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Rob Lowe didn’t want his kids to follow in his show business footsteps, but he’s ultimately happy his son, John Owen, did.
In a new interview with Men’s Health for their April issue, Lowe said he fought John Owen’s natural interest in pursuing entertainment.
"I tried to beat it out of him," he joked.
John Owen, 27, shared that growing up he wasn’t fully aware of his famous dad’s career or scandalous younger days.
Rob Lowe and his son John Owen on the April cover of Men's Health magazine. (Mark Williams and Sara Hirakawa for Men's Health)
Lowe had a sex tape when he was 24 with two women, one of whom was underage. But he wasn’t the one to break the news to his son.
"I was in eighth grade or freshman year of high school, and some kid said, ‘You know, your dad has a sex tape online,’" John Owen said. "I was like, ‘What?’"
He continued, "You know what it’s kind of like? Santa Claus. I don’t think most parents ever have that moment where they sit the kids down and go, ‘OK, we’ve got to tell you something.’ A kid just figures it out. There weren’t milestone markers, like, ‘OK, he’s 16 now, time for them to learn about this part of our life!’"
Lowe joked, "Wikipedia and Google took care of that for us."
Unfortunately, John Owen also shared his dad’s struggles with addiction. The writer and actor revealed he was drinking as young as 16 and felt insecure and lost.
Rob Lowe and his son John Owen both struggled with addiction before finding sobriety. (David M. Benett/Dave Benett)
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"I was so closed off and so out of touch with my emotions," John Owen said. "I came off to people as this confident, probably cocky, self-absorbed extrovert. I loved to be the life of the party. The truth was, I was deeply insecure. I’d felt the pressure put on me as a young kid at a time when he doesn’t understand why people are talking about him or looking at him in a certain way. I was a scared little kid trapped in a teenager’s body."
Lowe's son continued about his darkest moments. "Many times I could have died. I really liked to push the limits of my body and numb out as much as I could."
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"It makes me sad to think about. There’s a certain level of self-doubt, or uncomfortability with one’s self. The more insecure I grew, the more aggressively I used – to medicate. I’ve been to many hospitals many times. I’ve been very lucky. One of my closest childhood friends, who was like an older brother to me – I got sober, he didn’t, and he’s dead now. Fentanyl overdose."
John Owen has been sober for five years with help from his dad, who has been sober since 1990, and his mom, Sheryl Berkoff, though he said he resisted their help at first.
John Owen Lowe revealed he struggled with alcohol when he was a teenager and initially resisted his parents' help in getting sober. (Michael Kovac)
"When I was at my lowest points, my parents were throwing their lifeline of recovery at me in a way that I was like, ‘Ahhh, get away!’ It’s abrasive. It’s like I was drowning and they were slamming me on the head with the life raft. Because my feelings were that I didn’t matter, and a lot of that stemmed from having the dad that I had. Once I was treated as if my voice and opinion were valid, I was able to access a part of me that was scared and hiding. Finally, the thing that worked was when they said, ‘We love you and we’re scared.’"
Lowe’s own health has been in good shape for years, though the 58-year-old admitted he doesn’t love what it takes to maintain his fit physique.
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"I hate that it’s 80% diet," the "Parks and Recreation" star said. "I’ve tried every way of getting around it. And I love working out, but it doesn’t get you where you need to get at my age. And that’s a f---ing bummer."
Rob Lowe admits that it's "80% diet" that goes into maintaining his physique at 58 years old. (Mark Williams & Sara Hirakawa for Men's Health)
He also joked, "There are times when I will run over my grandmother to pick up a milkshake. But that’s not all the time. So wait till then, have the milkshake, and be cool."
The father and son opened up about embarking on a new project together, "Unstable." John Owen is the co-creator, co-executive producer, co-writer and star, along with Lowe.
John Owen, who got his start writing on Lowe’s series "9-1-1: Lone Star," acknowledged and anticipated the "nepo baby" conversation in the interview.
John Owen Lowe got his writing start on his dad's television series, "9-1-1: Lone Star." (Mark Williams and Sara Hirakawa for Men's Health)
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"My take is, there is a healthy conversation in there somewhere. I’m always more than willing – and I think it’s important – to acknowledge that I did have opportunities that other people didn’t have," he said.
"I did get that foot in the door that most people don’t, and for that I’m grateful. And what is also true is that after getting that foot in the door, you do have to prove yourself. There’s a difference between children of nepotism who have just been platformed and coasted on that and the ones who have worked hard and care about what they do."
"Unstable" premieres March 30 on Netflix.
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