A look at their marriage
Everyone on TikTok is talking about Aaron Taylor-Johnson, but it’s not just about his new mustache or his “Bullet Train” performance.
Many may recognize him as the idol of “Anna Karenina” or the protagonist of the “Kick Ass” films. Or for younger fans, Nickelodeon’s “Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging.” As Taylor-Johnson’s professional career takes off, celebrity watchers are also taking a closer look at her personal life and her marriage to director Sam Taylor-Johnson, 23 years her senior.
In Hollywood, age-gap romances are not uncommon. Think of Olivia Wilde, 38, who was recently linked to Harry Styles, 28. Or George and Amal Clooney, Hollywood’s power couple at 16 difference. While unconventional, these dynamics are not inherently unhealthy. But the recent chatter surrounding the Taylor-Johnson romance may be more about power imbalances than the specific people involved in the conversation.
What we know about Sam, Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s marriage
The Taylor-Johnsons met on the set of ‘Nowhere Boy’ in 2009, when Aaron, who was around 19 at the time, auditioned for then-42-year-old director Sam (“Fifty Shades of Grey”) and eventually landed the role of John Lennon.
That same year, he proposed, and the two welcomed their first child together, Wylda Rae, the following year. They officially married in Somerset, England in 2012, according to E! News.
“As soon as we’ve finished (filming) he told me he was going to marry me,” Sam told Harper’s Bazaar in 2019. “We had never dated, or even kissed.”
“And a year to the minute after we met, exactly a year to the minute, I got down on my knees and asked her to marry me,” Aaron added.
The duo recently celebrated their 10th anniversary.
“We renewed our vows to each other and confessed our love in front of our closest and dearest friends and family, it was a celebration of love and joy! A decade of marriage. .. Sammy you are my love, my life, my soul mate, my wife, my world!” he wrote in June.
However, comments have been disabled. The Taylor-Johnsons have previously cited their age difference as a reason they tend to keep their personal lives private.
“The attention was intrusive,” he told New York Magazine in 2017 of the public’s initial reaction to their relationship. “But having to deal with that early in my career probably got me to a place where I can more quickly say, ‘Oh, (expletive) that’ instead of wanting to rip someone’s head off for posing. questions that I don’t like.”
What’s going on with Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Joey King?
So why is everyone suddenly talking about Aaron and Sam Taylor-Johnson?
Online interest resurfaced after fans dispatched Aaron with his ‘Bullet Train’ co-star Joey King, 23. None of the stars involved have commented on the attention.
“If Joey King breaks up Aaron Johnson’s marriage, I think she should be entitled to an EGOT” a fan wrote.
Following:Justin Bieber, Hailey Baldwin, Selena Gomez and the harmful nature of ‘shipping’ celebrities
The age gap conversation we should be having
No one knows what’s going on in someone else’s marriage. And many rightly point out that Aaron was over 18 when he started dating Sam.
Beyond this specific pair, the conversation every couple needs to have is about power, experts note.
“Power dynamics are something every couple should be aware of, but power can be more critical for couples with a significant age gap,” therapist and USA TODAY columnist Sara Kuburic wrote in May. “That doesn’t mean we can’t learn from our partners, but they should see us as an equal they can rely on and share the mental load with.”
Elisabeth Jeglic, a professor of psychology at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, pointed out that our view of what is appropriate is constantly changing from a societal perspective.
“We now recognize that teenagers really don’t think the way adults do or see things the way adults do until their early to mid-twenties,” she previously said. at USA TODAY. “When someone is an older adult in a relationship with a teenager, there’s a huge power imbalance and the ability to consent is compromised.”
Science has shown that, compared to adults over the age of 25, adolescents’ decision-making abilities are clouded by a range of factors: their lack of life experience, their vulnerability to peer pressure and their maturity underdeveloped brain. Years of neuroscience evidence also confirms that their brains are wired to prioritize short-term rewards over long-term consequences, and as a result, they are more likely to engage in risky behaviors.
However, experts also warn that the criticisms surrounding the Taylor-Johnsons may be gendered: we are culturally more reluctant to accept an older woman pursuing a younger man, which “does not meet (societal) expectations , so they judge and stigmatize it,” according to sociologist and sex coach Jenn Gunsaullus.
Learn more about age relationships in Hollywood
USA Today
