Patricia Clarkson Always Knew She Didn't Want Kids & We Love Her Honesty

Patricia Clarkson has had an exciting life and career in Hollywood for more than three decades now. When it came to settling down and starting a family, the actor said she had a close call once but ultimately decided against it and is happy with the choice she made. For Clarkson, however, she always knew she didn't want kids.

Speaking on Bruce Bozzi's "Table for Two" podcast back in August 2023, Clarkson proudly declared, "I'm a 63-year-old single, straight, Southern woman who never married and never had children. I made a big choice," adding that she "knew it when I was young." The "Lilly" actor admitted her reluctance came from a place of fear. "You have to really be committed to having children. You have to be a great parent, and I was afraid I couldn't be," she said. "I didn't want to fail at being a parent. I'm fine failing as an actor."

Although she has had several relationships, Clarkson said she loved her career more. "I've had beautiful men in my life. And I've thought about it with this one artist I dated when I was 38. I had a window ... to have a child," she said. "But at the end of the day, I loved working." Most importantly, the "Almost Love" actor says she has no regrets. Recalling advice from her mother, Clarkson said, "My mother said, 'Patti, I just don't want you to wake up at 50 and be unhappy.' I woke up at 50 in stilettos and a thong," she joked, adding, "I've had a great, sexy-a** life."

As with the long list of celebrities who are unapologetically childless by choice, Patricia Clarkson never felt there was a void in her life that she needed to be filled by having kids of her own. "I have so many sisters who have beautiful children, and they now have beautiful children. I love being an aunt, I love it more than probably more than acting, which is odd," she said on the "Table For Two" podcast. "But I'm telling you, these are gorgeous children, but that doesn't have to define every woman."

Those sentiments have been echoed by the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Kathy Bates, and Chelsea Handler – the latter Clarkson calls her hero — all of whom have been intentional about remaining child-free. Handler has been especially candid about her decision, noting on "The Drew Barrymore Show" in 2024 that, "So many women have reached out to me going, 'Thank you for saying that you don't have to be ... you're not worthy in this world when you become someone's mother and wife. You're worthy before that."

For Clarkson, she finds plenty of joy in the relationships she has with family and friends, but she never wanted any one role to define her. "I love being an aunt, I love being a sister, I love being a daughter, I love being a great best friend. I'm a very good friend, I think," she said. "[Being a mom is] not what I wanted to define me."