CLINT EASTWOOD
THE HOLLYWOOD ICON BRINGS ALL EIGHT OF HIS CHILDREN TOGETHER FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME
The Dirty Harry star shows his softer side by bringing all eight of his kids together.
“Children teach you that you can still be humbled by life.”
— Clint
In his new movie The Mule, director and star Clint Eastwood plays an elderly man with a checkered family history who tries to make peace with his past. And in real life, Clint, 88, seems to be trying to do the same thing. He invited all eight of his children to join him for the premiere — including his eldest, Laurie, who was put up for adoption and had never been publicly acknowledged by the filmmaker before.
“Clint knows this might be his last film, and he wanted all of his kids to be there,” an insider tells Closer. “Laurie wanted to be there, and he wanted her to be there, and for Clint, what he wants, he gets.”
MAKING HIS DAY
Laurie has been a part of Clint’s life for the last 15 years or so; he quietly brought her to the Oscars when he won best director and best picture for 2004’s Million Dollar Baby. “As soon as Clint verified that she was his daughter, she and her husband and two kids have weaved into the rest of the clan,” says the insider. “Clint’s kids all like her and have accepted her and her family.”
In fact, Clint’s youngest child — daughter Morgan, 23 — posted a group shot on social media with the caption, “So rare for all 8 Eastwood siblings to be in one room!”
Laurie wasn’t the only surprise guest at The Mule’s premiere. Clint’s first wife, Maggie, also attended. “He’s been on great terms with Maggie for years,” says the insider. “She’s been maternal with all his children — not just hers.” (Maggie is mom to actress Alison Eastwood, who co-stars in The Mule, and musician Kyle).
“I wasn’t always the good guy I could have been,” Clint says. “But I haven’t run away from members of my family, either. I’m a very integral part of their lives.”
— Bruce Fretts, with reporting
by Rick Egusquiza