Being a dad doesn’t come with a manual, especially in Hollywood. Joe Bell star Mark Wahlberg knows that firsthand as he tries to give his children a normal life outside of entertainment. But that doesn’t mean his kids don’t find him less embarrassing as they grow up. This could be surprising given the number of fathers Wahlberg has played onscreen, but even a star as big as him isn’t immune to adolescent difficulties. The Infinite star highlighted the downside of fame by sharing a story about his kids’ events.
Being the child of a Hollywood star can be hard especially during adolescence. And that’s what Mark Wahlberg is experiencing right now with four kids over the age of 10. Of course, they don’t want to be embarrassed, especially during their activities. The Joe Bell star said his kids banning him from their extracurricular activities:
Me being in the public eye, there are pros to that, but there's a lot of cons. My kids wanna have their own identity, you know? I'm not allowed to get out of the car at football practice or a game. I gotta sit in the car and watch.
Mark Wahlberg’s words came from a typical dad watching his children grow into adulthood. But with Wahlberg’s Hollywood status, there’s the extra layer of pressure his offspring must feel. The actor’s story showed fame and success isn’t all sunshine and rainbows when raising kids. In Wahlberg’s case, he’s trying to raise well-adjusted children into well-adjusted adults. So, the Infinite star needed to fall back to make that happen. This seemed to hit harder given how close he was with his mother before her untimely passing. But the actor offered a refreshing take on his children’s independence.
While upset with the situation, the Uncharted star found the positive aspect in this new phase. Mark Wahlberg revealed to Entertainment Tonight he understood why his kids put that stipulation on him. Wahlberg shared his perspective on his children forging their own identity outside of his public persona.
At first, I took it personally, because I wanna be there to support them, but supporting them is by making them feel comfortable in what they're doing and them having their own identity too. It's very difficult.
While most dads wouldn’t understand where their kids are coming from, Mark Wahlberg seemed to get his children’s perspective. Even though Wahlberg is a Hollywood star, his children aren’t. He empathized with finding an identity outside his celebrity. At least, the actor is giving them the space needed to form their own identity.
But being the father of teenagers, giving your kids distance when they need it is part of the course. While Mark Wahlberg’s children might not think he’s amazing, Hollywood begs to differ. Wahlberg has plenty of projects lined up over the next few years. To see the actor in full dad mode, you can catch him in Joe Bell when it arrives in theaters on July 23.
