The Schwarzenegger Shriver’s four kids live extraordinary lives. From motherhood
to addiction and half-brother trouble, here’s the inside scoop on the prestigious quartet.
Born on December 13, 1989, Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt has gone on to
become the first parent of the group. In addition to being the daughter of Arnold
Schwarzenegger, she is also the wife of well-regarded actor Chris Pratt.
According to the "Guardians of the Galaxy" actor,
the two met at church in 2018. In a conversation with People magazine, he shared:
"It was a lot of kismet, and a lot of connections. But that was where we met."
The pair eventually tied the knot in 2019. What came after was the
birth of their two kids, Lyla Maria and Eloise Christina. Just like her mother,
Maria Shriver, Katherine seems to take her parental duties seriously.
In an Amazon Live celebrating International Women's Day,
Katherine revealed some of the tips Shriver shared with her following the birth of Lyla, saying:
"Just being present with my 18-month-old daughter."
Since Lyla and Eloise are her "favorite girls," having her motherly duties engulf her life
seems to be a tradeoff she is completely fine with. Alongside her full-time job as a parent,
Katherine also hosts a weekly Instagram live series titled "BDA (Before, During,
and After) Baby," which focuses on the trials and tribulations of a mother.
Though Katherine may not have gone on to star in cult classic action movies like Arnold
Schwarzenegger, she certainly managed to find success following in Maria Shriver's footsteps.
After graduating from the University of Southern California with a bachelor's degree,
Katherine got to work and penned her first book "Rock What You've Got," which became
a New York Times best seller. Given her interest in mental wellness, Katherine went on to inscribe
books focused on maintaining our sense of well-being. With topics ranging from body
image to navigating a competitive economy, Katherine's goal as an author is to help her
readers make positive changes and help herself understand the complexities of human life.
In an interview promoting her book "The Gift of Forgiveness," she suggested that writing
is just as much a learning experience for her as it is for her audience. In
a book detailing the struggles of forgiving ourselves, Katherine told Natalie Manuel Lee
that writing this book allowed her to view forgiveness in a different light.
"Forgiveness ultimately means freedom and peace and healing. And the more
healing we could have in our society, the better."
In addition to self-improvement, Katherine has also penned several children's books — one of
which drew inspiration from her real sister, Christina Schwarzenegger according to People.
Alongside their respective careers, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver are heavily
involved in politics. With Arnold going on to become the governor of California for two terms
and Shriver being niece to John F. Kennedy, it seemed like it was only a matter of time before
their children would get involved in politics. Instead of propelling into government affairs,
however, Katherine Schwarzenegger has been relatively silent on any interest in the topic.
According to Katherine, growing up in a house with parents with strong political
opinions makes you either dislike or love politics — there's no in-between.
Though we're sure she has her personal opinions on the government,
she seemingly prefers to stay out of it altogether. In an interview with Larry King,
a fan asked her if she has any plans for politics in the future,
to which she responded: "Absolutely not." When asked if she hates politics, she stated:
"I mean, I think it's interesting,
obviously. I would not like it for myself. I would not choose that for my life at all."
Thankfully, it seems that her parents abided by her disinterest in politics and never forced it
on her as she grew up to become more involved in self-improvement rather than government affairs.
In 1991, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver welcomed their second daughter,
Christina Schwarzenegger, into their household. As the second child,
Christina expressed an interest in films.
She was so interested in it that after graduating from Georgetown University,
Christina stepped into the film industry, but not as an actress. Christina’s since flexed her
film-making muscles in the Netflix documentaries "Take Your Pills" and "Take Your Pills: Xanax."
Partnering alongside her mother, the 90-minute documentaries aimed to inform viewers about the
ever-growing issues surrounding controlled substances. As an admitted ex-user herself,
Christina sought out the project to shed light on how prescription drugs
are distributed to patients who may need them. According to Christina,
a battle with ADD as a child caused doctors to prescribe her Adderall, revealing to Fox News:
"I started taking it in high school, ninth grade, for about a few months,
and then I stopped taking it just because I didn't like the side effects."
This would be short-term as she found herself relying on
the drug again due to the tense nature of college. During her and her mother's
appearance on "The Doctors," she detailed her experience coming off of the substance.
"It was challenging. It took me about, I would say, six to seven months to get
back to who I was."
Unlike his older siblings, Patrick Schwarzenegger found himself engulfed in the world of acting from
a young age. During his appearance on "Live with Kelly and Ryan," the 29-year-old actor revealed
that Arnold Schwarzenegger would reward his academic efforts by bringing him to work, sharing:
"For a kid, it was like a dream come true. I was on Universal
Studios lot. I watched my dad walk in as pops and come out as Mr. Freeze."
Patrick decided to follow in his footsteps. Even though his father
was open to the idea of him chasing a career in acting,
Patrick stated that he still needed to get a degree. After graduating from the University
of Southern California, Patrick has been chipping away to pave a lane of his own.
After his debut in 2006's "The Benchwarmers," Patrick went on to star in other films such as
"Stuck in Love," "Grown Ups 2," "Midnight Sun," "Echo Boomers," and "Moxie.”
According to Patrick, his father appears to be happy with the work
that he is doing on screen, telling Hoda and Jenna from the TODAY show:
"It was really surreal to have him come to set and have the pages turned. He's really
proud of me and they're so supportive. I couldn't ask for a better parent duo."
