Bryce Dallas Howard is unmistakably her father’s daughter. The clear, open features, fabulous red hair and sunny disposition are familiar to anyone who, like me, remembers Ron Howard as the freckled, all-American Richie Cunningham in Happy Days, alongside Bryce’s godfather Henry Winkler as the Fonz.
The popular and upbeat 1970s/80s show about family life in the 50s ended when Bryce was a toddler, and Ron went on to become an Oscar-winning film-maker. But when we meet for lunch to discuss Bryce’s own blossoming career – she has a romantic encounter with Matt Damon in Clint Eastwood’s powerful supernatural drama Hereafter – I can’t resist asking her what it was like growing up with the former child star.
‘I never watched Happy Days,’ she laughs. ‘Schoolfriends used to say, “What did you think of your dad in the show?” But I didn’t see an episode until I was 22.’
The early works of Ron Howard were not required viewing for Bryce and her three younger siblings, twins Jocelyn and Paige and brother Reed. On the contrary, ‘Dad never showed us Happy Days or any of his acting – he’s the most humble man on planet earth.’
The actress finally did get to see every episode once she had made her own mark in Hollywood, starring in M Night Shyamalan’s The Village in 2004. While promoting the film, she was interviewed by US talk-show host Jay Leno, who was surprised that she had never seen the iconic series.
‘He gave me a box set, so I sat down and watched them and it was wild to see my father act, because he’s always been a director to me. I totally understand why everyone loves the show. There are running jokes that you love; there is something wholesome about it but it’s also fun.’
Which is how I would describe Ron’s vivacious daughter, who is married to the
actor Seth Gabel (he has appeared in the television shows Dirty Sexy Money and Fringe), and has a son, Theo, nearly four. Bryce looks about 18, although she will be 30 this March.
Read more at dailymail UK
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