Selena Gomez reveals she'd planned to adopt a child at 35 if she was still single
After more than 15 years of headline-making relationships, Selena Gomez has revealed her thoughts on planning for a family.
In a Time interview published Wednesday, the Disney star-turned Rare Beauty founder, 31, admitted that she'd initially found being single difficult several years ago. After finding a sense of peace amid her five years of being "alone," she came up with a plan to start a family of her own without a partner.
"I was alone for five years, and I got really used to it. A lot of people are afraid of being alone and I probably tortured myself in my head for like two years being alone, and then I kind of accepted it," she told the magazine. "Then I came up with my plan, which was I was going to adopt at 35 if I had not met anyone."
Then, last year, she went public with her relationship with 36-year-old record producer Benny Blanco.
The "Only Murders in the Building" actress told Time that though she'd only considered him a friend at first, she'd discovered her feelings were romantic after attending a birthday party to meet his friend.
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"It just happens when you least expect it," Gomez said. However, she also clarified that "he isn’t my only source of happiness."
Selena Gomez reveals Benny Blanco is 'not going anywhere any time soon'
Gomez was also asked about her boyfriend making headlines recently with some of his remarks on the Howard Stern Show. "She’s the coolest, the nicest, the sweetest," Blanco told Stern. "She’s truly just like my best friend."
When asked about having kids, Blanco said, "That's, like, my next goal." And when Stern said "I'm predicting marriage," Blanco replied: "You and me both."
"I don't know a world where it could be better than this," he said.
Gomez told Time that Blanco "can’t lie to save his life. If he’s asked a question, he’ll answer it."
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The multi-hyphenate also opened up about how refreshing it is to have a partner unbothered by online hate, especially as Gomez herself is the most-followed woman on Instagram.
"I know what people can do to people I love. My own fans, who I adore and feel like have shaped who I am, will say the most hurtful things to me about how I live my life," she said. "But he has the strength in him that none of that noise fazes him. It’s really impressive, and I just cherish every moment with him.
"I don’t know what the future holds, but I do know that he’s not going anywhere any time soon.”
Though Gomez tends to be secretive about her personal relationships, she has been open about both her mental and physical health in recent years.
Her Apple TV+ documentary, "Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me," released in 2022 and showed fans behind the curtain of the star's seemingly glamorous life. Footage that spanned six years showed Gomez facing challenges with her mental health, the chronic autoimmune disease lupus and her fame.
Gomez told Time that her lupus is in remission as she's taking medication to manage her symptoms and her kidney is functioning well seven years after she underwent a kidney transplant from her friend Francia Raísa.