IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Bryce Dallas Howard opens up about her dad Ron Howard, 'Dads' documentary

“What I realized in interviewing all these guys is that we’re treating dads like they’re in the background when they’re not.”
/ Source: TODAY

Bryce Dallas Howard acknowledges that she felt “insecure” at the beginning of her career in Hollywood.

As the daughter of Oscar-winning director Ron Howard, “I felt like I had something to prove,” the 39-year-old actress and filmmaker told TODAY Parents. “I wouldn’t invite my parents to the school plays and stuff like that. I hid them. I wanted people to pay attention to me because of me and not because of who I am related to.”

Howard no longer has to worry about that. Since making her break-out debut in M. Night Shyamalan’s 2004 psychological thriller “The Village,” she has appeared in nearly 30 movies, including blockbusters “The Help” and “Jurassic World.”

Howard also has made a name for herself as a director. Her documentary “Dads,” which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last year, celebrates modern fathers.

For the film, Howard sat down with a handful of famous fathers including Will Smith, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon and her own dad.

“What I realized in interviewing all these guys is that we’re treating dads like they’re in the background when they’re not,” Howard explained. “The vast majority of fathers are incredibly involved, present and committed. That needs to be acknowledged. It would be really hard for me to be a good mother when everyone assumed I wasn’t doing anything.”

Howard, who is a mom to Theodore, 13, and Beatrice, 8, pointed to her husband, Seth Gabel, as an example.

“When I was pregnant with Beatrice and then after she was born, if I was physically with Seth, I never changed a diaper,” Howard revealed. “It wasn’t something I asked for, it was just something he did.”

Howard knows she’s lucky to be surrounded by such wonderful fathers.

“My dad was constantly bringing me to movie sets. I loved that. He inspired me. But we also played a ton of basketball at home,” she said. “We’d just go and shoot baskets on the driveway. We did it a zillion times. Whenever I think about it, it brings me warmth and happiness.”

“Dads” will be available to stream on Apple TV and via the Apple TV app on June 19.

Related video: