Ben Stiller talks about the challenges of parenthood and how his family’s Hollywood legacy has shaped the way he raises his own children, who also appear in the story.
The 59-year-old actor and filmmaker, who shares daughter Ella, 23, and son Quinlin, 20, with wife Christine Taylor, recently reflected on his journey as a parent and child of two famous entertainers while promoting his new documentary. Stiller & Meara: Nothing is lost.
Appears on The view On Thursday, Ben spoke about how growing up as the son of comedy legends Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara has influenced his own parenting, especially now that both of his children have chosen to follow in his footsteps.
“Having kids who are now also actors experiencing that became part of the film in terms of talking to them about how cyclically, over generations, these things are passed down,” he said.
“You want to do better than your parents. In some places you do better, sometimes worse. It’s that struggle we all go through.”
That same day Ben showed up Todaywhere co-host Savannah Guthrie praised him for having raw and emotional conversations with his family on camera.
The Meet the parents Star said that while making the film, he became more aware of how his parents’ dynamics shaped his own relationships.
“I realized that the influence my parents had on me and my sister, and all parents had on their children, affected my relationship with my wife and my children,” he explained.
“As I started looking more deeply at my parents’ relationship, I realized I needed to acknowledge my own relationships and the effects they had on them, so it became more of a family story.”
As part of the project, Stiller interviewed his wife and children, uncovering moments of honesty he had not previously shared with them.
“As I was looking at the cuts, I thought, ‘Oh, wow, I’ve never really talked about this kind of personal stuff before,’” he told the newspaper. Wall Street Journal in an interview published Thursday.
In the documentary, Ben’s children did not contain their feelings about his absence during their childhood.
Ella said directly to him, “I literally never remember you being there when I was growing up.” Quinlin echoed her thoughts, saying it often felt like parenthood came “last” on his father’s list of priorities.
“After a hard day, or when something goes wrong, you can get into your own head and when you get in that place, it’s hard to get you out,” Quinlin said.
“You have all these hats you’re trying to balance: being a director, an actor, a producer, a writer. But also just a father.”
He also admitted that it was difficult when his father was away for long periods of time due to filming.
Ben, who once believed he had managed to balance work and family, acknowledged that he had not realized how deeply his absence affected his children.
“I thought I could do it,” he admitted in the documentary.
“I flew home on the weekends and found special places for the kids to play when they visited the set. But in reality, just hearing them talk about it, it was the same thing for them as I experienced as a kid and I couldn’t see that at all.”
Earlier this month, Stiller said The times that he raised his children, a blunt admission that shows he is willing to face past mistakes.
By making Stiller & Meara: Nothing is lostthe actor not only seems to be honoring his parents’ legacy, but also busy redefining his own, as a father who strives to learn, think and do better.
