Penn Badgley praised for opening up about fatherhood and raising sons on Call Her Daddy
Penn Badgley has always given off extremely good energy. Aside from playing one of the most irritating characters television has ever seen, apologies to any Dan Humphrey defenders out there, the 38-year-old actor has time and time again proven himself to be a genuinely good human being. And now, after becoming the most recent celebrity to grace the Call Her Daddy armchair, Badgley has scored a massive win for dads everywhere.
Welcome back to ‘Explained By a Blonde’ queens. Once again, we find ourselves unpacking an interview spearheaded by the queen of celebrity journalism herself: Alex Cooper. The podcast host sat down with the You star to unpack everything from Gossip Girl memories to relationship advice.
@callherdaddy Classic Dan to not go 😭 @Penn Badgley we love you
♬ original sound - Call Her Daddy
@callherdaddy Daddy gang…is it ever casual? @Penn Badgley
♬ original sound - Call Her Daddy
But, one of the most important takeaways from the conversation centred on Badgley’s approach to fatherhood. The actor has two sons currently (one being his stepson) and is also expecting twin boys, so, a full brood if you will. And being a dad raising four sons comes with a lot of responsibility. Now, given the fact that we always knew Badgley was a liberal progressive icon, his outlook on fatherhood isn’t all that surprising. But still, it’s fun to relish in.
Penn Badgley is officially a father, never wanted to be a baby so bad… pic.twitter.com/r89zm6ram8
— penn's pits (@ohmygodthatshot) September 22, 2020
Speaking with Cooper, the actor noted: “Men can be good people, they can be great people, they can be great dads.”
“Dads can be great and unfortunately there are enough of us who have shown us otherwise. But what we do not attribute to a father much is saying something like ‘I’m sorry’ and really listening.”
@callherdaddy Men CAN be good people! @Penn Badgley
♬ original sound - Call Her Daddy
This is a topic Badgley clearly doesn’t shy away from—he’s a vocal king, people. Because during the premiere of season five for the star’s show You, he made it abundantly clear that he doesn’t shy away from addressing the importance of fatherhood, particularly when you’re raising sons.
Speaking with Access Hollywood, the actor stated: “You know, I do mean this sincerely. It sounds a bit tacky, but the world needs more good men, so, you know, pressure’s on us to raise them well.”
One subreddit felt so moved it dedicated an entire post to discuss the actor’s important remarks. Netizens left comments such as “If there’s any famous man I’d have to trust to raise good kind empathetic liberal men one of them would be Penn Badgley” and “As a parent to two young boys, I relate to that pressure, nice to hear he’s speaking on it.”
I’d like to think that everyone is fully aware of the epidemic in society regarding violence against women linked to the radicalisation of young boys online. And while Badgley’s comments might seem quite subtle or unimportant on the surface, these kinds of conversations—especially when they’re spearheaded by influential men—are so incredibly important.
