Aaron Taylor-Johnson Defends the 23-Year Age Gap With His Wife

As the rumored new James Bond and lead of an upcoming Marvel title, Aaron Taylor-Johnson is quickly becoming one of the most in-demand actors working today. But it's been a long time coming for the 33-year-old, who began appearing on stage at the tender age of six and landed his first movie role, Shanghai Knights, at 10.

And given how long he's been in the industry, Taylor-Johnson has never understood the fascination over the 23-year age gap between himself and his wife, director Sam Taylor-Johnson. The pair met on the set of her 2009 directorial debut Nowhere Boy, in which Aaron played a teenaged John Lennon, when he was 18 and she was 42, and married in 2012.

“What you gotta realize ... is that what most people were doing in their 20s, I was doing when I was 13," Taylor-Johnson told Rolling Stone UK in an interview published this week. "You’re doing something too quickly for someone else? I don’t understand that. What speed are you supposed to enjoy life at? It’s bizarre to me."

In addition to settling down young, Taylor-Johnson also had children young. The couple share two daughters together, 11 and 13; as well as two daughters from Sam's previous marriage, 15 and 25, who he "dotingly" referred to as his "four gorgeous daughters."

Taylor-Johnson likewise spoke glowingly of his wife as a director, who is about to premiere her upcoming Amy Winehouse biopic next month.

"Sam is actually a great filmmaker and a wonderful storyteller. People will think there’s sort of a bias to me saying it, but I think when they see Back to Black, everyone’s going to realize how fantastic a filmmaker she is," he gushed.

In addition to Nowhere Boy, the couple also collaborated on her 2018 film A Million Little Pieces, in which Taylor-Johnson starred as a 23-year-old alcoholic and a drug addict who lands in rehab to save his life, "where he discovers much more than detox and therapy." However, he explained the downside of working with your spouse in that you're more aware of any "perceived or actual" criticism.

"There’s a protectiveness that I feel; I think it’s really difficult," he said. "There’s also part of me that feels like if something didn’t work, I’m the one that’s responsible."

You can catch Taylor-Johnson in Marvel's Kraven the Hunter, slated for release on Aug. 30, 2024; while Back to Black premieres in the United States on May 17, 2024.