This Is the One Thing That Surprised Amy Schumer About Becoming a Mom
The comedian tells HelloGiggles how motherhood has changed her.
Two years ago, a conversation with Amy Schumer would’ve likely been focused on topics like sex and bikini waxes, not baby bumps and toddlers. But since having her son Gene with husband Chris Fischer in 2019, Schumer has been doing less boob-talk and more baby-talk—and yes, this change of pace has surprised her, too. As the comedian tells HelloGiggles, she never expected to be so contentedly consumed by motherhood.
“I’m surprised by how much I want to be with Gene,” Schumer, 39, admits, speaking a Zoom call. “When I was pregnant, I remember telling the people in my life, ‘I’m gonna work a lot, and I’m gonna be busy [when he’s born],’ but I just can’t wait to see him. If he’s napping or I’m working, I always can’t wait to see him.”
“Somebody said ‘having a baby is like having your heart outside your body,’ and I feel that,” Schumer continues. “It’s really like having your organ outside of your body. I don’t know what I thought it was going to be like, but that pull did surprise me.”
However, before Schumer was happily parenting 21-month-old Gene—notably serenading him with J.Lo songs and sarcastically “monitoring” his screen time—her pregnancy was anything but smooth sailing. The comedian has endometriosis and, when she became pregnant with Gene, was diagnosed with a lesser-known condition called hyperemesis that causes extreme, persistent nausea and vomiting in pregnant women.
Schumer’s tumultuous pregnancy is chronicled in the HBO Max documentary Expecting Amy (along with happier events, like her 2018 wedding to Fischer and the filming of her Netflix stand-up comedy special, Growing.) But at its core, the three-part film highlights the raw, unfiltered reality of how severely women diagnosed with hyperemesis (including other celebs like Kate Middleton and Kim Kardashian) often struggle. Looking back, Schumer says that despite hyperemesis being “an unspeakably awful disease” to deal with, the experience showed her that she’s “stronger than [she] thought” she was.
“Women are truly warriors,” Schumer says. “All women, but especially mothers. My strength surprised me and gave me a new level of confidence.”
Like many comedians, Schumer has always been largely self-deprecating, but she reveals that becoming a mom has significantly improved her self-image. “I used to try to squeeze out every possible ounce of hotness from myself,” she recalls, laughing. “But now, I just don’t think about how I look, ever. I feel strong and healthy and I can pick Gene up and play with him—that’s what’s on my mind. There’s a confidence that comes with that—not thinking about yourself physically in that way is pretty relaxing.”
“I get to just be a mom and a wife and an artist—the things that I really care about.”
Amy Schumer
In the first episode of Expecting Amy, we see Schumer and Fischer find out that they’re having a baby boy. After a tearful hug, Schumer quips, “Down with the patriarchy! I can’t believe we’re gonna have another white man in this house.” Now, just over two years later, she jokes that Gene’s first words were “topple the patriarchy”; but in all seriousness, Schumer does have thoughts on how she plans to help Gene have a positive impact on the world.
“I think he’ll probably be a lot cooler than Chris and me,” Schumer says. “The first vice president that he’ll remember is a woman of color. I got arrested for civil disobedience in DC when he was inside of me and he’s been with me at a lot of BLM protests this summer. I think Gene will just see how Chris and I live and our own philosophy on the equality of women and other people who have been marginalized in this country.”
In addition to being on the frontlines of protests and calling attention to causes like gun control and sexual abuse, Schumer also says she purposely pursues partnerships with companies that advocate for equal representation. That includes condiment brand Hellmann’s, with whom she recently joined forces.
“You can’t really affect real change unless somebody’s at the top, and we need women at the top,” Schumer says. “Any company I work with, I look at their board—is everybody a white guy? That’s why I wanted to partner with Hellmann’s, because they’re doing a really good job with representation. Plus, they’re pushing to educate people about food waste and helping people with food insecurity.”
Schumer is starring in Hellmann’s’ first Super Bowl commercial, which will air during the game on Sunday, February 7th. And although she “never watches football”, (“did you know there are quarters?” she asks sincerely), the star says she does typically make an exception for the Super Bowl. Plus, she points out, “Tom Brady is gonna be in it, and he’s easy on the eyes. Watch out Gisele—I’m coming for him!”
The comedian jokes that while she’s been eating Hellmann’s mayonnaise since she was a kid, she’s currently thinking of new ways to use it, in the spirit of reducing food waste. “With this weather, it doesn’t matter how much moisturizer I put on, my legs are sandpaper,” Schumer explains. “Today I was thinking maybe I should try putting mayo on them.”
And although becoming a mom has benefitted Schumer’s body image, she still cracks some tried-and-true self-deprecating jokes on occasion. “My friend Jennifer Lawrence is the face of Dior, and I’m the body of mayo,” she tells me with a straight face, in true Amy Schumer form.
