The actor lost his father in 2011 to cancer and now he sees glimpses of his loving dad in his toddler.
Becoming a parent can be a transformative process for many people. Actor Bradley Cooper, who had been dating model Irina Shayk, stepped into a new world when he became a dad for the first time two years ago. Lea De Seine Shayk Cooper was born in 2017, and the hands-on father spends as much time possible with her. While Shayk and he parted ways in 2019, he is still a devoted dad to Lea.
They were seen together the weekend after Valentine's day in 2020, when he bundled her up in layers of warm clothes and took her for brunch in West Village, New York, according to the Daily Mail. The 45-year-old American Sniper actor was seen crossing the street with her in his arms. While he is notoriously private about his family, he opened up to Ellen DeGeneres on her show in 2019.
He told Degeneres that becoming a daddy has changed him "in every way." He added that he is now able to connect with his inner child, saying, "It allowed me to embrace my childlike self without any fear of judgment." The Hangover star joked that now that he is a father he can play with toys all day long or "watch cartoons endlessly and not think I’m wasting my life." On a serious note, he spoke about how fatherhood changed his worldviews. According to Cheatsheet, he told Ellen, "The innocence is beautiful to see."
The A-team actor also spoke to Oprah Winfrey in 2018 and said that having a family was a miracle. "It has changed everything. Our daughter is incredible and I see my father in her quite often," he added.
Cooper lost his father, Charles, in 2011 to cancer. His world changed completely after losing him, and he opened up about the vulnerable moment of holding his father in his arms during his last moments. "It was instantaneous," he explained to the New York Times. "It wasn’t like, months later. It was like, his last exhale, and I was holding him, and it was like, everything changed." He called it a "new reality."
With Lea, his world changed again, and this time for good. The actor said that he used to be more of a workaholic but he has chosen to slow down since his daughter came into the world. He has been busy for decades until he made a conscious decision to do what he was passionate about, which led him to the Broadway production of The Elephant Man, reports NPR. Then happened the phenomenal A Star is Born, which he directed and starred in along with Lady Gaga. It wouldn't be wrong to notice how his pace and choice of movies have become more refined around the same time he became a parent.
"So I guess having a child, and having a family of my own—which is a miracle and something I’ve always dreamt of—has opened me up even more, I guess, to the day, and to be present," he added. He added that he had a loving childhood and "that’s the thing I want my daughter to have—I just always want her to feel loved."
References:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-8010147/Bradley-Cooper-protectively-carries-daughter-Lea-street-takes-tot-brunch.htmlhttps://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/bradley-cooper-reveals-how-fatherhood-changed-him.html/
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/27/movies/bradley-cooper-a-star-is-born.html
https://www.npr.org/2018/09/14/647491779/bradley-cooper-on-the-personal-story-behind-a-star-is-born
