Ava Phillippe doesn't follow her famous dad on Instagram — so does
that mean there's bad blood between the two?
Ryan Phillippe's life changed forever on September 9, 1999. That was the day
that he and his then-wife Reese Witherspoon welcomed a baby girl,
Ava Phillippe. The actor recalled Ava's birth in a Twitter post, writing,
"I made it to my then-wife's bedside w/ two hours to spare before my baby
girl first entered the world. 15 years ago, I learned what love truly is."
While the couple went on to welcome another child in 2003,
a son named Deacon, Phillippe's marriage to Witherspoon didn't last. In 2006,
the couple revealed they were calling it quits. However, the two still worked
together to foster a great co-parenting relationship for the sake of their children.
"Everyday with my kids is a blessing."
At the time of their split, a spokesperson for the former couple said in a statement:
"They remain committed to their family and we ask that you please
respect their privacy and the safety of their children at this time."
In 2021, Phillippe opened up to Forbes about his co-parenting
journey with Witherspoon. He told the outlet:
"The root of it is communication and to make sure that even once you're no longer together,
you cooperate to put the kids and their needs and their well-being
first. I think that's something that she and I have always done very well."
But, just how close are Ryan and Ava today? And what is their father-daughter
relationship really like? Here's everything we know about the famous daddy-daughter duo.
While Ryan Phillippe's son Deacon is notorious for his close resemblance to his dad,
the actor is adamant that he and his daughter Ava share many similarities,
too. Phillippe gushed to People in 2021:
"Ava is very much my personality."
Still, Ava is adamant she is her own person. She told E! News in 2021:
"My parents have always encouraged me to choose the path that's right for me and,
you know, guide me along the way to make better choices than I might make."
It's often been rumored that Phillippe's relationship with his daughter might be
strained. Case in point: Ava doesn't follow her famous father on Instagram. And while that might
not be a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, she does follow her mom on the social media site.
But does this actually spell trouble for Ryan and Ava? Maybe not. In 2017,
the proud papa wished his daughter a happy birthday on Instagram,
and included several photos of the two of them together. So Perhaps all is well after all.
Speaking of Instagram, however, it appears that Phillippe has a love-hate relationship
with social media entirely. When asked about advice he had for young people
just starting out in Hollywood, Phillippe noted how social media's
presence had changed the landscape for budding actors. He told Forbes:
"It's so different with social media and all of the things,
good and bad. That can really break careers and it can also really make careers, so they
deal with a whole host of new challenges in that regard than we did coming up."
It's no secret that Phillipe prides himself on his youthful appearance.
The actor quipped during an interview with Forbes:
"I still think of myself as relatively young and I still
look relatively young but I am not, clearly."
Alas, his dearest daughter Ava is not as enthused about her dad passing for
someone even remotely close to her age. In 2015,
Ryan confessed to Variety that he still gets carded. He told the outlet:
"My daughter hates it, because sometimes people have thought I'm her brother,
and she's freaked out by that."
Phillipe later revealed that Ava was more than just a little weirded out by
the notion that someone could mistake her dad for her brother. During an appearance on "The
Late Late Show," the actor confessed she was downright disgusted by it.
"I know my daughter gets embarrassed sometimes by the fact that I do look
so young, and I get mistaken for her brother at times which repulses her."
He then went on to add:
"It absolutely repulses her that anyone could mistake me for being her brother."