Every time Aaron Taylor-Johnson and wife Sam have defended their 23-year age gap

Sam Taylor-Johnson and Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s 23-year age gap has sparked plenty of public curiosity, but the couple have repeatedly made it clear that it doesn’t affect their relationship.

The pair met on the set of Nowhere Boy in 2008, when Aaron was 18 and Sam was 42. They married in 2012 and now have two daughters together, plus two more children from Sam’s previous marriage. In interviews over the years, they’ve both addressed the public fixation on their relationship.

Here’s everything Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Sam have said about the age gap – and why they don’t think it matters.

 

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A post shared by Sam Taylor-Johnson (@samtaylorjohnson)

‘We couldn’t really fathom the fascination’

Speaking on BBC Radio 4, Sam described questions about their age gap as something she “couldn’t fathom,” particularly early on in their relationship.

“The fascination was more when we got together.”

For her, the media and public obsession seemed surreal compared to their real life experience, and despite all the attention, Sam stresses the age gap just isn’t an issue in their day-to-day life.

“It never comes up. We’re a bit of an anomaly, but after 14 years, surely by now it doesn’t matter?”

‘It’s bizarre to me’

Aaron Taylor-Johnson has echoed Sam’s feelings about the age gap in an interview with Rolling Stone UK, saying he finds the scrutiny around their relationship strange and unnecessary. He doesn’t understand why people continue to care so much about something that means so little to them as a couple.

‘We just don’t see it the same way others do’

Whilst they share the same confusion around public scrutiny, the way they respond to criticism is slightly different. Sam is sympathetic but ultimately dismissive, she believes critics are projecting their own issues.

Aaron is more protective and matter of fact. For him, family is the top priority and outside opinions just don’t register.

‘People upset with their own sadness’

When critics focus on their age gap, Sam tends to brush it off and suggests that the negativity says more about the critics than it does about them.

She sees it as projection, not a valid critique of their relationship: “It is just people upset with their own life.”

 

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‘What speed are you supposed to enjoy life at?’

Aaron has openly defended their relationship timeline, saying he’s always done things his own way, at a different pace to others.

He questions why anyone feels the need to judge how quickly other people live their lives.

“What most people were doing in their twenties, I was doing when I was thirteen…You’re doing something too quickly for someone else?  I don’t understand that.”

‘Our focus is on family’

Aaron has made it clear their relationship isn’t built for public approval, it’s built around their family.

“Family comes first, and the rest just doesn’t matter.”

For him, the noise, judgement, and headlines, all fade into the background when compared to what really matters – home, love, and raising their children.

So after over a decade of marriage, four kids, and zero interest in what strangers think, it’s pretty clear Sam and Aaron aren’t here to explain themselves. The age gap might still spark conversation, but for them it’s long been a non-issue, even if the rest of us are still talking about it.

Featured image by: @samtaylorjohnson/Instagram