katharine McPhee is getting candid about her 35-year age gap with husband David Foster. Read on to find out what McPhee had to say in defense of her relationship and for more couples with big age gaps, take a look at these 17 Celebrity Women Who Have Much Younger Partners.
McPhee said she was hesitant about dating Foster because of public perception about their age difference.
ShutterstockMcPhee, who is 36, recently admitted that she was hesitant about pursing a relationship with Foster, who is 71, mostly because of how other people would respond. "It took me a while to kind of come around to really want to have a real, serious relationship because I was very concerned with what people would think," McPhee said during a Mar. 1 interview on Dr. Berlin's Informed Pregnancy Podcast (via People). "The perception of what people try to create, especially with women, it's always the woman's fault. It's the woman who wants to be with the older man because he has money and he's had success and she wants this, that." She added that her relationship with Foster has "been the complete opposite." And for more on celeb couples, find out which 15 Onscreen Couples You Totally Forgot Dated in Real Life.
McPhee and Foster knew each other for a decade before dating, having met on American Idol.
Frederick M. Brown/ Getty ImagesAccording to McPhee, her love story with Foster "didn't just happen overnight." The pair had worked together and remained friends for years before developing a romantic relationship. They met in 2006, when McPhee had just entered the spotlight as a contestant on the fifth season of American Idol. Foster, who wrote Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing" (which McPhee covered on the show), stopped by to mentor McPhee as she practiced for her performance of the song. However, the two weren't romantically linked until 2017, two years after his divorce from his fourth wife, Yolanda Hadid.
"I'm really, really fond of him, and I think he's an incredible person," McPhee said about Foster during her cover story for Health's Dec. 2017 issue. "I've known him since I was 21 years old, you know? He produced my first single. So he's been really good to me. People can say whatever they want." And for more pairs who were platonic initially, check out 16 Celebrity Couples Who Were Friends First.
Ultimately, McPhee feels love conquered any doubt she had.
Katharine McPhee / InstagramDespite her hesitancy, McPhee says her love for Foster is what matters ultimately. "We all have the ability to label things and to look at something for the way that it looks or face value and make a judgment. So I totally get the judgment initially, but things are never as they appear, things are never exactly as they appear and I'm in love with our love story and that's all that matters," McPhee said during the pregnancy podcast.
"There was never one day that I ever doubted my decision to be with [Foster]... I'm so crazy in love with him," she added. "It just took me longer to figure out." And for more up-to-date celebrity news, sign up for our daily newsletter.
The couple just had their first child together.
Katharine McPhee / InstagramMcPhee and Foster got engaged in July 2018 and then tied the knot on June 28, 2019, marking Foster's fifth marriage and McPhee's second. The pair also just recently welcomed their first child together, a son, in February, making McPhee a first-time mom. And for more on your fav celeb relationships, check out these 12 Beloved, Long-Term Celebrity Couples, Then and Now.
