Los Angeles, November 24, 2025 – Eva Longoria has revealed why she waited until age 43 to become a mother, describing the timing as “perfect” and saying it allowed her to parent with far greater wisdom and patience than she believes she could have had earlier in life.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Sunday Times published on November 22, 2025, the 50-year-old actress and producer explained that after decades of focusing on her career, travel, and personal growth, she finally felt fully ready to embrace motherhood. “You have so much more wisdom and patience when you become a mother in your forties,” Longoria said. “It was all about me for so long. Forty years of me was enough time, so I was really blessed to have my child later in life because I had travelled, I’d done everything I needed to do for my career.”
Longoria and her husband, Mexican media executive José “Pepe” Bastón, welcomed their son Santiago Enrique Bastón on June 19, 2018. The Desperate Housewives star is also a devoted stepmother to Bastón’s three older children from his previous marriage: Natalia, and twins Mariana and José Antonio.
Now, at age 50, Longoria says her perspective on work has completely shifted. She only accepts acting or directing roles that truly excite her and involve collaborators she genuinely wants to spend time with, because every day on set is a day she is not with her son. “My family is my priority,” she told The Sunday Times. “So if I’m saying yes to something and it’s taking time away from them, it’s got to be something I’m really going to enjoy and people I really want to work with.”
She describes everything she describes her current professional successes as “icing on the cake,” adding, “Now everything I do is just icing on the cake and I get to do that with my son.”
Longoria and Bastón married in a romantic ceremony in Valle de Bravo, Mexico, in May 2016 after meeting in 2013 and getting engaged in Dubai in 2015. Friends and insiders have long described the couple as a deeply supportive partnership, with Bastón frequently stepping in to allow Longoria to pursue ambitious projects while keeping family life stable.
Even with a packed schedule, Longoria continues to take on high-profile work. She currently stars in the holiday comedy Christmas Karma and is preparing to direct the upcoming Netflix film The Fifth Wheel, a female-driven ensemble comedy written by Paula Pell and Janine Brito that will star Kim Kardashian alongside an all-star cast. Production on The Fifth Wheel is expected to begin in early 2026.
Longoria has been outspoken about creating more opportunities for women and Latinas in Hollywood, and she views her directing career as an extension of that mission. Despite her own trailblazing success, she has expressed frustration that Latinx representation in film and television has barely improved in the two decades since Desperate Housewives premiered.
Recently, the family has split their time between Mexico and Spain, a move Longoria says gives Santiago a calmer, more grounded upbringing away from the intense spotlight of Los Angeles.
Her story of choosing motherhood in her forties has resonated with many women who are delaying parenthood to focus on careers, travel, and personal growth first. Longoria’s message is clear: when the time finally felt right for her, the wait made the experience even richer.
