Bradley Cooper Opens Up About How His Dad's Death Has Affected His Own Experience as a Father
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Bradley Cooper has been admired by fans since he first popped up on TV during an episode of "Sex and the City" in 1999, and he's continued to steal hearts over the years as both a great actor and a person who uses his platform to give back to those in need. His most important role to date, however, came in March 2017 when he and ex Irina Shayk welcomed their daughter, Lea De Seine.
At the time of her birth, Cooper and Shayk had been romantically linked for two years. In June 2019, the pair split after four years of dating, but Cooper and Shayk remain dedicated to parenting Lea together. "Their coparenting routine and schedule is going smoothly and they have respect for each other," a source told Entertainment Tonight in January 2021. "Bradley's first priority is Lea and Irina is a hands-on mom too." The source added that Cooper and Shayk "both want what's best for Lea, so it's easy for them to be a team in that regard."
Echoing those statements, Shayk told Elle in March 2021: "I never understood the term coparenting. When I'm with my daughter, I'm 100 percent a mother, and when she's with her dad, he's 100 percent her dad. Coparenting is parenting."
Cooper and Shayk seem to be on good terms since their split. Shayk shared a sweet photo with Cooper from a tropical vacation in August 2022, and the duo were spotted smiling together inside the 2023 Met Gala.
Most recently, Cooper opened up about how his father's death has affected his own experience as a dad in a clip from an upcoming episode of "Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge" posted on June 23. "I mean, you learn from the predecessor's mistakes and I'll make tons that hopefully Lea will learn from and then being rigorous with myself to grow to help unburden her with any of my bullsh*t," Cooper said. "But honestly, it's for me too. It just makes life much better." Cooper's father, Charles Cooper, died in 2011 after a battle with lung cancer.
While Cooper and Shayk remain primarily low-key when it comes to sharing information about their daughter, the actor has gushed over Lea on a few occasions. To find out what he's said, scroll through this gallery.
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Lea De Seine Shayk Cooper
Lea was born on March 21, 2017. During a September 2018 interview with NPR, Cooper opened up about how fatherhood has changed him. "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 shared, adding, "I just always want her to feel loved."
The following April, Cooper gushed over life as a dad while speaking to Ellen DeGeneres. "It allowed me to embrace my childlike self without any sort of fear of judgment," he said. "I can just play with toys all day long . . . or watch cartoons endlessly and not think I'm wasting my life. I love cartoons." Cooper said Lea's "innocence is beautiful to see."
During a 2022 appearance on Amazon Music and Wondery's "SmartLess" podcast, hosted by Will Arnett, Jason Bateman, and Sean Hayes, Cooper gave credit to Lea for bringing genuine happiness and purpose to his life. "Every single thing is absolutely shaded by, or brought into glorious colors, by the fact that I get to be a father to a wonderful human being," he said. "You have this wonderful thing or breakthrough with a script, or you have a wonderful moment on this set or in an editing room . . . you have like 40 of those moments every day with your kid that are that level of joy. That's not spinning it, that's just the truth."