One big happy family. When it comes to parenting, Colin Jost is willing to go above and beyond to look after the son he shares with wife Scarlett Johansson.
“Colin is an extremely hands-on dad, he always makes a big fuss over little Cosmo,” a source exclusively revealed in the latest issue of Us Weekly about the Saturday Night Live star, 40, adding that he “always makes a point to pitch in” and allow the Black Widow star, 37, to rest.
Jost is also “great” with his stepdaughter Rose, 8, whom Johansson shares with ex-husband Romain Dauriac. “[Colin is] very respectful and caring,” the insider noted.
The couple, who are getting ready to celebrate their second wedding anniversary, are enjoying their “low-key” life out of spotlight. “They’re very into their privacy and downtime in the Hamptons, where they have a tight-knit support team and a wonderful laid-back lifestyle that they wouldn’t trade for the world,” the source continued. “They’re just a very laid-back, functional pair who have a ton of mutual respect. … It works fairly seamlessly and Scarlett’s extremely happy.”
Jost and Johansson — who were first linked in May 2017 and confirmed their engagement two years later — quietly tied the knot in October 2020 in a small ceremony amid the COVID-19 pandemic. They welcomed son Cosmo in August 2021.
Though the twosome have frequently joked about their son’s unusual moniker, Johansson revealed one year after his birth that it has a sentimental meaning. “Colin’s mom had a little bit of a harder time with it. She kept suggesting other versions of it for a while,” the Lucy star said during an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show last month. “Cosmo is a really sweet little flower that comes in different shades of orange and yellow and stuff like that. That’s why [Rose] liked it too.”
The Weekend Update anchor first opened up about embracing the idea of fatherhood in July 2020, when he joked about what would happen when he eventually leaves SNL. “It’s certainly not a good place to work while you’re raising a family or nurturing a healthy relationship,” he wrote in his memoir, A Very Punchable Face. “In terms of ‘family-friendly jobs,’ SNL ranks somewhere between long-haul truck driver and Somali pirate.”
After several years on the iconic variety show, Jost wrote that he began waking up on Sunday mornings thinking, “I would love to be raising a baby right now.”
Later that month, he told USA Today that as he got older, “a switch kind of flipped for me” and made him realize how much he wanted to become a father. “[Kids are] definitely on my mind,” the Staten Island Summer writer said at the time. “It’s gonna be, I’m sure, very challenging, but I also think it could be really fun.”
Johansson, for her part, said that raising a family has been an “incomparable” experience. “I think being a parent is the hardest, most rewarding … thing you’ll ever do,” she told Extra in November 2021. “I’m reminded of it constantly. I’ve been very fortunate to enjoy this time with … our young son. It’s a gift. I feel very lucky.”
For more on Jost and Johansson’s family, watch the exclusive video above — and pick up the latest Us Weekly issue on newsstands now.
