Photo: Mitchell Layton/Getty
Bill Murrayhas a large brood of all boys.
The dad of six welcomed his two oldest sons, Homer, 43, and Luke, 39, with his first wife Margaret Kelly, whom he was married to from 1981 to 1996. He shares sons Caleb, 32, Jackson, 29, Cooper, 28, and Lincoln, 19, with his second wife, Jennifer Butler. However, thecouple split in 2008after over 10 years of marriage.
TheGhostbustersstar’s marriage with Butler had its fair share of ups and downs, and the subsequent divorce wasparticularly messy, but Murray later shared that the experience made him and his sons grow closer. “As much as the divorce was very hard, the fallout of it has been really great. I ended up much closer to my guys than I ever would have been,” he toldEsquirein 2012.
While Murray’s children with Butler prefer to stay out of the spotlight, his eldest two sons with Kelly are bothwell-known in their own right.
Keep reading to learn more about Bill Murray’s six kids.
Homer Murray, 43
21 Greenpoint Instagram
Murray’s oldest son, Homer Murray, was born to him and Kelly on March 3, 1982. Homer has carved out a life and career for himself that is very different from his famous dad’s; he works as a chef and restaurateur in New York City. In September 2016 Homer and his business partner Syd Silver turned their old restaurant River Styx into abrand new eatery called 21 Greenpoint.
TheGroundhog Dayactor was on hand to celebrate the opening of 21 Greenpoint, even pouring drinks from behind the bar. Homer explained to Eater NY, “We want people to come and have fun. People can walk in; just be nice. What my dad lacks in experience, he makes up for in tequila.”
That wasn’t the only time Murray showed up to support Homer’s venture. In May 2020, Homer and his dad teamed up to take on a Nacho Challenge to raise money for the Restaurant Employees Relief Fund. The Food Network live-streamed the event on Facebook, and Murray and Homer posed for a photo that was shared on the21 Greenpoint Instagram page.
It’s clear that Murray couldn’t be prouder of his son. A quote from the actor on the21 Greenpoint websitereads: “Homer has taken the joy of the family to have a drink, have a meal, and have friends together in one place, and made it his life’s work.”
Luke Murray, 39
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Luke Murray, Murray and Kelly’s second son, was born on April 1, 1985. Like his older brother Homer, Luke has also built a career outside of the entertainment industry.
He currently serves as an assistant coach for theUniversity of Connecticut’s men’s basketball team. On April 3, 2023, Luke helped the Huskies win the NCAA Men’s Championship game, and Murray was in the stands cheering him on. The proud dad attended several of his son’s games throughout the March Madness tournament, and told reporters, “I’m very proud of this boy, he’s a wonderful kid and he’s worked very hard.”
Prior to his role at UConn, Luke worked as an assistant coach at several other schools, including the University of Louisville, the University of Rhode Island and Xavier University, according to hisLinkedIn bio.
Luke has been open about the differences between himself and his father. In March 2017, Luke admitted toUSA Today Sportsthat he’s not nearly as funny as his comedian dad, but said they both prefer it this way. “I think that’s pretty clear early on. We’re different people, and I think [Murray] probably likes it that way,” he said. However, he noted that he has “better fashion sense” than his dad, who used to attend his games in Ugg boots, purple shorts and a fur vest.
In 2015, Murray skipped theEmmy Awardsto attendLuke’s wedding in Philadelphiato his now-wife Kara Cassidy. The actor ultimately won the category of outstanding supporting actor in a miniseries or movie that night, but it was clear where his priorities were.
Luke and his wife have since welcomed three children.
Caleb Murray, 32
After his divorce from Kelly, Murray married Butler, a costume designer he met on the set of his filmScrooged, in 1997. Bill and Butler welcomed their first child together, son Caleb “Cal” Murray, on Jan. 11, 1993.
Murray’s three youngest sons are very private, and he rarely speaks about them to the media. He did however share a sweet anecdote about them from when they were younger in 2016, explaining how they turned him on toAdele.
“I became a fan when I was driving my sons to school,” he toldEsquire. “I had Adele on, and I look in the rearview mirror and all three of my sons are in the back singing. And I’m thinking, ‘What the hell touched these guys?’ So I started singing it myself after I dropped them off.”
Jackson Murray, 29
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The former couple’s second son, Jackson Murray, was born on Oct. 6, 1995. Like his older brother, Jackson is very private, and little is known about him.
In his 2012 interview withEsquire, Murray shared his biggest parenting advice. “If you bite on everything they throw at you, they will grind you down. You have to ignore a certain amount of stuff,” he said. “The thing I keep saying to them lately is: ‘I have to love you, and I have the right to ignore you.'”
When it comes to parenting his sons, the actor also said he finds himself drawing on his own upbringing and recalling how his father raised him. “When my kids ask what I want for my birthday or Christmas or whatever, I use the same answer my father did: ‘Peace and quiet.’ That was never a satisfactory answer to me as a kid — I wanted an answer like ‘A pipe.’ But now I see the wisdom of it,” Murray told the outlet. “All I want is you at your best — you making this an easier home to live in, you thinking of others.”
Cooper Murray, 28
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Murray and Butler welcomed their third child, Cooper Murray, on Jan. 27, 1997.
Of Murray’s six sons, Cooper seems to be the only one who has taken an interest in acting. In 2012, he had a small role as an Indian Chief Khahki Scout in his father’s movieMoonrise Kingdom.
In his 2012Esquireinterview, Murray made it clear that he doesn’t want to put pressure on his kids to follow in his footsteps. “For many years I was a tough laugh, but lately I’ve been giving it up. I appreciate when they’re trying to be funny, you know? I think they feel like they have to be funny, that I’ve got some standard of humor that they have to come to,” theSaturday Night Livealum said of his kids.
Lincoln Murray, 19
Murray and Butler welcomed their fourth and final child together, Lincoln Murray, on May 5, 2005.
So far, the actor has kept his youngest son almost entirely out of the spotlight — save for a few mentions of him during his 2012Esquireinterview, during which Lincoln interrupted the conversation to tell his dad the score of a Chicago Cubs game.
A Chicago native, Murray is adie-hard Cubs fan, and it appears he may have passed his love for the team on to Lincoln.
“Hey, Dad. Bryan LaHair (former Chicago Cubs first baseman) hit a grand slam,” Lincoln, then 10 years old, excitedly told his dad during the interview.
source: people.com
