Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively do try their best as parents.
The actor is committed to giving his four children, whom he shares with his actress wife, “as normal a life as possible” despite their privileged upbringing.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published Friday, the Deadpool star reflected on his approach to parenting, acknowledging the stark contrast between his children’s lives and his own upbringing.
“We both grew up very working class, and I remember when they were very young, I used to say or think, like, ‘Oh God, I would never have had a gift like this when I was a kid,’ or, ‘I never would’ve had this luxury of getting takeout,’ or whatever,” Reynolds, 48, shared.
However, the actor eventually realized it wasn’t fair to burden his kids with comparisons to his past. “I realized that that’s not really their bag of rocks to carry,” he explained.
Reynolds emphasized that his children are already learning the importance of gratitude and empathy.
“They’re already very much in touch with gratitude and understanding the world enough to have a strong sense of empathy,” he said.
The Proposal star further noted that teaching his children to empathize is a key marker of successful parenting.
“Those are the things that I would think [would indicate] we’re doing an OK job — if our kids can empathize with other people and other kids,” Reynolds added.
Still, Reynolds reflected on how parenting today is vastly different from his childhood.
“When I was a kid, you would just suck it up, get out of the house and be back by sundown, which I just can’t even imagine now,” he remarked.