Anderson Cooper on life as a new dad: ‘This is a new level of love’

Anderson Cooper shocked fans in April when when he announced he’s now a proud dad. Cooper had not publicly talked about becoming a parent before announcing his son’s birth when his baby boy, Wyatt Morgan Cooper was 3 days old.

Now, Cooper is going deeper, talking to People magazine about life as a dad.

“When I was 12 years old and knew I was gay and thought about my life, it always upset me because I thought, ‘I will never be able to have a kid,’ ” he tells People. “This is a dream come true.”

“It feels like my life has actually begun,” he said. “And I sort of wonder, what was I waiting for? This is a new level of love. It’s unlike anything I’ve experienced, and yet it’s also very familiar and incredibly special and intimate. It’s really extraordinary.”

Cooper says he is so grateful for “all the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people who struggled for generations and have died never thinking this was a possibility.”

The People interview echos Cooper’s original baby announcement, that he made on Instagram on April 30:

“On Monday, I became a father. This is Wyatt Cooper. He is three days old. He is named after my father, who died when I was ten. I hope I can be as good a dad as he was,” Cooper captioned a series of photos of his new son on Instagram.

He continued: “My son’s middle name is Morgan. It’s a family name on my mom’s side. I know my mom and dad liked the name morgan because I recently found a list they made 52 years ago when they were trying to think of names for me. Wyatt Morgan Cooper. My son. He was 7.2 lbs at birth, and he is sweet, and soft, and healthy and I am beyond happy.”

Like his friend and colleague Andy Cohen, Cooper credits a surrogate with making his dream of fatherhood come true…and his story reminds us that there are so many ways to make a family.

“As a gay kid, I never thought it would be possible to have a child, and I’m grateful for all those who have paved the way, and for the doctors and nurses and everyone involved in my son’s birth,” he writes, adding “Most of all, I am grateful to a remarkable surrogate who carried Wyatt, and watched over him lovingly, and tenderly, and gave birth to him. It is an extraordinary blessing – what she, and all surrogates give to families who cant have children. My surrogate has a beautiful family of her own, a wonderfully supportive husband, and kids, and I am incredibly thankful for all the support they have given Wyatt and me. My family is blessed to have this family in our lives”

Cooper says he wishes his mother, father and brother who are all deceased could have met little Wyatt, and that he likes to believe they are aware of him.

“I imagine them all together, arms around each other, smiling and laughing, happy to know that their love is alive in me and in Wyatt, and that our family continues.”

Congratulations to Anderson and baby Wyatt!

[A version of this post was originally published April 30, 2020. It has been updated.]