The Truth About Harrison Ford's Children

Harrison Ford met his first wife, Mary Marquardt, while he was studying English and philosophy at Ripon College in Wisconsin, per People. They got married in 1964 and welcomed their first child, Ben Ford, in 1967.

While Harrison found success in Hollywood, Marquardt became an illustrator, per Epicurious. Ben would grow up to pursue passions of his own. He originally wanted to be a professional baseball player, but after an injury derailed that dream, he enrolled in the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco.

Ben credits both of his parents for sparking his interest in cooking, telling the Daily Mail that he learned a lot about the craft while visiting his father in Hertfordshire, England, where the movie "Raiders of the Lost Ark" was being filmed. "At weekends we always seemed to go to someone's home, never to a restaurant, for a Sunday roast. I watched everything," he recalled. And while speaking about his mother's influence on his career path, he told Life + Times, "My mother and her friends always involved me in their cooking projects. We also always had a garden and I think those two things were the catalyst for my passion for cooking."

In 2003, Ben told The Baltimore Sun that his then-3-year-old son, Ethan, was following in his footsteps by helping out in the kitchen "every day." Ethan's mother is Ben's ex-wife, producer Elizabeth Winkler. Ben later married a fellow foodie named Emily, and they welcomed a son named Waylon in 2010.   

So what is Ben Ford's relationship like with dad Harrison Ford? By all accounts, they seem very close. But for Father's Day 2021, Ben posted a loving tribute on Instagram to his own sons that, at first glance, seemed like a slight dig at his own father. "I had to extinguish what a father meant and learn what it meant to be a dad," he wrote. "My children needed someone who actively took part in their lives. A dad who nurtured them. A dad who was present in mind, body, and soul. They needed attunement. They needed a connection. They needed someone emotionally available."

While parts of the post seemed slightly underhanded, Ben clarified that he was talking about himself and not referring to his own father. After listing all of these positive traits, he added that none of them "came naturally to me."

In fact, Ben's 2019 Father's Day post to Ford on Twitter emphasized their close relationship with a touching photo of the two of them grilling. "My dad or pops (newly adapted) He taught me resiliency as a young father and later helped give me the courage to pursue my dreams," Ben wrote. They also participated in a Father's Day cookoff for Food & Wine in 2017, so they clearly have a close and happy bond.

While Willard Ford wasn't called to the camera or the kitchen, Harrison Ford's second-oldest son did tap into his own combined passions of entrepreneurship and athleticism by opening Strong Sports Gym in Los Angeles. On Mind Body Online, he described himself as an "Assistant Assistant Coach" and revealed that his workout regime began with "traditional martial arts." He later took an interest in "'western-style' wrestling, boxing, and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)."

Willard's LinkedIn profile is further proof of his passion for physical fitness. As a VeloPura cycling tour guide, he offers guided bicycle tours in "Mexico, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Japan, France and other countries." He's also a partner of The Super Fred cycling club.

But Willard's career has shape-shifted over the years. According to the Los Angeles Times, he used to own the Kim Sing Theater in Los Angeles' Chinatown district, which he sold in 2016 for $3.3 million. He used the theater complex as a furniture showroom and sold apparel from his own Ludwig clothing line there, per California Apparel News.

Willard's gym ended up closing down during the pandemic in June 2020. A post on the Strong Sports Gym Instagram page read, "With nowhere to turn we're calling it quits." While it's unfortunate, clearly Willard has an entrepreneurial drive and knows how to channel it.

When Malcolm Ford was 17, he ended up going to rehab in Los Angeles for marijuana addiction, per the Daily Mail. A source, who was allegedly a friend of the Ford family, told the outlet, "The kid had a big marijuana problem and the [program] is specifically tailored to adolescents with addiction."

Since Malcolm was so young, Harrison Ford and Melissa Mathison would attend meetings with their son to support him. The family insider revealed that after Malcolm would introduce himself to the group, Harrison would stand up and say, "My name is Harrison and I'm here to support my son Malcolm."

Harrison and Mathison decided to separate in 2000 after 17 years of being married, per ABC News, and allegedly the split, which was followed by their divorce in 2004, was deeply upsetting to Malcolm. According to the Daily Mail, both parents went to Malcolm's recovery meetings but "both looked very uncomfortable playing a couple." Nevertheless, they did show a solid front and showed up for their son, and a decade after his stint in rehab, Malcolm was touring with the likes of the Queens of the Stone Age and Billy Idol, per Performer.  

If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

When Harrison Ford and Melissa Mathison divorced in 2004, the split was one of the most expensive that Hollywood had ever seen. Mathison got $85 million in their settlement, as well as royalties from any movies Ford made while they had been married, the Daily Mail reports. Some of the hit films he appeared in during that time were "Patriot Games," "Air Force One," "The Fugitive," and a pair of Indiana Jones movies.

Tragically, Mathison died in 2015 at the age of 65 from neuroendocrine cancer, and to make matters even more challenging for her family, her original will went missing. Per TMZ, Mathison had a net worth of around $22 million at the time of her death.

Luckily, a copy of her will was found, and according to California law, a copy suffices as long as no one contests the will. In this case, no one seemed to have any issues with it, and TMZ speculated that most of Mathison's fortune would go to her two children, Malcolm and Georgia Ford. When the kids were young, Mathison spoke to the Los Angeles Times about taking them to the theater, where she noticed that many children were portrayed as "mean and materialistic." She recalled, "We'd get back in the car after seeing a movie and I'd say, 'Now what did you think about this?,' and they'd have nothing to say." She left them a legacy of a much different portrayal of children in the movie E.T.

Judging from the characters he plays, Harrison Ford doesn't seem like someone who shies away from action,  and he has indeed remained active thanks to his youngest son, Liam Ford. When Harrison was 76 and Liam was 18, they went skydiving together in New Zealand. On "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" in 2019, Harrison said the only reason he tried it was because "Liam said he wanted to do it." However, he really enjoyed the experience. He revealed that Flockhart did not jump and joked that he and Liam were reluctant to tell her that they hoped to do it again.

When Liam was still a little guy, Harrison spoke with the Independent about the experience of raising a 9-year-old while being 67 at the time. "I've got five kids in total, so it's not my first rodeo," the actor said. "Yeah, obviously, I'm getting older but I don't relate to it very much. It doesn't interest me as something to dwell on. I have a 9-year-old kid at home. I feel like the father of a 9-year-old."

Harrison spoke about the wide age range of his children and the experience of being a grandfather as well, but aptly said, "I have those obligations and that's my life, but I don't think so much about how old I am." That seems to be a winning attitude for the father of five, who has juggled the hurdles of relationships and family life with grace and consistency.