Certain celebrities are known for their desires to keep things to themselves. It makes sense, when you think about it. So much of their lives are spent in front of cameras and in the public eye, wanting a small amount of privacy is not an outrageous request.
That being said, being active on social media is such a big part of being a celebrity these days, it's hard to imagine celebs can keep anything secret for too long. But Karla Souza, who plays Laurel Castillo on How To Get Away With Murder, decided to keep one thing extremely under wraps: her pregnancy.
The actress made the surprise announcement that she was expecting her first child by posting one of her maternity photos on Instagram, with the caption "So I have something to share with you guys ;)"
Moments later, she posted an image of herself holding her newborn daughter.
"We welcomed our healthy baby girl Gianna," she said on her Instagram story. "And we couldn't feel more blessed in this moment. The last nine months have been nothing short of a miracle."
Souza and her husband, Marshall Trenkmann, a Texan banker, have been married since 2014, and she has been very outspoken about his support of her career. She left her incredible career in Mexico to move to Los Angeles and try her hand at Hollywood life.
"I think people thought I was crazy for leaving Mexico when I had any project I wanted falling at my feet," she said. "But I risked everything to come to Los Angeles, where no one knew who I was, and start all over again. It was a very hard step to take. However, it was the moment I thought it was right to take a risk in my career."
Souza's pregnancy was definitely a surprise to tons of fans, but she's not the first celebrity to keep her impending motherhood a secret!
1. Alexis Bledel and Vincent Kartheiser
Bledel has been notably silent about her personal life, even when she was at the height of her fame on Gilmore Girls. And if it hadn't been for her former co-star Scott Patterson, we may never have known that Bledel and her husband had welcomed a child.
"She's really blossomed as a woman and now she's a proud new mother and married and happy," Patterson said in an interview about the Gilmore Girls revival. "She's just the most likable, intelligent person and adorable human being. She hasn't changed at all. She looks the same. We're comparing notes because my son is about a year and a half older than her young son. I'm showing her photos and videos and what to expect. We're just really enjoying each other's company."
Bledel's rep later confirmed the news, and the actress talked about how motherhood has changed the way she works.
"More than anything, I just think about what roles I take on, and make sure that it's really something that I feel passionate about if I'm going to leave home and go work," Bledel told Entertainment Tonight. "I just want to love what I'm doing."
2. Sandra Bullock
The Oscar-winning actress may not have had a pregnancy to hide, but she managed to keep the fact that she adopted a baby completely private. Bullock adopted the little boy, Louis, from New Orleans in January of 2010, but no one knew about it until after the Academy Awards which took place in March.
"What's interesting is that she was dropping hints along the way," Entertainment Tonight producer Linda Bell Blue said at the time. "In her Oscar speech she wanted to thank 'all the moms who take care of babies and children no matter where they come from."
At the time, Bullock was still married to Jesse James. Days after the awards, it was revealed that he had been cheating on her, and she left him.
"All I remember thinking is I need to get Louis out of here before the vultures descend," she said.
Bullock proceeded with single-parent adoption, even though James later said that losing his marriage and the new baby left "a huge hole in his heart."
3. Kylie Jenner
Okay, so this may have been the worst-kept secret in the world, but Kylie Jenner managed to avoid the real world for nine months while she experienced her pregnancy. Three days after the birth of her daughter Stormi, Kylie confirmed what everyone already knew.
Since then Jenner has become more open about her new journey as a mother, but still has strict rules for people to follow.
4. Carey Mulligan
Known for being fiercely private, Carey Mulligan stunned everyone when she showed up to the BFI London Film Festival in 2015...without a baby bump. Not totally weird, until you remember that seven months prior, it was revealed that the Pride & Prejudice actress was expecting her first child with husband Marcus Mumford.
When she showed up to the awards, people started asking the question: when did she have this baby??
As it turns out, Mulligan gave birth a month before the awards, and no one had managed to find out.
"Carey have given birth to a healthy and happy baby," her rep confirmed. "She is just enjoying this time with her family and close friends."
5. Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Mara Lane
The Tudors star and his wife announced they were expecting their child very late into their pregnancy.
"Our other official prego wego dress," Mara Lane said on Instagram. "Found in #Amsterdam #Noordermarkt for 15 euros 🙋🻠yes please. Every other day I dunno as I have other dresses but Baby likes these ones ... is super conscious, connected & aware. Has not let me eat much meat entire pregnancy either ... has me thinking about things I'd rather live in ignorance to. #speciesism waat just stap 😩🙈 😇👽🦄 angel alien baby about to rock my world I already know 🙄 #thankful for my soon to be best teacher and friend 🤔ðŸ˜ðŸ˜"
Then, just a few days later, little baby Wolf arrived into the world!
6. Laura Linney
Laura Linney is an Emmy-winning actress, and she could also be a member of the CIA, because she able to hide her pregnancy for the full nine months, and even hide the fact that she had given birth. But Linney insists that it wasn't her being too private, but just being cautious as a 49-year-old mother.
"I was an older mother-to-be, and it had taken me a very, very long time to have a child. so I wanted to make sure that my child actually arrived, and was safe and healthy," she said in an interview. 'I just was very, quiet about it "” I didn't hide it intentionally, I just didn't advertise it. So it was the right thing for me and my family."
7. Hilarie Burton and Jeffery Dean Morgan
This unlikely celebrity couple hit us with two major pieces of news at once. First, we learned that the Walking Dead star was dating former One Tree Hill actress Hilarie Burton. That in itself was a shock, as the 17-year age gap threw a lot of people off.
But almost immediately after we found out they were dating, we found out that Burton and Morgan had welcomed a son together months prior to us learning about their relationship! The couple began dating in early 2009, and in March of 2010, Burton gave birth to their son, Augustus.
8. Donald Glover
Talk about secrecy! Donald Glover, known for his work on Community and as musician Childish Gambino, won a Golden Globe award in 2017 for Best Actor"”Television Series Musical or Comedy. During his acceptance speech, Glover revealed that he had welcomed a son.
"I really want to say thank you to my son, and the mother of my son for making me believe in people again, and things being possible," Glover said.
It was later revealed that his son's name is Legend, and that he shared him with his girlfriend, Michelle.
