Producing a film demands a significant amount of time. Similarly, engaging in a television series spanning numerous seasons and episodes can extend over a decade or more. Meanwhile, life continues, leading actors to form marital bonds or become parents during this duration. Nonetheless, revealing pregnancy to peers and superiors on the set remains a considerable source of anxiety for female performers. This apprehension arises from the potential mismatch with the storyline, placing the artist in jeopardy of relinquishing her role.
The Big Bang Theory
While filming the 11th season of the well-liked TV show, the actress who portrayed Bernadette found out she was pregnant. This posed a big challenge for the people in charge of the show because, in the previous season, Bernadette character and her husband already had a child. But the show’s creators thought it could be an exciting story. Bernadette’s husband, Howard, was amazed to hear that she was expecting their second baby so soon after their first one, who hadn’t even turned one year old yet.
“They’re shell-shocked at the beginning,” explained the show’s creator. “They’re still coming to terms with having a first child in the house, so having a second child has really knocked them for a loop. Some of the same things from the first time around, too, like Bernadette, who is very driven at work and took some time off to have the first baby and has just gotten back, will now have to take time off again. You start to see her feeling threatened and vulnerable in her career.”
Black Widow
In 2014, Scarlett Johansson, who portrayed Black Widow in many of Marvel’s Avengers films, was expecting a daughter. The team of Avengers: Age of Ultron faced the challenge of hiding the actress’s pregnancy in the movie. Ultimately, they managed to do it without cutting out any scenes.
This happened thanks to three Natasha Romanoff stunt doubles, various close-up scenes, concealing costumes, shooting from special angles, and even additional visual effects.
Alias
Upon discovering Jennifer Garner’s pregnancy while she was in the lead role, the scriptwriters faced the task of entirely reworking season 5. This time, Sydney Bristow was preparing for motherhood, which meant they didn’t need to conceal her growing baby bump.
Nonetheless, as the actress reached the later stages of pregnancy, she could no longer partake in demanding action sequences. To address this, they introduced Rachael into the storyline—a fresh-faced special agent—where Sydney assumed a supervisory role. This clever adjustment allowed Rachael to engage in thrilling escapades while Sydney could savor her pregnancy within a more peaceful setting.
Once Upon a Time
During the making of the 3rd season of the show, Ginnifer Goodwin, who portrayed Snow White, shared her pregnancy news. However, the creators of the series swiftly devised a solution. This led to Snow White and Prince Charming expecting a baby within the storyline.
Interestingly, the actress’s real-life romantic connection with her future spouse and the father of the baby, who coincidentally portrayed Prince Charming, adds an extra layer of fairy-tale charm to the scenario.
Desperate Housewives
Actress Marcia Cross experienced a surprise when she became pregnant with twins at 44. This posed a challenge since a pregnancy storyline for her character, Bree, didn’t align with the series’ existing plots, all of which were already planned. As a result, the show’s creators needed to devise clever ways to hide her growing baby bump. This led to Bree wearing more sweaters and focusing on close-up shots. In one particular episode, they even employed a gingerbread house as a prop to disguise her tummy.
Interestingly, Marcia Cross had to depict a pregnant character in the series after giving birth. Her character used a pillow under her clothing to pretend that the baby her daughter was expecting belonged to her.
Wonder Woman
Gal Gadot decided that she wanted to conceal the fact that she was pregnant while shooting Wonder Woman. This was done because she did not want to be treated differently than other actors on set.
It was challenging to do, as she was affected by migraines and vomiting. But the film became a huge sensation thanks to her efforts, talent, and support from the shooting team.
The Witches
During the production of this film, Anne Hathaway found herself expecting a child. Upon discovering that the wardrobe was being prepared for the character Grand High Witch, Hathaway expressed concerns about feeling uncomfortable if the outfits were too snug around the waist. This led to avoiding using costumes with narrow waistlines, despite causing some disappointment for the costume designer. Ultimately, the decision was made to wear clothing that provided more room to move.
The primary challenge for the wardrobe team revolved around a purple dress adorned with a golden snake. The actress’s pregnancy had become noticeable by then, necessitating a substantial dress redesign.
Bones
Emily Deschanel, known for her role in the series Bones, along with her on-screen persona Temperance Brennan, experienced pregnancies during the initial part of Season 7. Yet, the actress gave birth to her real-life baby a bit earlier than her character’s timeline. As a result, Deschanel had to wear a prosthetic belly for a scene after her own delivery. She shared that it was pretty uncomfortable and warm to move around with it on.
She tried on several artificial tummies designed for various celebrities to find the most fitting belly. Emily even tested the belly bump originally crafted for Nicole Kidman among these. Nonetheless, she mentioned not recalling which belly bump she ultimately settled on.
Grey’s Anatomy
During her tenure on the set, Caterina Scorsone, renowned for portraying Dr. Amelia Shepherd in Grey’s Anatomy and its derivative, Private Practice, experienced pregnancy on three occasions. Interestingly, her initial and third instances of being pregnant were seamlessly woven into the narrative. Paradoxically, the character Dr. Amelia Shepherd suffered a tragic loss during her first on-screen pregnancy. Consequently, upon discovering the actress’s subsequent pregnancy, the show’s creators opted to provide her character an opportunity for maternal bliss in alignment with the storyline.
Jack Reacher
In the thriller Jack Reacher, a decision was made to keep the actress’s pregnancy hidden from the audience. This became more complex due to the storyline’s brief duration of 3 days, contrasted with the filming process spanning 4 months. This necessitated the collaboration of costume designers and cameramen to ensure Rosamund Pike’s consistent appearance on screen and attempt to obscure her growing baby bump. To achieve this, the actress frequently wore dark-colored attire during filming.
Interestingly, Rosamund Pike herself believes that the presence of a few extra pounds during filming made the character more believable and relatable. She said, “I actually really like how I look because I am carrying a bit of weight.”
The Office
While the actress portraying the lead character Pam, Jenna Fischer, was expecting her first child, her on-screen husband, and she already had a child in the storyline. This made the actress worried about addressing her sensitive condition, and she requested the costume designers to purchase new outfits that could conceal her growing baby bump from curious gazes. Nevertheless, when keeping it under wraps any longer became difficult, Jenna came clean about her pregnancy. Subsequently, a decision was made to organically incorporate her pregnancy into the show by having the on-screen couple welcome a second child.
The Vampire Diaries
In the seventh season, the vampire character Caroline, portrayed by Candice King, found herself expecting… thanks to a bit of magical assistance. She embraced the role of a surrogate mother carrying twins through a mystical transformation. According to the show’s producer, they crafted a tale involving a woman who arrived at the doorstep of a grieving widower and revealed, “I believe I’m carrying your children.” However, it was evident that this narrative turn was rather abrupt, which wasn’t part of the plan until Candice King called to share her pregnancy news.
Despite her genuine pregnancy, the actress had to wear a prosthetic belly on top of her own. This adjustment was necessary because her character was anticipating twins, while Candice was expecting only one baby and didn’t appear “pregnant enough” for the role. Beyond this, the unexpected plot twist paved the way for spin-off series like The Originals and Legacies.
Crazy and unexpected plot twists in movies always bring us excitement and joy. Do you enjoy reading about sudden bloopers during the shooting, too? Then make sure to check out our previous article!
