Valuetainment - “The Saddest Fact Of My Life” - Anthony Hopkins OPENS UP On Painful Daughter Separation

00:00:00.900 I'm Kelly Kennedy. I've been called a hope dealer for leaders and with over 300 episodes of the Business Development Podcast, we'll guide you and we'll always be in your corner.

00:00:12.900 Follow the Business Development Podcast on Spotify and let's make 2026 your best year yet.

00:00:19.720 And by the way, yesterday, you know, I was talking to a couple of parents about what young boys need.

00:00:30.420 And I said, there's five things young boys need. They need a present father, the right belief system sold to them.

00:00:38.440 You need high standards, you need friction and you need fun. You need friction to be able to know that life's going to be tough.

00:00:43.380 And over the weekend, I saw a video, an interview with Anthony Hopkins. Anthony Hopkins, one of my favorite actors of all time.

00:00:50.460 The guy was in Shadowlands. He was in, I think it's called Shadowlands. He was in Silence of the Lambs.

00:00:56.320 He's been on so many, The Fracture. He's been on so many things.

00:00:59.440 But in this interview, he just came out with a book a few months back and this interviewer is asking him about his daughter.

00:01:06.220 His daughter's 58 years old. They haven't seen each other for 20 plus years.

00:01:10.780 Oh, wow. And she does not want to see him. And you have to see how uncomfortable he gets.

00:01:15.500 And then I want you to hear his answer. Then I'm going to come back to you guys.

00:01:19.480 Then I want to show you a video clip of a son and a father talking to each other.

00:01:25.440 The son is now 32 years old, but let's watch this clip first.

00:01:28.460 Here's Anthony Hopkins being asked about his estranged, being estranged from his daughter.

00:01:33.780 Go ahead, Rob.

00:01:36.200 For you. So I know what you're going to talk about my domestic life.

00:01:39.560 Yes. No, no.

00:01:41.360 Even though it's in the book?

00:01:43.180 No. It's done.

00:01:44.580 He doesn't want to talk about it.

00:01:45.100 Can I ask a general question that's not specifically about the material in the book?

00:01:49.940 Well.

00:01:51.540 It's about the...

00:01:53.480 I'll stumble through this.

00:01:56.700 Part of the reason that the material in the book about your relationship with your daughter,

00:02:02.860 your estranged relationship with your daughter,

00:02:04.980 part of the reason why I found it so painful is that it resonated with me for personal reasons.

00:02:12.600 I've seen my father, I think, twice in 20 years.

00:02:17.300 You know, I've spoken to him once in those 20 years.

00:02:20.080 And I'm very curious about other people's experience of that kind of estrangement.

00:02:26.600 In this instance, the estrangement is my choice.

00:02:30.220 But I just wonder if you have thoughts about where reconciliation might lie between estranged parents and children.

00:02:38.640 And my wife, Stella, sent an invitation to come and see us.

00:02:53.940 Not a word of response.

00:02:58.780 So I think, okay, fine.

00:03:00.900 I wish her well.

00:03:02.700 But I'm not going to waste blood over that.

00:03:04.860 If you want to waste your life being in resentment, oh, 50 years later, 58 years later, fine, go ahead.

00:03:12.620 It's not in my ken.

00:03:13.700 See, we can, I could carry resentment over the past, this and the other.

00:03:24.100 But that's death.

00:03:27.040 You're not living.

00:03:29.320 You have to acknowledge one thing, that we are imperfect.

00:03:34.520 We're not saints.

00:03:36.620 We're all sinners and saints or whatever we are.

00:03:39.940 We do the best we can.

00:03:42.540 Life is painful.

00:03:43.460 Sometimes people get hurt.

00:03:44.900 Sometimes we get hurt.

00:03:46.100 But you can't live like that.

00:03:48.400 You have to say, get over it.

00:03:49.800 And if you can't get over it, fine.

00:03:51.920 Good luck to you.

00:03:54.420 But I have no judgment.

00:03:59.680 But to do what I could.

00:04:03.520 So that's it.

00:04:06.740 That's all I want to say.

00:04:08.180 Do you hope your daughter reads the book?

00:04:11.160 I'm not going to answer that, no.

00:04:12.380 I don't care.

00:04:14.160 Wow.

00:04:15.320 I'll move on.

00:04:16.680 Please, I want you to.

00:04:18.100 Because I don't want to hurt her.

00:04:19.920 I understand.

00:04:20.540 I don't want to make any, no.

00:04:24.080 20 years, the offer was made, but fine.

00:04:27.720 Onwards.

00:04:28.120 What do you think?

00:04:31.280 That's tough, man.

00:04:35.080 Vinny, what do you think?

00:04:36.660 I mean, I'm curious.

00:04:37.640 Like, what did he, did they say what he, what happened for something like that to occur?

