All About Jack Nicholson's 6 Children
All About Jack Nicholson's 6 Children
Stephanie Kaloi, Samantha StutsmanFri, April 24, 2026 at 3:10 PM UTC
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Jack, Lorraine and Ray Nicholson in 2025.Credit: Lorraine Nicholson/Instagram -
Jack Nicholson has six children from five previous relationships
He became a father for the first time in 1963 and welcomed his youngest in 1994
Jack's youngest son, Ray, is an actor
Jack Nicholson is an Academy Award-winning actor — and a father of six.
The Shining star became a father in 1963 when he welcomed his first daughter, Jennifer, with his then-wife, Sandra Knight. The pair divorced in 1968. Around 1970, he fathered son Caleb Goddard with his Five Easy Pieces costar Susan Anspach, followed by daughter Honey Hollman with Winnie Hollman in 1981.
He later welcomed daughter Lorraine and son Ray with actress Rebecca Broussard in 1990 and 1992, respectively. In 1994, Nicholson had his youngest daughter, Tessa Gourin, with Jennine Gourin. Nicholson and Tessa have been estranged for much of her life.
In a 2010 interview with AARP Magazine, Jack spoke about his relationship with Lorraine and Ray, saying, "We've always gotten along. I want to be inspirational, or some kind of good influence on them, without overburdening them. It's their time of life to find out who they are."
In April 2026, Jack turned 89, and Lorraine was there to celebrate at an intimate gathering.
Here's everything to know about Jack Nicholson's six children.
Jennifer Nicholson, 62
Jack Nicholson and Jennifer Nicholson in 2006.Credit: Chris Weeks/WireImage
Nicholson met his first and only wife, actress Sandra Knight, while filming The Terror. The two got married in 1962 and were together until 1968. Their daughter Jennifer was born in 1963.
Jennifer spent most of her childhood with her mother in Hawaii, according to the Los Angeles Times. "I like being Jack Nicholson's daughter, and I'm proud of him, but people don't understand the pressures that come along with that," she told the outlet in 2003.
After studying art history in school, Jennifer worked as a movie set designer, an actor and an interior designer. She owned a vintage boutique and started a fashion brand, too. In fact, she showed a collection at New York Fashion Week in 2003, and her clothes were worn by Jennifer Love Hewitt, Naomi Campbell and her father's ex-girlfriend, Anjelica Huston.
Jennifer has two children of her own, sons Duke and Sean Norfleet, whom she shares with her ex-husband Mark Norfleet. Duke has pursued acting like his grandfather and had a role in 2018's Us.
Caleb Goddard, 55
Susan Anspach and Jack Nicholson in 'Five Easy Pieces.'Credit: Bettmann
Nicholson starred opposite Susan Anspach in 1970's Five Easy Pieces. The pair were close, and Anspach became pregnant with a child that she said was Nicholson's while they were filming the movie.
The actress went on to marry Mark Goddard while she was pregnant, and Goddard adopted the son that Anspach conceived with Nicholson, Caleb Goddard.
Twenty-five years later, Nicholson publicly denied paternity, although Caleb told PEOPLE that the actor recognized him as his son in private.
Honey Hollman, 44
Winnie Hollman and Jack Nicholson in 1976.Credit: Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty
Little is known about Nicholson's daughter Honey Hollman, whom he welcomed with model Winnie Hollman in 1981. Honey was raised by her mother in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Like her father, she took up acting for a short time and starred in the 2010 Danish film Empire North.
Lorraine Nicholson, 36
Jack Nicholson and his daughter Lorraine Nicholson attend a Los Angeles Lakers game in 2013.Credit: Noel Vasquez/Getty
Nicholson and Rebecca Broussard welcomed their first child together, daughter Lorraine Nicholson, on April 16, 1990.
Nicholson and Lorraine were close while she was growing up, and were often spotted having dinner together and attending Lakers games. The Departed actor took Lorraine to the Golden Globes in 2007.
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Three years later, Lorraine told PEOPLE that her dad has a special nickname for her. She explained, "Ever since I was a baby, he's called me 'Perf,' short for perfect."
Jack Nicholson and daughter Lorraine Nicholson.Credit: LORRAINE NICHOLSON/Instagram
After studying at Brown University, Lorraine followed in her father's footsteps by pursuing a career in the film industry. She had a role in 2011's Soul Surfer and made her directorial debut at the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival with the premiere of her short film Life Boat.
In January 2025, Lorraine shared holiday photos on Instagram that included a picture of her and her dad in an embrace. Her brother Ray could be spotted in the photos, along with her nephew Duke.
Later that same year, Lorraine posted photos on Instagram from their family Thanksgiving.
Ray Nicholson, 34
Ray Nicholson in 2019.Credit: Stefanie Keenan/WireImage
Nicholson's younger son, Ray Nicholson, was born on Feb. 20, 1992.
The two share a major interest: the Los Angeles Lakers. Nicholson and Ray have been photographed courtside numerous times over the years.
Ray has also pursued a career in acting. He was cast in the season finale of Mayan M.C in 2018, and returned to the screen in Out of the Blue alongside Diane Kruger in 2022.
Ray spoke positively of the experience in an August 2022 interview with ScreenRant. He explained, "It was a really wonderful thing to know that I didn't have to give anything more than I was capable of giving, and I know that I poured everything that I had at the time into it. I hope that it showed up."
He also starred in the 2022 holiday film Something From Tiffany's alongside Zoey Deutch and 2024's Smile 2. In Smile 2, Ray drew comparisons to his famous dad and his iconic grin from The Shining. Though their memorably creepy expressions do look similar, Ray told Deadline that he and Nicholson are "very different people."
"I love him. He's my inspiration. I ate dinner with him every night. I studied it, that's how I learned to be a human being," he said. "So of course we're gonna be kind of similar.”
Tessa Gourin, 31
Tessa Gourin in September 2025.Credit: Tessa Gourin/Instagram
Nicholson's youngest child, Tessa, was born on Aug. 15, 1994. However, the actor has never publicly claimed Tessa, whom he shares with Jennine Gourin, as his daughter.
In February 2023, Tessa penned a piece for Newsweek, detailing her life as Nicholson's "illegitimate" daughter.
"The truth is, in all of my 28 years of life, we have never had a relationship," she wrote. "Although I flew from New York City to Los Angeles to meet on the odd occasion as a young girl (at the behest of my mother), it was always clear that he wanted no part in my life. Have you ever been on a date and sensed that the other person just wasn't feeling it? That's pretty much how every interaction I have ever had with Jack Nicholson has gone."
Tessa continued, "I don't hide the fact that Jack Nicholson is my biological father. Why should I? However, it is also not something I've ever led with in a conversation. So many people have been forced to live with the pain of a parent's absence, famous or not. But it makes it that much harder when that absent parent is actively in the lives of their other children, which is the case for me."
Shortly after the article was published, the actress spoke with The Daily Beast and shared that she hasn't talked to Nicholson in years.
"From a very young age, my mother told me not to tell anyone that I have this famous dad," Tessa said. "I knew he was powerful and Daddy Warbucks-level rich, so I kind of equated my life to being like Orphan Annie's."
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