Jason Bateman and his wife, Amanda Anka, have been married for over 24 years, but their marriage hasn't always been plain sailing. Their early romance was peppered with "negotiations" as the Hollywood star navigated life in the spotlight as a young man.
The 57-year-old Arrested Development star opened up about his relationship and revealed how the couple dealt with the actor's binge drinking and partying in his twenties. He enjoyed a fast-paced alcohol and drug-fuelled lifestyle during the 90s after working as a child star on shows such as The Hogan Family.
Once the actor began his stint on the set of the show, that also starred Will Arnett and Michael Cera, in 2003, he had a hard conversation with his wife, Amanda, about cleaning up his act.
He revealed that the daughter of Canadian legend Paul Anka was initially the breadwinner in the relationship when they first met and supported him in the pursuit of his acting ambitions.
"Amanda and I definitely had a few negotiations about the point at which the [partying] spigot was going to completely turn off," Jason told The Hollywood Reporter during an interview about his career to date.
He continued: "She’d be like, 'This drip, drip, drip is annoyingly unpredictable, Jason.' She didn’t demand that I completely absolve, but that was sort of the back-and-forth, and I was like, well, I feel like my [sobriety] ETA is six months away, but if I could land this plane now, it would alleviate a lot of the tension, so let’s just [expletive] do it."
Jason revealed he no longer drinks alcohol or uses hard drugs, like cocaine, but that he is "California sober," meaning he sometimes partakes in a marijuana gummy.
© Penske Media via Getty ImagesJason's happily ever after
The Zootopia actor first met his now wife, voiceover actress Amanda, in the late 80s at a Los Angeles Kings hockey game when they were both around the ages of 18 or 19 years old.
The pair remained friends for almost ten years before deciding to take their relationship to the next level, romantically in 1998.
Shortly after Jason popped the question, the couple married in July 2001 during a lavish ceremony in Malibu, California.
Following their nuptials, the actor and his wife welcomed two daughters together, Francesca Nora Bateman, 19, and Maple Sylvie Bateman, 14.
In 2013, Jason revealed how he felt about being a father and a husband, telling Redbook: "Being a father of two is everything I wanted. I'm a big fan of marriage and being a dad. And my wife, Amanda, makes those things easy. She spoils me; she makes the husband part simple."
© Getty ImagesThe star has previously mentioned how his family supports him in his career and thanked Amanda and his two girls when accepting his SAG Award in 2019 for his performance in the TV show, Ozark.
At the podium, he told the star-studded audience: "I would like to say specifically, though, to my wife, my two daughters, Amanda, Franny and Maple, without you, none of it would be enjoyable and it probably wouldn't be possible."
He continued, gushing: "I love you more than I even tell you I do, and I'll be home for kisses so don't go to bed. Amanda, pop a mint, I'm going to come give you yours in about five minutes."
