Oscar-winning actress Naomi Watts has revealed a touching moment she shared with husband Billy Crudup when the pair first started dating. The 57-year-old was speaking at The Swell’s fourth annual Menopause Symposium on October 4 2025 in New York City. In conversation with Maria Shriver and Alisa Volkman, she shared: "The real thing that gave me the courage [to write the book and open up] was my husband. I met him in my late 40s and I had to excuse myself quickly at the [first] moment we were getting down to business to remove my estrogen patch, as it would be awful for him to see, of course!
"So I slipped away, and came out flushed and he asked if everything was ok, so I just said, 'um you know, well, um, I have this thing on me and it left a mark, and its estrogen because I'm old and should I just leave?!' And he said, 'honey thanks for telling me, it’s great you take your health into your hands, and tell me how I can help'."
The actress added: "It was the most intimate moment I have ever had with a human being. That gave me permission and confidence to own my story." Naomi's book, Dare I Say It: Everything I Wish I’d Known About Menopause was released earlier this year and chronicles her personal experiences with fertility and aging. At 36, when trying to start a family with then-partner Liev Schreiber, she was told that she was on the brink of menopause.
© WireImageNaomi and Billy tied the knot in June 2023 in Manhattan in a low-key ceremony. The private pair confirmed their relationship in 2017 while filming Netflix’s psychosexual drama Gypsy together. Naomi and ex-partner Liev have two children together from their 11-year union, and Billy has a son, William, with ex Mary-Louise Parker.
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© GettyAt the symposium, Naomi has spoken frankly about her life and how she raises her two children, as well as her hopes and dreams for them. "I have two teenagers, I have sent one off to college and he is 18 and very much in the place he wants to be, and it's a good feeling," she shared.
© Getty Images"Then I have another child who is already launching herself into her career at 16, and I hope for so much for my kids, but most of all I want them to be content, and healthy and kind and compassionate people."
The actress also shared how she has a different parenting approach compared to the way she was raised. "I think I was parented very differently to how I parent - the jury is out on the terms of how [my parenting] will show up - but I am not a model for how well my parents did," the Mulholland Drive star said. "I lost my father when I was young and my mum was very young… I had a messy childhood… but … it formed who I am. Although I may have wanted things to go differently, it is who I am."
"I try to infuse structure in their lives, have them in fewer schools than I went to - and I am doing well with that - and communication," Naomi shared at the Symposium. "I just really want them to not be hiding things from me… that is my main goal, and I am here for them as a support system and role model, hopefully, but I never want to force things. I am learning on the job… how to be a parent."
