Hilaria Baldwin Talks About Avoiding ‘Wicked Stepmother’ Label

Hilaria Baldwin knew there was one role she was never going to fill in Alec Baldwin’s life: “wicked stepmother” to his first daughter, Ireland Baldwin.

Alec shares daughter Ireland, now 29, with fellow actor Kim Basinger. The two divorced in 2002 and were involved in a nasty custody battle over their only child.

Hilaria revealed on the family’s TLC reality show on Sunday that she was only going to pursue a relationship with Alec if things were OK with Ireland.

“When I met her I told Alec, ‘If she doesn’t like me, I am not staying,’” Hilaria said, adding that she was “not going to be the wicked stepmother.”

“My place in life is not to come into a family and cause problems,” she said, explaining that the two have a “unique” relationship as well.

“I am 11 years older than her, I didn’t raise her, and we find tremendous humor in that,” she said.

Luckily, Hilaria said that Ireland “immediately welcomed me and we have never fought and it is so easy.”

One thing that hasn’t been as easy to adjust to is life in the public eye, as Hilaria was ensnared in a very public backlash over her changing accent in 2020.

“You never get used to people being mean,” she shared on a previous episode of the family’s show.

“But you take a deep breath, and I think you learn to distance yourself from it, and so, you know, you just try turning down the volume in my head a bit,” she said. “I’m not gonna take it personally.”

During the controversy, Ireland ended up coming to her stepmother’s defense and called the backlash “so stupid.”

“She’s a good person, she’s a caring person who has always respected my relationship with my dad, and I have a great relationship with her,” Ireland said in a video at the time. “You know, she could be a really malicious, terrible, horrible human who tears people down, but she isn’t.”