00:04:43.220 Why, why, why the estrangement?

00:04:45.160 Is there any, like, fallout?

00:04:46.860 Did we, was it because of his acting?

00:04:48.480 Was it because of an action?

00:04:50.220 What did he do?

00:04:51.080 Because I mean, that, but I could, I could feel the pain in the, in the interviewers thing.

00:04:57.420 Because mind you, I don't have any kids, but I can only imagine what that must feel like

00:05:01.240 is something that came from you.

00:05:02.800 You can't communicate with that person.

00:05:05.160 I lost my dad when I was 19.

00:05:08.480 And Pat, we talked about this.

00:05:10.060 I couldn't see.

00:05:11.020 My mom's still alive.

00:05:12.300 I love her to death.

00:05:13.280 I couldn't see a moment or a scenario happening where I know that he's walking around,

00:05:18.200 and I wouldn't be able to talk to him or be around him, even though whatever he put us through.

00:05:22.980 And remember, you asked me, Pat, I think a month ago, you're like, Vinny, not less than a month ago,

00:05:27.080 we're eating dinner, and you're like, if you had three wishes, what would one of them be?

00:05:32.240 And I told you, five minutes with my dad.

00:05:35.020 Give me five minutes.

00:05:36.260 So when I see people like that, it hurts, because I'm like, you could see the pain.

00:05:40.560 He doesn't want to talk to you.

00:05:41.220 He's fighting it.

00:05:41.920 He's fighting it.

00:05:43.240 You've gave this person everything.

00:05:44.660 You've nurtured this person.

00:05:45.700 You gave them a life.

00:05:46.720 They're 58 years old.

00:05:47.640 They're an active, contributing person in society, and you can't get them to be with you

00:05:54.920 or even communicate with you.

00:05:56.340 And it's like, man, that's a struggle I can only imagine.

00:05:59.300 I can only imagine with everything that I've seen with you do, with Tico, with Dylan, with

00:06:04.540 Senna, with Brookie, it would drive, Pat, if I found out one day Tico doesn't want to

00:06:10.540 talk to you, and it's just because in his mind or a scenario happened in his head, he

00:06:15.180 doesn't want to talk to you.

00:06:16.080 It would crush me knowing how horrible, horrible you would feel because of everything that

00:06:22.860 you've done and the lessons and everything with the video that you put on Instagram, the

00:06:26.480 work and all the stuff that you put in.

00:06:27.940 So I'd be curious to find out what happened.

00:06:31.120 It's none of my business, but I mean, if he's saying it's in the book, but it's soul-crushing.

00:06:35.280 It's soul-crushing.

00:06:36.060 And I could see it in his face.

00:06:37.760 I could see it in his face.

00:06:39.140 So, yeah.

00:06:40.260 Yeah, it's tough, man.

00:06:41.120 In this article, this is him and Abigail did a movie together called Shadowlands, which

00:06:47.700 I think is a story of C.S. Lewis, which is worth watching if you haven't seen it.

00:06:51.800 And he was an alcoholic.

00:06:53.140 He talks about it in his new book as well.

00:06:55.240 He married his first wife, I believe, in 1967, and they had her.

00:06:58.760 It's the only child he's ever had.

00:07:00.880 And when they ask what happened and why he was hurt, because if you go a little bit lower,

00:07:05.140 there's a picture of the two together smiling.

00:07:09.140 That's his daughter right there.

00:07:10.700 So she was an extra.

00:07:12.160 She had some kind of a small role in the movie. 0.83

00:07:14.600 Go a little bit lower, Rob.

00:07:15.900 So he says, they fought frequently.

00:07:17.420 Hopkins explained that points of contection.

00:07:19.360 Rob, can you see if they says they fought frequently?

00:07:21.300 Is that his daughter or is that about his ex?

00:07:23.120 Go a little bit higher to see if it's talking about his daughter or his ex.

00:07:26.760 By the time we realized how awful of a match we were, Barker was pregnant, and we tried 1.00

00:07:31.540 to rally for the sake of the child we were about to have.

00:07:34.340 But it was no use.

00:07:35.640 The marriage was a disaster.

00:07:36.800 So he's talking about his wife, go a little bit lower.

00:07:39.040 And then he says, they fought frequently.

00:07:40.760 Hopkins explained that points of contention included his alcoholism and Barker's resentment

00:07:45.420 over his career.

00:07:46.280 One night when he returned home from working on a location in Scotland, Barker greeted him

00:07:51.960 with sarcasm and called him Mr. Lord High and Mighty.

00:07:55.560 I have never been physically violent, but in that moment I was filled with such revulsion

00:07:58.940 that I became afraid for myself and her.

00:08:01.800 And at that exact moment, Hopkins decided to leave for good and went to see his 14-month-old

00:08:06.860 daughter in a room.

00:08:07.940 I looked down at her and whispered goodbye.

00:08:09.940 He writes, then I walked back to the hall, picked on my suitcase, and left the house.

00:08:16.260 Go a little bit low, Rob.

00:08:19.580 Aside from sending financial support, I didn't have contact with Petronella and Abigail for

00:08:23.760 a few years after that.

00:08:24.760 It is the saddest fact of my life and my greatest regret, and yet I feel absolutely sure that

00:08:29.940 it would have been much worse for everyone had I stayed.

00:08:33.160 And I don't know their religious beliefs, Pat, but a horrible, horrible situation.

00:08:39.420 I don't know if she's a Christian.

00:08:40.420 I don't know if he's a practicing Christian.

00:08:41.940 The attitude that he has, which I think is beautiful that I miss, is we're all sinners.

00:08:46.740 We're far, far, far, far from perfect.

00:08:49.620 By the way, I don't act.

00:08:51.280 I'm trying to be the best Christian that I can.

00:08:53.740 I try to walk in the path.

00:08:54.960 I sin.

00:08:55.520 I stumble all the time.

00:08:57.360 He's at least saying, as a man, I messed up.

00:09:01.240 We're all going to mess up.

00:09:02.800 That's what this life is about.

00:09:04.520 You are the furthest thing from what Christ acts, but we're trying to walk in the footsteps.

00:09:10.180 And again, if she was a real, I don't know who she is.

00:09:13.000 I don't know nothing about her except for what you guys wrote.

00:09:15.480 If she was a real practicing Christian, that forgiveness, which is one of the hardest 0.99

00:09:19.560 things, praying for your enemies is number one for me, which is so difficult, but I do

00:09:24.120 it, and then forgiveness, knowing that we fall short of the grace of God, but he gives

00:09:29.180 us that moment to say, listen, you're going to fail.

00:09:31.840 You're imperfect.

00:09:32.580 And if you accept that, then that relationship could be a lot different, because if that

00:09:38.700 was me, and I was a daughter, and I was a real, legitimate practicing Christian, I'd

00:09:43.100 say, Dad, you know what?

00:09:44.020 I love you.

00:09:44.540 I forgive you.

00:09:44.980 I'm not going to forget anything that you did, leaving me at 14 months old.

00:09:48.740 But I do forgive you.

00:09:50.620 Adam.

00:09:52.560 Whoa.

00:09:53.560 I'll try to not cry like Vinny, but it might be tough.

00:09:57.280 But I'll say this.

00:09:58.620 I'm respectful and jealous of the relationship you have with your dad, because I see the relationship

00:10:04.620 you have with your dad, and I just didn't have that relationship at all with my dad.

00:10:08.400 I had the opposite relationship with Vinny, where you said you want to spend five more

00:10:11.380 minutes.

00:10:12.040 I said, I can't spend five more minutes with this guy.

00:10:14.500 I tried and tried and tried to work out this relationship with my dad, and at the end of

00:10:20.700 the day, I just had to block him from my life.

00:10:23.420 And it was the first time that I was able to press block on my phone after considering

00:10:28.320 it.

00:10:29.280 And he died less than a month later.

00:10:32.340 And I had all these crazy voicemails on my phone.

00:10:35.880 It was tough.

00:10:36.580 But when you deal with challenges in your life, it only makes you better.

00:10:40.380 Like if you see poor people, they get motivated, but I'm not going to be poor.

00:10:44.680 It's not going to happen.

00:10:46.040 When someone says you can't do so, yes, I can.

00:10:48.640 So for me, I had such a contentious relationship with my father.

00:10:52.380 I'm like, I'm going to have the best relationship with kids.

00:10:55.160 I was a camp counselor.

00:10:56.320 I was a school teacher.

00:10:57.740 All my best friends have kids.

00:10:59.240 I'm like, the fun uncle, I've taken a massive role in my nephew's life, especially since

00:11:05.240 my sister got divorced.

00:11:06.680 So I'm going to be the best possible uncle, father, leader.

00:11:10.720 And obviously, I'm going through that vetting system right now with my girl.

00:11:15.540 But it's not easy.

00:11:17.000 You know, you said these are the five things that every young man need.

00:11:20.140 You said, what is a father?

00:11:21.560 A belief system.

00:11:22.560 Present father.

00:11:23.700 A belief system.

00:11:24.640 Standards.

00:11:25.140 High standards.

00:11:25.800 Friction.

00:11:26.480 Friction.

00:11:27.020 Fun.

00:11:27.120 Fun.

00:11:27.500 And fun.

00:11:27.960 And I wrote it down because it's so true.

00:11:30.660 And I wish that more people, that more men had that active role with their kids.

00:11:35.240 I mean, you know, the one movie that you not encouraged us to see, you made us see, was

00:11:41.040 The Judge.

