Cuba Gooding Jr.’s Son Recalls Struggle to Understand Dad’s Public Persona
Mason Gooding, the son of Oscar winner Cuba Gooding Jr., mirrored on how his father’s profession formed their relationship, saying the “Jerry Maguire” star was “different” at residence than he was in public.
“I know as a kid whose father was an actor and grandfather was a singerI have probably a stronger relationship in understanding based on who they were publicly than who they were privately,” Gooding shared on Tuesday’s “The Wildmen Podcast.” “And it wasn’t until I was older, that they could, well, not my grandfather – God rest his soul – but like my dad would have been able to articulate like a lot of the lessons I learned as a kid.”
He continued: “’Cause when you’re a parent who’s an actor and you’re gone for so long, then you come back, you try to like, the word would be like, speed-parent, ’cause you come in for a week, and you’re like, ‘Why is the f–k is that broken? Why are you failing school? Why are you fighting?’”
Gooding defined that this dynamic perplexed him as a baby, including, “I didn’t really understand that relationship. Because I was like, ‘You’re so positive and charismatic in these interviews and then you come home and it’s a different guy.'”
However, Gooding shared that he had extra empathy for his dad now that he’s an adult and an actor himself.
“You want to know what an actor’s worst fear is?” Gooding stated. “An actor’s worst fear is, categorically, is that you f–kin leave your home for three, four months out of the year and you delve into this character – maybe you’ll talk on the phone to your wife or your husband or your kids or whatever – but while you’re gone and while you’re doing those things, time doesn’t stop back home. Everything continues. And you’ll come home and people will be like, “Oh yeah, oh yeah, yeah, this is what you missed.’”
Host Dylan Sprouse co-signed this principle, sharing he noticed his brother, actor Cole Sprouse, wrestle with being unnoticed whereas filming The CW’s “Riverdale” for seven seasons.
Gooding is the son of “Boyz n the Hood” star and his ex-wife Sara Kapfer, who cut up from in 2014 after welcoming three kids collectively.
A consultant for Gooding Jr. didn’t instantly reply to TheWrap’s request for remark.
