Hilary Swank, 48, announces she's expecting twins after 'waiting a long time'

Hilary Swank has shared the exciting news that she's expecting twins with her husband Philip Schneider.

The star made the announcement during an interview with Good Morning America today (5 October), revealing it was something she had 'been wanting for a long time.'

Hilary, 48, had been on the show to speak about her TV show Alaska Daily, when she decided to spread the good news.

"I'm so happy to share it with you and with America right now", she said in the TV studio.

"This is something that I've been wanting for a long time and my next thing is that I'm going to be a mom! And not just of one, but of two!"

The Academy Award winner added: "It's so nice to be able to talk about it and share it."

Viewers were thrilled when they caught Hilary's announcement, and took to Twitter to congratulate her.

"Hilary Swank just announced she’s having twins at 48 years old. The boost this just gave me! Oh my gosh! HOPE IS ALIVE", read one tweet.

Meanwhile, over on Instagram, Hilary shared some snaps of her baby bump, which prompted some of her famous friends to chime in on the well wishes.

Actor Kate Hudson wrote: "What what what!!! Congrats my friend."

Journalist Katie Couric added: "Congratulations!!!! So so happy for you", while comedian Chelsea Handler simply commented: "Yeah babies!"

Tennis champ Maria Sharapova raved: "This made my day. Many many congratulations!!"

Later the same morning, Hilary appeared on Live with Kelly and Ryan to discuss the news, revealing that she's now in her second trimester.

Hilary shared that twins actually run in both her and her husband's families.

"It's such a blessing. It's a total miracle. It's unbelievable", she told them.

She managed to keep the news totally under wraps, revealing that her team over at Alaska Daily had no idea she was pregnant until she made the announcement today.

"My clothes started not to fit so I had to, the other day... cut [my jeans] open," she confessed.

"And then I put a jacket on that wasn't in continuity. And [they] came and said, 'That's not in continuity.' I said, 'Oh, I think it works.' 'It doesn't.' 'No, it does. I'm going to make it work.'

"She's like, 'If you're an executive producer, you can do it, but this is weird.'"

Hilary and her husband Philip Schneider have been dating since 2016, and officially tied the knot in August 2018.