John Boyega has kept his family life to himself in the past, but now he’s revealing a new chapter. In a recent interview with The Guardian, he revealed he’s married and expecting a child. But the saga wasn’t over. On his Instagram, he shared the latest plot twist the group chat has been speculating about: that he’s also a new dad.
While he hasn’t publicly named his wife, the actor, known for Star Wars and The Woman King, told The Guardian he is married. As EBONY previously reported, she is actress Lashontae “Tae” Heckard.
“Oh yeah, this is my wedding ring,” he told the Guardian when asked about the ring on his left hand. “I’ve been married for coming up to two years now.” Boyega and Heckard wed in a small ceremony; he joked he got married the way Braveheart did, miming planting a sword in the ground and asking her, “Will you come with me?” Boyega told the Guardian that the wedding was intimate. One of his rings came from a spontaneous trip to Walmart. He’s considering a bigger celebration, returning to his native land Nigeria for the festivities.
By October 14, the actor had another update: the baby was already here. In an Instagram post, Boyega shared that the couple had welcomed their little one some time ago, posting a video of himself cradling the baby. In yet another revelation, Boyega’s sister is expecting a child.
The carousel included photos of Heckard, including an image of the pair holding her baby bump. Boyega’s marriage has also made him stepfather to Heckard’s son, Brandon Byron Jennings Jr., whom she shares with former NBA player Brandon Jennings. The new role has made Boyega think about the kind of dad he hopes to be; words like “present,” “consistent,” and “full of love” top his list.
The new role is made even more poignant as Boyega promotes his new documentary, Damilola Taylor: The Last 24 Hours, which honors his childhood friend, Damilola Taylor, a 10-year-old Nigerian schoolboy who was fatally stabbed in the leg with a broken glass bottle in a concrete stairwell on the North Peckham estate after leaving an after-school library club. Boyega’s production company is prominently involved.
Notoriously private about his life off-screen, Boyega offering an intimate glimpse into his relationship and fatherhood is a refreshing look at a Black man who gave himself room to enjoy his marriage and settle into fatherhood before inviting everyone else into the conversation.