Jean Smart is the proud mother of two children: Connor and Forrest Gilliland.
Smart and her late husband Richard Gilliland met on the set of the CBS sitcom Women design and within a year they married in June 1987. Two years later, in October 1989, Smart and Gilliland had their son, Connor, followed by their second child, Forrest, in May 2009 through adoption.
Smart and Gilliland were married for nearly 34 years before the actor died in March 2021 at the age of 71 after a “brief illness.” After that, Smart raised the children alone, which she described as “unimaginable,” especially considering Forrest was 12 at the time.
Although she told PEOPLE in 2022 that “being a single mom is the hardest thing (she’s) ever done,” she later shared that it has made her “smarter” about taking care of herself and her overall health.
In recent years, Hacking The star nodded to her sons during the acceptance speeches at the awards ceremony. At the 2021 Screen Actors Guild Awards, she won for Outstanding Female Actor in a Comedy Series and paid special tribute to them, saying: “To my two children, Forrest and Connor: You are my life.”
Later that fall, at the 73rd Emmy Awards, where she won the award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, Smart described them as “my two wonderful and selfless children… who are both very brave in their own ways.”
Here you can find out everything you need to know about Jean Smart’s children Connor and Forrest.
Connor Gilliand
Smart and Gilliland welcomed their first child, son Connor Gilliland, in October 1989.
Connor is now in his early 30s and has always led a private life: he has no public social media profiles and has not appeared in major shows with his mother or father.
Since Connor had two actor parents, it is no surprise that he grew up on Hollywood sets – especially Women designin which both of his parents played the main roles.
In an interview with ElleSmart talked about her memory of Connor working with them as a two-year-old, sitting in a director’s chair with headphones on.
“He immediately understood that when he heard that buzzing sound, everyone had to be quiet and that they were going to shout ‘action,'” she recalls. “So as he was sitting there and the buzzing sound came on, he said something like ‘shh, shh.'”
The actress continued: “He was a very serious child, very serious. … I always say that he was formed by a lot of laughter, but after that he became very serious.”
When he was 20, Smart and Gilliland adopted his brother Forrest.
At a performance in 2010 at The Bonnie Hunt ShowSmart joked that while Connor was “more excited about the trip (to China) than the baby,” that excitement quickly changed when he met his new sibling.
She reported that he found it “unbelievable” and said, “‘I didn’t know I would feel this way.'”
Connor has also been there for Smart since his father’s death. “They take very good care of me,” she told PEOPLE in 2023, referring to her two children.
She went on to say that Connor had moved back in with her and Forrest while they adjusted to their new life. “He’s helped me a lot since we lost his dad, so it’s been really nice to have him around,” Smart added.
In the same interview, the Guardian The star explained that her children motivated her to see a doctor about her heart problems and that she eventually underwent a minor procedure.
“Now I’m the one in charge, all by myself. And if something happens to me, what will happen to my children?” she said.
Gilliland Forest
Smart and Gilliland announced the birth of their second child, son Forrest Gilliland, in January 2010. He was born 18 months earlier, around the summer of 2008, in China.
Connor and Forrest have an age difference of almost 20 years, and Smart said on The Bonnie Hunt Show that she “thought they would be closer in age” when she and Gilliland began starting a family.
In an interview in 2024 with ShineSmart revealed that she had talked to Gilliland about the possibility over the years, and the couple finally started the paperwork and welcomed Forrest with open arms.
“The second we had this baby, we were just so infatuated. It was the best,” she told the outlet. “My youngest is just an amazing person.”
While Connor stays out of the spotlight, Forrest has made several public appearances with his mother. He accompanied her to the 2021 Emmys, an experience Smart recounted Entertainment tonight he was “delighted” about it.
In conversation with E! News At the event, Forrest said he was “very proud” of his mother.
Forrest was also by her side at the 2022 Critics Choice Awards, where he again gushed about his mother and said she is dedicated to her craft.
“She deserves it because she works 13, 16 hours a day, Monday to Friday,” he explained. “The only day off she’s had since December, she decided to spend it with me.”
However, he is not allowed to watch everything his mother has acted in. “There are definitely some things that are taboo,” said Smart USA Today in a 2022 interview when asked if Forrest had seen their movies and shows.
She said when some of Forrest’s friends started watching Hackingshe eventually began “showing him certain scenes” before letting him watch the entire first season.
He could also be the next actor in the family: In an interview with The New York TimesSmart revealed that Forrest was rehearsing for his high school’s play. The Pirates of Penzance.