Although Patrick was en route to becoming a notable movie star, the "Moxie" actor started
flexing his entrepreneurial muscles in 2009. Coming from a household where
politics and business are positioned at the forefront, Patrick seemingly took on the act
of creating a company while expressing his political opinions simultaneously.
Patrick's charitable efforts saw him partner with Nick Sheinberg and
Kimberly Barth to create "Project 360," a clothing company dedicated to bringing
awareness to social issues. What started as a simple accessory became ensembles
of think pieces stitched into hoodies, shirts, and more. As Patrick told MTV:
"What better way to spread the word of giving back and philanthropic ways
of life than to wear something that gives back to charities?"
The small startup quickly became a success
as it was featured on the cover of notable magazines such as In Style, People, Glamour,
and more. In addition to its popularity in publications, the clothing company also appeared
to catch the attention of notable celebrities like Ashley Greene, Eva Longoria, Olivia Munn and more.
On September 27, 1997, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver introduced their youngest child,
Christopher Schwarzenegger, into the world. While Katherine, Christina,
and Patrick went on to embrace the limelight, Christopher opted for a
more private life. He keeps his social media open only to those that know him.
Although little is known about his main interests, Arnold suggested that the 25-year-old attended
the University of Michigan to study psychology according to YouTube. Before his college venture,
however, his interest in surfing saw him sustain a severe injury that may have
shifted his focus from extreme sports to the inner workings of the mind.
On July 17, 2011, the 13-year-old found himself in a surfing accident
that resulted in multiple broken bones and a collapsed lung. What was considered
a very serious injury saw Christopher in intensive care for a little over a week.
On July 26, Maria Shriver updated her followers on Twitter on the
status of his condition and revealed that they'd released him from the hospital,
suggesting that all was well with her baby boy. She wrote:
"Blessed to be able to take Christopher out of the hospital
last night. What a feeling of relief to know that he's going to be fine."
Arnold Schwarzenegger also took to Twitter, stating:
"I knew Christopher couldn't be stopped! Big thanks to all the doctors,
nurses & staff at UCLA that helped him recover."
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver made it known that seeking
higher education is imperative in their household. Despite Katherine, Christina,
and Patrick's gripes about college, they all attended and graduated with a degree
of some sort before transitioning into their full-time professions.
In 2014, Katherine published a book titled "I Just Graduated... Now What?" which illustrates
the challenges of finding consistent work in a competitive economy after graduating. However,
there was no way she could've warned Christopher about what was to come in 2020.
As the youngest child, Christopher was the last to graduate from college. Unlike his older siblings,
however, he graduated during COVID-19. While Katherine clearly understood the
hardships of finding jobs as a college graduate,
the pandemic created an uncertain environment for those leaving college.
As Patrick Schwarzenegger was promoting his movie "Echo Boomers," a true story
about college graduates stealing from the rich,
he expressed that while he couldn't truly relate to the story 100 percent. The closest
thing he could relate it to was his little brother's experience as a fresh graduate.
In an interview with Men's Health, Arnold Schwarzenegger suggested that his home life
reinforced his motivation to conquer his goals and aspirations. What he described as a quote,
"tough upbringing" saw him adopt the mentality
necessary to experience a better life. As stern as his father was,
Arnold said he was grateful for his father's brand of discipline, telling Men’s Health:
"My father made me do pushups before I was allowed to have breakfast. To earn breakfast,
as he said, you have to do pushups and knee bends. And
carry water from the well 200 yards away in the deep snow."
With a father like that, it's safe to assume that Arnold picked up those same military-like
parenting methods. In an interview promoting the movie "Midnight Sun",
Patrick Schwarzenegger revealed that his father could be strict at times
when he probably shouldn't be. According to Patrick, Arnold's attempt at teaching his
kids German came short as their mother, Maria Shriver, forced Arnold to lighten the load.
Although it's not as intense as carrying water for 200 yards in the blistering snow, it seems
that Arnold wanted to incorporate some discipline to keep his children grounded. Patrick revealed:
"We always had to count to German… count to 100 in German before we got to school."
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver's marriage
ended when Maria filed for divorce in 2011. The reason for their split
was due to Arnold having an affair with the family's housekeeper, Mildred Baena.
Their relationship resulted in the birth of a love child named Joseph Baena,
whose identity was concealed for 10 years. In an interview with Lesley Stahl on "60 Minutes",
Arnold revealed that this caused a great deal of turmoil amid family,
admitting how guilty he felt about the entire situation, saying:
"As time goes on, I hope that everyone will forgive me."
Nonetheless, Arnold appears to maintain a close relationship
with his fifth child. But as for his half-siblings, reports via Page Six say,
their relationship is complicated. When Lesley Stahl asked if his children had a relationship
with their half-brother, Arnold dismissed the question to protect their privacy.
On social media, Schwarzenegger's quartet has no problem expressing their love for
one another. Followers, however, caught on to the fact that Joseph is typically nowhere to be
found in their family posts — suggesting that they may not be close to their half-sibling.
Despite their social media dissonance toward Joseph, Patrick Schwarzenegger was spotted
with his half-sibling for the first time in 2021 according to E! Online. Although
we may never know the true nature of their relationship, seeing the two half-brothers
together could mean that they're potentially working on developing a better relationship.