Kevin Costner, star of the massively popular Paramount Network's Yellowstone, is just like us. The world may currently know him best as John Dutton, but to his family, he's Dad. And that means, also like many of us, he's trying to figure out this whole parenting thing as he goes.
Being a star doesn't magically transform you into the perfect father. The Yellowstone star will be the first to tell you this. And despite how he might seem as if he's got everything under control as one of TV's most intriguing dads, Costner is really just taking life as a parent one day at a time.
Costner's parenting advice
Speaking to People, Costner opened up about his life as a father, with advice on how best to approach little ones.
"You've got to get down on the ground and play with them," he told People. "And you teach them to be independent — and the sad part about that is they become that. I'm like any other parent: I'm trying to figure it out."
Costner is married to his wife of 18 years, Christine Baumgartner. The pair have three children of their own: sons Cayden, 15, and Hayes, 13, and daughter Grace, 12. In addition, Costner has four children from his previous relationship: sons Joe and Liam, and daughters Annie and Lily. With seven children in tow, he knows a thing or two about raising them. So if he's still trying to piece it all together, you should feel great about rocking this parenting thing as hard as you are.
It's all about family
Because at the end of the day, it's all about family, and that's what Costner focuses on the most when the camera stops rolling. Thanks to Costner's high-profile roles over the years, and his time in the spotlight as Dutton, viewers often get the wrong impression of what it must be like to be Costner, or what he gets up to when he isn't on set.
"I work as a provider," he told People. "I'm a father and I'm a husband, but the world doesn't revolve around me." He went on to explain that his life isn't as glamorous or party-centric as many might assume of a popular television and movie star.
"When I'm not making a movie, I'm living and on the freeway with my wife, getting the kids to their stuff or I'm waiting for them to come out of a party," he explained. "I'm just twiddling my thumbs. People have a wrong idea about how my life works."
And lately, life has been working out well for Costner even outside of his time on Yellowstone. Luckily, despite his busy schedule, he gets to spend a lot of time with his children — namely Cayden, who's making an appearance in Costner's upcoming four-part Western series, Horizon.
"He's very good," Costner said of his son. "But I kind of did it on purpose, so he could be hanging out with me. And the same thing for Cayden, same thing for Grace. 'This is really neat. You should come be with me.'"
The next time you're worried about your parenting skills? Lesson learned: Take a page out of the Costner playbook.
READ MORE: Cole Hauser Learned How to Be a 'Gentleman' on the 'Yellowstone' Set From Kevin Costner
