Ethan Hawke and Maya Hawke have joined the “nepo baby” debate. The father-daughter duo in an exclusive chat with ET at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Toronto, Canada, spoke about the children of famous parents entering the entertainment industry.
Ethan said to his 25-year-old daughter, who he has with his ex-wife, Uma Thurman, "We all, throughout the history of mankind, frequently swim in the same streams as our family. I want to align myself as a nepo father because your generation takes a lot of heat for this derisive term, this nepo child."
Maya remarked, "I'm hesitant about it since I think the critique of the youngsters has to do with access and opportunity, while I do enjoy the funny recognition of our method.”
The father-daughter team collaborated on their new film, 'Wildcat.' In the film Maya stars as American novelist Flannery O'Connor, and is directed by her father, who also co-wrote the script.
"Let me say publicly on Entertainment Tonight that I'm really grateful for one of the best job offers of my life, and I don't care how it came about," the delighted father remarked.
Maya Hawkes said that while the Hawkes were filming the film in Kentucky, she couldn't recall "any professional arguments on set."
Ethan jokingly remarks, "When one is working with you, one doesn't win an argument," before going on to explain why he "used to have a lot of fights on sets."
Then Ethan explained that when he was younger, he used to want everyone to see the world the way he saw it, and then he gradually realized that he is not always right, and he became more interested in listening.
Ethan, 52, went on to congratulate Maya on her budding music career, noting that many people who attended her concerts were probably familiar with her from her part as Robin Buckley on Stranger Things.
They talk about their experience on set, why Maya was never worried about her father directing, how essential Linney was on set, and how unusual it is to have actresses double-cast in dramas. Ethan also discusses working with his daughter, the delight he found in editing Wildcat, and the "unnameable" feelings he had.
Wildcat, a biographical drama about the lives of a teenage Flannery O'Connor co-written by Academy Award contender Ethan Hawke, enjoyed its second screening at this year's Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
