Barry Keoghan Explained Why He And His Son Don't Have The "Normal Father-Son Relationship"
Barry Keoghan is opening up about the dynamic between him and his son, Brando.
Barry shares Brando, 2, with his ex-girlfriend Alyson Sandro.
He and Alyson dated for three years before their reported breakup last year.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Barry discussed his experience growing up without a father, his life now as a dad — and how that impacted his role in Bird, an upcoming film about a man's rocky relationship with his daughter.
"I'll just say this — I didn't have a father figure growing up, so even my relationship with my son isn't quite of the normal father-son relationship," Barry said.
"Because I don't have that figure to draw experience from and to base it on," he added.
That said, Barry seems to be figuring it out in his own way — by leading with love. "Love, you don't need anything to draw from," he shared. "Love is pure, and so I'm not on about that, but I'm on about stuff like teaching your son this or teaching your daughter that."
Barry also said that, since he didn't have that "normal" experience growing up, his character and his onscreen daughter have more of a "brother-sister kind of chemistry going on" between them. "Which I felt was right for it," he added. "And you see that these days — there's a lot of young fathers out there and young mothers and they're almost, like, sibling-like, you know what I mean? Which is beautiful."
In August, Barry shared a rare glimpse into his life with his son, posting an Instagram pic next to him as his son played with toys. "He's more of a charmer than i am," Barry captioned the post. "Our wee Brando ????????????????."
Barry also previously opened up about his difficult upbringing, which saw him and his brother Eric living in 13 foster homes before finally moving in with their maternal grandmother.
“My mother did drugs...so we went into foster care," he told The Late Late Show in 2018. "Every family was good to us. As a kid, you don’t know what’s happening. You get attached…and then boom. Let’s move over here...I don't have a hometown, that's what I'm saying. It's weird."
Barry's mother died two years after he moved in with his grandmother, he told GQ. He was 12.
You can read Barry's full EW interview here and see Bird in theaters this November.
