Bradley Cooper admitted that it took him a while to actually say he “loved” his daughter, according to a recent interview on Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast, Monday.
The famous actor said he struggled to feel connected to his daughter, Lea, when she was first born, and it took him eight months to really form a bond with her. “The first eight months — I don’t even know if I really love the kid,” he said. “It’s dope. It’s cool. I’m watching this thing morph.” He went on to say, “That’s my experience. Fascinated by it. Loved taking care of it. But would I die if someone came in with a gun?” he said on the podcast.
Bradley Cooper attends The 2023 Met Gala Celebrating “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line Of Beauty” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 01, 2023 in New York City. Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images
Cooper went on to say he is absolutely smitten with Lea now, but the first few months were a trying time.
He said his earlier experiences with Lea weren’t as emotionally connected as he expected, and he struggled to understand other parents who would say, “I would die in a second for my kid.”
The famous actor went on to tell Shephard that he simply didn’t think he would have the same connection that other parents spoke of, until one day, things just changed for him.
Bradley Cooper and Lea De Seine Shayk Cooper attend Netflix’s Maestro LA special screening at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on December 12, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Netflix
“And then all of a sudden, it’s like no question,” he said, as he described how things eventually did take a turn, and he felt a sense of true closeness with Lea.
Cooper confessed he has since tried to rectify this situation “to do the least amount of damage that [he] could do to [his] daughter,” and noted how different their relationship is at this time.
“I’m not sure I’d be alive if I wasn’t a dad. I just needed someone to say, like, ‘We’re gonna drop this massive anchor,'” he told Shepard.
Bradley Cooper attends the EE British Academy Film Awards at Royal Albert Hall on February 10, 2019 in London, England. Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images
“I’m like, ‘Why? We’re speeding! I just got an upgrade on the boat, and I know where the wind’s coming in.’ They’re like, ‘No, no, no, there’s a tsunami coming in, and you need an anchor and we’re gonna drop it,'” he said.
Cooper put things in perspective by noting how life-changing it was for him to become a father.
“Because this is gonna dictate everything you do from now on. Your DNA is going to tell you that there’s something more important than you.” (RELATED: ‘Your Sperm Specifically, I Don’t Trust’: Kelly Ripa Has Awkward Conversation With Alec Baldwin)
Cooper shares custody of Lea with his ex-girlfriend, Irina Shayk.