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Rob Lowe addresses Prince Harry ponytail rumor he started: 'I'm gonna be the bad guy'

Last week, Rob Lowe shocked host James Corden when he said he thought he saw his neighbor Prince Harry with his hair in a ponytail.
/ Source: TODAY

Rob Lowe has worn many hats in his 40-year career, from Brat Pack heartthrob in films like "St. Elmo's Fire," to TV star in "The West Wing" and host of his popular podcast "Literally!"

But that doesn't mean he can't have a side gig as a royal watcher now that his neighbors in Montecito, California, include Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. Lowe recently made headlines for claiming he spotted the prince sporting a ponytail, and on Sunday TODAY with Willie Geist, he shared in detail what he saw.

"I don't want to stake my long-term credibility as a celebrity stalker," he laughed. "However, in the glimpse (I got) — and it was a glimpse — through the VIP, sexy, smoke-filled glass (window) of the (prince's) vehicle, I think the dude was wearing a ponytail."

"So, a big red ponytail in the back?" Willie asked.

"Well, here's what it was. Let's get specific. Let's go on a deep dive. The man's got good hair," Lowe answered.

"His brother may (one day) be the king of England, but for my money, Harry's got something better than his brother: hair," he quipped. "The British paparazzi are all over this one. ... There's gonna be (a) $500,000 bounty on the first photo of Harry with a ponytail, or not. ... And I'm gonna be the bad guy."

Celebrity life, however, hasn't always been easy for Lowe, 56, who spent many of his younger years on the party track.

"I was a teen idol, (a) young movie star and an alcoholic (with) a lotta money, and it was a great mix. What could possibly go wrong?" he joked to Willie. "But when I was done, I was done."

At 26, the star sobered up, and today, he "barely" recognizes that version of himself, he said. "It is legitimately another lifetime. I've been sober way longer than half my life."

Lowe has been married to makeup artist Sheryl Berkoff since 1991 and has two sons: Matthew and John, who are both in their 20s. He's also currently starring in Fox's "9-1-1: Lone Star," for which John is a writer. Its second season premieres Jan. 18.

"It's a whole other level of pride," Lowe said about working with his younger son. "I think my favorite thing about it (is) we'll be doing a scene that he wrote, and afterwards, you huddle with the director and the writer and you talk about how it went. ... And (John) will be like, 'So, Rob, I think...'"

"It's like one part kind of makes me sad, one part kinda feels like, is it disrespectful? ... And then the other part is it's kinda really cool," Lowe laughed.

Raising a happy family in the crazy world of Hollywood was always important to Lowe. As he noted to Willie, "We all wanna re-create what we didn't have."