Everything You Need to Know About Director Steven Spielberg's Seven Kids
Steven Spielberg is best known for his prolific career as an Oscar-winning film director, but he's also dad to seven kids. Despite having such a large brood, Spielberg didn't always want children.
"It never occurred to me till halfway through ‘E.T.’: I was a parent on that film," he told Vanity Fair in 2022. "I was literally feeling like I was very protective of Henry [Thomas] and Mike [McNaughton] and my whole cast, and especially Drew [Barrymore], who was only 6 years old. And I started thinking, ‘Well, maybe this could be my real life someday,’" he said. "It was the first time that it occurred to me that maybe I could be a dad. And maybe in a way, a director is a dad or a mom."
Considered one of the most influential living figures in cinema, Spielberg has captivated audiences worldwide with his imaginative storytelling for years. Throughout his six-decade career, he has directed iconic movies and cultural touchstones such as Jaws (1975), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) and Jurassic Park (1993).
More recently, he helmed the Oscar-winning Lincoln in 2012, the West Side Story remake in 2021, and the autobiographical The Fabelmans in 2022. In 2023, he was a producer for the musical remake of The Color Purple (he directed a version of his own in 1985).
Over the last two years, Speilberg also executive produced the Masters of the Air and the documentary The Bloody Hundredth about the World War II airmen who inspired the series. Other series he's executive produced during that timeframe are Seasons 1 and 2 of Halo and the animated series, Tiny Toons Looniversity.
Read on for everything there is to know about Steven Spielberg's seven kids, many of whom have followed their famous father into the entertainment business.
How many kids does Steven Spielberg have?
Steven Spielberg has seven children, including four biological children: Max Spielberg, born June 13, 1985; Sasha Spielberg, born May 14, 1990; Sawyer Spielberg, born March 10, 1992; and Destry Spielberg, born Dec. 1, 1996.
Max’s mom is Amy Irving, Spielberg’s first wife. His three other biological children are with Kate Capshaw, his wife since 1991. Spielberg and Capshaw also have two adopted children, Mikaela Spielberg, born Feb. 28, 1996, and Theo Spielberg, born August 21, 1988. Spielberg is the stepfather to Capshaw's child from a previous relationship, Jessica Capshaw, born August 9, 1976.
Related: We Ranked All 34 Steven Spielberg Movies, From 'Jaws' to 'The Fabelmans'
When did Steven Spielberg have kids?
Steven Spielberg’s children were born over 20 years. Max Spielberg, his son with his first wife Amy Irving, was born on June 13, 1985, in Los Angeles.
How old was Steven Spielberg when he had kids?
Steven Spielberg's children arrived at various points during his prolific career, starting in 1985 when he was age 38 and became a father to his first child, Max. At that time, Spielberg was already an accomplished director, having achieved tremendous success with Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.
Capshaw had adopted Theo before marrying Spielberg, who then also adopted him after they tied the knot in 1991. The year prior, the couple welcomed Sasha Speilberg, who arrived when the director was age 42. This was around the time Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Jurassic Park came out.
Sawyer Spielberg was born in 1992 when Spielberg was 45 years old, near the release of Schindler's List. Steven Spielberg’s last two children, Mikaela George and Destry Allyn Spielberg, were both born in 1996 when Steven Spielberg was 49 years old. The couple adopted Mikaela shortly after her birth in February of that year. As the year drew to a close, the couple's youngest child Destry was born Dec. 1, just 17 days shy of Spielberg's 50th birthday on Dec. 18.
Related: A Hollywood Legend! Here's a Look at Steven Spielberg's Net Worth In 2024 and How He Earned It
Who is the mother of Steven Spielberg’s children?
Amy Irving and Steven Spielberg attend the 55th Academy Awards ceremony.
Amy Irving
Steven Spielberg married actress Amy Irving in 1985. Irving had already established herself as a talented performer before meeting Spielberg during an audition for Close Encounters of the Third Kind. She garnered acclaim for her roles in Carrie (1976) and Yentl (1983), which earned her an Academy Award nomination. With Irving, Steven Spielberg had his first child, Max Spielberg. Their marriage ended in 1989.
Kate Capshaw and Steven Spielberg attend Hammer Museum's 18th Annual Gala in the Garden in 2022.
Kate Capshaw
Steven Spielberg met his second wife, Kate Capshaw, also an actress, during the production of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984). Capshaw is the mother of Spielberg's other six children, including three biological children, two adopted children and stepdaughter Jessica Capshaw.
Who are Steven Spielberg's kids?
Jessica Capshaw
Jessica Capshaw, born Aug. 9, 1976, in Columbia, Missouri, is the stepdaughter of Steven Spielberg. Capshaw, the daughter of actress Kate Capshaw and Robert Capshaw, became part of Steven Spielberg's family when he married her mother in 1991, when she was a teen. Over the years, Capshaw and Steven Spielberg have developed a close relationship, with Spielberg embracing his role as a stepfather to her.
An actor, Capshaw gained widespread recognition for her portrayal of Dr. Arizona Robbins in the long-running medical drama Grey's Anatomy, a role she played from 2009 to 2018.
Max Spielberg
Max Spielberg, born June 13, 1985, in Los Angeles, California, is the son of Steven Spielberg and his first wife Amy Irving. Following in his father's footsteps, Max Spielberg has pursued a career in filmmaking. While he may not be as widely known as his father, Max has directed and produced several independent films.
Max has also tried his hand in the video game realm, credited as a graphic designer on Jurassic Park: Trespasser, Assassin’s Creed: Unity and Battlefield 1.
Theo Spielberg
Theo Spielberg, born Aug. 21, 1988, in Los Angeles, California, is the son of Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw. He was originally adopted by Capshaw before she married Steven Spielberg in 1991, but was later also adopted by Spielberg.
Theo’s credited as a production assistant on Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) and as a talent associate for 42 episodes of Saturday Night Live from 2014 to 2016. He's also a musician.
Sasha Spielberg
Sasha Spielberg, born May 14, 1990, in Los Angeles, California, is the eldest biological daughter of Steven Spielberg and actress Kate Capshaw. She has been involved in numerous musical projects, both as a solo artist and as part of the indie pop duo "Wardell" with her brother Theo Spielberg.
Sasha has also acted in smaller roles in several of her father’s movies, including The Terminal (2004), Munich (2005) and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008). She also occasionally posts mini-improv sketches on her Instagram account.
Sawyer Spielberg (left)
Sawyer Spielberg
Sawyer Spielberg was born on March 10, 1992, in Los Angeles, California. Most recently, he played Lt. Roy Claytor in his father's series released in 2024, Masters of the Air. He's also appeared in films like Honeydew (2020) and Phoenix, Oregon (2019).
Mikaela Spielberg (right)
Mikaela Spielberg
Mikaela Spielberg, born Feb. 28, 1996, is the adopted daughter of Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw. Jaded by the industry and an activist in her own right, Mikaela moved to Nashville, Tennessee, several years ago and began to pursue a career as an adult content creator.
“I’m really enjoying work, and it’s giving me a whole new life-affirming way to be,” said Mikaela in a 2020 interview with The Daily Beast. “It opened up a gateway into being able to dance. The best part of it has been that anytime I want to I can just go into work, and go dance.”
Destry Allyn Spielberg
Destry Allyn Spielberg, born Dec. 1, 1996, is the youngest biological daughter of Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw. She's followed in her father's footsteps and is making her directorial debut in 2024 with the soon-to-be-released film, Please Don't Feed the Children.
