"Everything that I’ve done up until this point is insignificant in comparison to being a father," says the hands-on dad of three.
The 49-year-old actor who is best known for his action movies like XXX and the more popular franchise Fast and Furious, is no stranger to stunts. But when Vin Diesel was asked what the most daring role he ever did was, this was his immediate reply — “The craziest stunt I ever did? Fatherhood,” the actor told Entertainment Tonight.
Father to daughters Similce and Pauline as well as son Vincent with girlfriend Paloma Jiménez, he finds it to be an adventure. And he credits a lot of his luck at it to Paloma.
“She’s everything,” he said, according to People. “She’s the perfect mother. She’s just so wonderful in so many ways.” Vin added, “She’s so stunningly beautiful, but the thing people don’t realize is she’s my rock, so she’s so stunningly beautiful on the inside.”
But one surprising thing he shares is that it was the late actor Paul Walker who gave him great advice on fatherhood. Vin told Entertainment Tonight in another interview, "He said, 'You know Vin, a lot of guys will tell you, especially the macho guys, they tell you stay out of that delivery room. I'm going to tell you, you go in there and you be as present as you can and you cut that umbilical cord.' And that's exactly what I did."
And it's clear he loves being a dad. Talking to People, the Riddick star said about staying fit, “I think kids, when you’re active with your kids, you are bound to somewhat stay in shape, but I don’t know … not to sound crazy, but I don’t know how important that is. That’s not really what the most important thing in life is.”
“When you become a father … any parent, once you have kids, anybody who has kids wakes up every day wanting to be a better parent and that’s your main focus,” he continued when asked about maintaining his physique. “And you are less vain and less narcissistic and your joy comes from your children and less about you.”
No matter the roles he plays, he told the publication that being a father is his favorite one. “I just told my son my favorite role in life is being ‘daddy,’ but most people would say that,” he said.
In an interview with Parade Magazine, The Pacifier actor describes the first time he felt the desire to have a child. "I remember while I was doing Pacifier, working with babies on the set for so long, it really started to bring out this desire to have a child. And it took a couple years after that to find the right person and to hopefully be mature enough to be a great father which is really all you want to do. It’s amazing how it becomes your primary focus. ‘Am I going to be a good dad?’"
Then as he had his first daughter, he recalls the surprise people expressed over his becoming a dad.
"I guess it’s because of all the tough guys I’ve put on the screen. People go, ‘You’re a dad? You’re changing diapers? What’s up with the world?’ But someone once told me that, when you have a child, it opens up parts of your heart that you never knew existed. And it is so true. It’s like you have a child and you think, ‘Everything that I’ve done up until this point is insignificant in comparison to being a father.’ It’s a beautiful, beautiful thing."
References:
https://people.com/celebrity/sexiest-dad-bod-alive-vin-diesel-on-being-a-father/
https://parade.com/32179/parade/pc_0230/
https://people.com/parents/vin-diesel-fatherhood-craziest-stunt/
