Bradley Cooper is opening up about parenthood and the bond he has with his 6-year-old daughter, Lea De Seine Shayk Cooper.
On Monday, the Maestro star spoke with actor Dax Shepard on his podcast Armchair Expert about his journey as a father, including how long it took for him to feel really connected to his daughter.
“The first eight months—I don’t even know if I really love the kid,” Cooper told Shepard at the time. “It’s dope. It’s cool. I’m watching this thing morph.”
“That’s my experience,” Cooper continued, referring to his time as a first-time dad and how he viewed his new baby girl, who he welcomed with ex Irina Shayk in March, 2017.
“Fascinated by it. Loved taking care of it," he added. "But would I die if someone came in with a gun?”
Bradley Cooper is seen out with his daughter Lea on June 18, 2021 in New York City.
Turns out, it only took a few more months after Cooper asked himself that question to find the undeniable answer.
“And then all of a sudden, it’s like no question,” Cooper said, adding that since becoming a father he has tried to be the best person he can possibly be in order to make sure he does the "least amount of damage" to his little girl.
The Hangover actor also went on to say that he isn't sure he would "be alive if I wasn’t a dad."
“I just needed someone to say, like, ‘We’re gonna drop this massive anchor,'" he explained. “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.’"
Bradley Cooper is seen with daughter Lea de Seine on May 17, 2021 in New York City.
Cooper continued to explain that for him, fatherhood served as a reminder that he is not the center of the universe.
“(Parenthood) is gonna dictate everything you do from now on. Your DNA is going to tell you that there’s something more important than you," he said.
Cooper maintains he has an amicable co-parenting relationship with his ex and the mother of his daughter, Irina Shayk. As Page Six reports, the former couple have spent "several holidays together" as a family of three.
A devoted dad who loves being a parent? You love to see it.
