Charlie’s Angels director Elizabeth Banks has opened up about having her two children – sons, Magnus, 7, and Felix, 8 – via surrogate, saying she still “feels judged” all these years later, despite being unable to give birth herself due to a condition she describes as “broken belly”.
The actress and director, who is married to sportswriter and film producer Max Handelman, revealed in 2011 that the couple had unsuccessfully explored various fertility treatments before finding a surrogate, however, she says that she still feels like people don’t understand her choices.
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“I definitely think I’m still judged for what I’ve done and that people don’t understand my choices, but I don’t feel I owe anybody any explanation,” Banks said in an interview with Porter.
“And, if my story helps people feel less alone on their journey, then I’m grateful for that,” she continued.
“After years of trying to get pregnant, exploring the range of fertility treatments, all unsuccessful, our journey led us to gestational surrogacy,” Banks wrote in a blog post shortly after the birth of her firstborn.
“From that came two miracles. The first was meeting our carrier and her husband who were truly humbling in their decency and generosity. And the second miracle was the birth of our baby boy, Felix Handelman.”
“Felix means ‘happy’ and ‘lucky’ in Latin. And true to his name, Felix is a very happy baby and a blessing on our life.”
