Vanessa Kirby welcomes her first baby—and reflects on finding power in motherhood

Credit: Instagram/Paul Rabil
Vanessa Kirby and Paul Rabil are new parents! Rabil’s Instagram post highlights the awe, exhaustion, and love that come with welcoming their first child together
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Vanessa Kirby and Paul Rabil are new parents!
The Crown actress, 37, and the former professional lacrosse player, 39, have welcomed their first child together. Rabil shared the joyful news on Instagram, posting tender moments with Kirby and their newborn that capture the awe, exhaustion, and quiet wonder of early parenthood.
“I’m learning that becoming a parent slows you down and wakes you up at the same time,” Paul Rabil wrote on Instagram as he introduced his newborn to the world. “That I get to wake up every day to mum’s enormous love, and that we get to have you in our lives now.”
The post, shared on Sunday, Oct. 19, marks the arrival of Vanessa Kirby and Paul Rabil’s first child together. While Rabil’s caption offered glimpses of the family’s joy, including a playful nod to their child’s first lacrosse cradle stick, the couple has kept details private, including the baby’s name and gender. Kirby has not yet spoken publicly about the birth, though she debuted her baby bump earlier this year at The Fantastic Four: First Steps panel in May 2025.
Kirby rose to international fame for her Emmy-nominated performance as Princess Margaret in The Crown, and more recently for her role in Pieces of a Woman, which earned her an Academy Award nomination. Rabil, a two-time lacrosse world champion and co-founder of the Premier Lacrosse League, retired from the sport in 2021 before transitioning into media and philanthropy.
The sacred balancing act: motherhood and identity
Motherhood, Kirby has said, carries a sacredness that reshapes a woman’s sense of self. During a press event for Fantastic Four, she reflected on embodying her character, Sue Storm, while navigating her own pregnancy:
“I literally had the lived experience of somebody doing this incredibly sacred thing and fulfilling what she needed to do at the same time as a woman and a team member,” Kirby told PEOPLE.
Her words capture a tension many mothers know well: the push and pull between caring for others and staying connected to your own purpose. For Kirby, the timing of her pregnancy and her role felt almost symbolic, showing how motherhood and ambition can exist side by side.
Love, labor, and the reality of early parenthood
Kirby and Rabil have both acknowledged that life looks different now. The early days with a newborn can be messy and unpredictable, full of interrupted sleep and constant learning.
For Kirby, it’s another chapter in understanding what it means to show up fully—in her work, her relationships, and now as a parent. There’s no perfect rhythm, just small, steady steps toward finding what works for their family.




















































