00:11:42.080 And Robert Duvall, I want to say, passed away last week.

00:11:45.080 And the relationship they had with their Robert Downey Jr. and Robert Duvall, that was

00:11:50.200 tough.

00:11:50.560 I think he had to come back after being estranged for decades and represent his father that was

00:11:56.540 accused of murder.

00:11:57.540 And was this the movie?

00:11:58.820 And he says, where were you?

00:11:59.980 Yep.

00:12:00.220 Was that this movie?

00:12:01.060 That's Johnny Cash.

00:12:01.960 Okay.

00:12:02.400 Gotcha.

00:12:02.960 But same concept.

00:12:04.060 Both of them.

00:12:04.700 But in that scene, there's also where were you.

00:12:06.560 Oh, she wanted.

00:12:07.200 Your mother just wanted to see you.

00:12:08.380 Why don't you come?

00:12:09.240 Yeah.

00:12:09.380 So it's tough out there.

00:12:10.980 And we've seen the stats about, you know, the best outcome for a kid is to have a two-parent

00:12:18.140 household, a nuclear family.

00:12:19.560 But then when you take away the father, the stats plummet.

00:12:23.200 But when you take away the mother and it's a single father, the stats say the same.

00:12:27.680 And I'm not discounting what single mothers do because God knows we have that massive problem 1.00

00:12:32.580 in this country.

00:12:33.020 But the father's role in the life is the most important thing.

00:12:36.380 And the last thing is this, I have friends on the opposite side of things, guys my age

00:12:40.940 that have gone through a divorce.

00:12:42.880 And I've seen the women that hold the kids hostage from my buddies. 1.00

00:12:48.420 And I wish it was an equal footing type of thing.

00:12:51.100 But men have to know what they're getting themselves into in the legal system because 1.00

00:12:55.340 they're always going to side with the mother, whether that's alimony, whether that's child 0.98

00:12:58.680 support.

00:12:59.360 So be very careful who you have kids with.

00:13:01.480 Go through the vetting system.

00:13:02.520 I know you talk about the 101 questions to ask before you get engaged.

00:13:07.920 But this life thing that we're all trying to do, nobody has all the answers.

00:13:12.080 For the last seven or eight days, we've been at the Magic Show in Las Vegas and we're currently

00:13:17.760 at Italy at the Mikem Show, the Milan Show, the show that everybody shows up.

00:13:23.440 Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Hermes, everybody.

00:13:26.640 And you know who was there this year?

00:13:27.920 Future Looks Bright shoes there.

00:13:30.400 We sent Pete, Leo, and Michele.

00:13:33.800 Went over there having a great time.

00:13:35.860 Go ahead and give them an update on what's going on with these FLB shoes in Vegas at the

00:13:39.280 Magic Show as well as Mikem.

00:13:40.480 Go ahead, Rob.

00:13:40.940 I just can't get it.

00:14:10.060 Okay, by the way, you know what I'm wearing today?

00:14:13.740 Clean.

00:14:14.200 Again, let me say this to you guys.

00:14:16.440 I'm wearing my brown ones, okay?

00:14:18.820 Future Looks Bright.

00:14:20.240 Vinny's wearing his black ones, okay?

00:14:22.740 From September 9th, when I tell you from September 9th till today, I've only worn these shoes except

00:14:29.500 for five days.

00:14:30.880 That's all I wear.

00:14:31.840 Five days, okay?

00:14:33.120 And I love them.

00:14:34.560 They're so comfortable.

00:14:35.740 Every day, this is all I wear.

00:14:37.760 For some of you guys that are asking questions about shoes, we haven't done a CTA for a couple

00:14:42.540 weeks because it sells out every time we do them, okay?

00:14:46.180 So, if you haven't picked one up for yourself yet, go to the site.

00:14:51.000 Take a look at the shoe.

00:14:52.040 Compare it with all the other shoes, the Berlutis, the Ferragamos, the Zenias, the Gucci's.

00:14:56.080 If you want a shoe that has the same, you know, foam, the foam technology in the bottom

00:15:02.220 like the OnCloud or the Hoka's and then the look of a Zenia with the leather, genuine leather

00:15:08.460 from Tuscany, Italy, and you want to combine the two together for a reasonable price while

00:15:13.760 you can sit in a boardroom and put up your shoe on your knee and it says Future Looks Bright

00:15:17.800 and get the deal done, if you're that kind of a person, go to vtmerge.com, place your

00:15:22.120 order.

00:15:22.920 If you enjoyed this video, you want to watch more videos like this, click here.

00:15:25.520 And if you want to watch the entire podcast, click here.

Valuetainment - February 24, 2026

“The Saddest Fact Of My Life” - Anthony Hopkins OPENS UP On Painful Daughter Separation

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