Whoopi Goldberg's Age Comment Raises Questions

Whoopi Goldberg's remark about age-gap relationships has raised eyebrows, with the Ghost star confessing she'd previously dated someone "40 years older" than her.

The actress stunned The View co-hosts with the revelation on Thursday during the show's Hot Topics segment, sharing that age is "no concern" for her when it comes to love.

"One of the last relationships I had, he was 40 years older than me," the 68-year-old said, prompting co-host Joy Behar to ask: "Is he still alive?"

Goldberg didn't disclose any further details about her former lover, but her nod suggested that the person is still alive—making them roughly 108 today.

Goldberg's admission caused a stir on social media, with some users accusing the Oscar winner of dating "someone in the grave."

"Wait a sec did she just say 40 years?" asked Anosike Chukwuebuka on X, formerly Twitter.

"Damn Whoppi was he 6 feet under already?" said Levnar on X, formerly Twitter.

"So she out here dating crypt keepers then," wrote Nkechi Kwenu.

"Excuse me? He's still kicking at 108?!" said @NotJosieGrossy.

"[A] 40 year gap is actually extreme," commented Victori Cruz.

"Ok not even joking but how does that work..." asked @knotBoots. "She's already like 60 so where does that put him!??!?!"

Other users defended Goldberg, telling people to "stop judging."

"As long as it's not predatory then wtf is wrong with an age gap if you're OF AGE?" wrote Chris. "Like if you 16 dating a 27 year old...pack it up but if you're grown like myself, 30 and my mans 40, I don't see the problem."

Newsweek has reached out to Whoopi Goldberg for comment via Instagram.

The age-gap discussion was inspired by the upcoming movie The Idea of You, released on March 16. Starring Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine, the rom-com follows a divorced mom who unexpectedly falls for a pop star 19 years her junior.

Although Goldberg didn't name her mysterious ex, the comedian has been married three times.

She wed Alvin Martin, a drug counselor, in 1973, but the marriage only lasted six years. Goldberg tied the knot with Dutch cinematographer and director David Claessen in 1986, but the couple split in 1988.

The Made in America star got hitched for the final time in 1994, wedding actor Lyle Trachtenberg. However, the marriage only lasted a year, with Goldberg vowing to never walk down the aisle again.

In an interview with Piers Morgan in 2011, Goldberg confessed she'd "never loved" any of her husbands, only getting married because she "wanted to feel normal."

"It seemed to me that if I was married, I'd have a much more normal life," she said.

"That's not a good reason to get married. You have to actually want a life with someone through ups and downs. And I...I just discovered that wasn't for me."

In August, Goldberg said her desire to keep her personal life out of the public eye has led to inappropriate questions about her sexuality.

"Women have been asking me this for as long as I've been around, I am not a lesbian. But I know lots of them, and I've played them on television,' she told Raven-Symoné on The Best Podcast Ever. "But I have always had lesbian friends because they're just my friends."

Goldberg's age-gap comments aren't the first time the actress has caused controversy on social media.

During a discussion about why a large number of millennials are delaying having children in November, her The View co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin said the economic climate was the main reason her generation were putting off starting a family.

Although Griffin, a political strategist, had data to back up her claims, Goldberg was unconvinced, suggesting a poor work ethic was the reason.

"If you only want to work four hours it's going to be harder for you to get a house," she said, sparking fierce backlash.

Goldberg's remarks about the Holocaust also caused outrage in 2022, after she seemed to suggest the Nazis didn't "originally" target Jewish people due to their race on The View. The comments led to a two-week suspension from the show, with Goldberg apologizing for her choice of words.