Oscar-winning actor Jamie Foxx is opening up in his new book, Act Like You Got Some Sense, about his parenting evolution as the father of two daughters. Foxx, who was adopted, not only imparts parenting wisdom and advice, but also how he was forced to view things in the world through a different lens.
During a recent interview with Parents, Foxx explains how his outlook on the plight of women changed. “Look at what [women] are up against right now,” he told the publication. “When I look into my little daughters’ eyes, my youngest and my oldest, I say, ‘Hey, I want you to be able to have the opportunity to have everything, and you can be president. You can do all of these different things.’ And if you don’t have men standing with their daughters, it gets tough out there.”
At the time of this writing, Foxx’s two daughters are following in their famous father’s footsteps. His youngest, Anelise Bishop, wrote an amine script at the age of 11 and is already a member of the Writer’s Guild. His oldest, Corinne Foxx, is currently a working actor with a film with Robert Downey, Jr. in post-production. “When it’s time to sit on the sideline, I can sit back and watch them do their thing in the biz, and I’ve been able to, I think, teach them early,” he said.
Jamie Foxx’s Parenting Evolution
Foxx admitted that he originally approached fatherhood as a “Disneyland dad” who thought showing up once in a while with trips and gifts would be enough. “I learned with my oldest daughter that that was a mistake,” he explained.
Foxx’s early parenting faults thankfully landed the family in therapy despite his initial pushback. However, when Corrine told him, “I didn’t like you,” during their first therapy session, Foxx knew his whole approach had to change. “I could break down some of those doors that guys have when they feel like the mother is in first place because it is a daughter,” he explained.
The Dreamgirls star cited “different times” as the change that made him realize he can he a parent and a friend to his children – bucking the longstanding old-school tradition of Black family culture. “You have to have a little bit of both,” he explained. “It doesn’t mean that our parents didn’t have it right. They had it right at the time, but now things are changing.”
