Ryan Phillippe Details 'Unique' Experience of Having Son Deacon Play His Brother on New Show 'Motorheads'
Ryan Phillippe is proud of his son Deacon as he plays his brother in a new show.
In the upcoming series Motorheads, Ryan plays a former NASCAR mechanic named Logan, whose brother Christian disappeared 17 years go. As for Deacon, he plays young Christian in flashback scenes.
In a recent interview, Ryan gave details about working with his son on set.
“It was the showrunner’s idea. He came up to me and said, ‘We’re thinking about offering the role of Christian in flashbacks to your son.’ I was like, ‘wow.’ And internally I’m like, ‘please!’ I wanted it, but I wanted to play it very cool and let them work it out, separate of me. I said, ‘Well, then offer it to him, and see what he thinks.’ And then Deacon said he wanted to – what a joy,” he told The New York Post.
Keep reading to find out more…
“We didn’t have scenes together, but he was playing my brother. And so, we sat in a room with John the showrunner … and talked about what our childhood would have been like growing up – which is such a unique thing to have with your son,” he added.
He continued, “I was there on set for him for a lot of his initial work days, just to kind of show him the ropes, and let him know how things typically go, or if he had any questions. I was there for his first night shoot, watching him be bleary-eyed at three in the morning. So, it did feel like a shared experience, even though we weren’t on-screen together.”
Ryan shares Deacon with ex-wife Reese Witherspoon. Motorheads is Deacon‘s second major television acting role, as he also appeared in Never Have I Ever. Currently, he is enrolled in New York University.
“It was “gratifying for me to have Deacon come up off and on throughout the production and just to get to spend that time together. The fact that we would get to live together for a few days here and there during the making of the show was really awesome,” Ryan said.
“He’s a very sharp kid. I get advice from him often! He grew up around [the TV and film industry] too, with his mother and with me. It’s not like he’s walking into a foreign situation. Our kids spend time on sets. And, I’m enjoying seeing him grow into it, and own it,” he added.
In the interview, Ryan said that he chose not to be present while Deacon kissed a girl for a scene. He also didn’t shut down the idea of his daughter Ava also making a possible appearance on the show.
Motorheads premieres May 20 on Prime Video.
Last year, Ryan addressed nepotism claims regarding his kids.