9. Hugh Jackman
Hugh Jackman and his wife Deborra-Lee Furness always knew that they were going to adopt one day — but they assumed they’d have biological children first. The couple tried IVF twice, though each cycle ended in miscarriage. He recalled the heartbreak in a 2013 interview with Good Housekeeping magazine and said each loss was a “massive letdown.”
“While you’re going through IVF and get pregnant, every day [the feeling is], We’re still holding! We’re still holding…!” Jackman said. “You know how precarious it is and how much she’s been through to get there. And [miscarriage] is a massive letdown. It’s really difficult — and much harder for the woman.”
The couple then began exploring adoption in the U.S., because Australia, where they’re from, didn’t allow couples to pursue both adoption and IVF at the same time. Eventually the couple ended up adopting two children: a newborn boy in 2000 and a newborn girl in 2005.