Barry Keoghan dishes how his parenting experience influence 'Bird' role

Barry Keoghan revealed that his role in the upcoming movie Bird made him reflect on his personal experiences as both a son and a father. 

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, the Saltburn star discussed how his father-son relationship influenced his portrayal in the film.

"I didn't have a father figure growing up, so even my relationship with my son isn't quite of the normal father-son relationship," he explained. "Because I don't have that figure to draw experience from and to base it on."

"Love, you don't need anything to draw from. Love is pure, and so I'm not on about that, but I'm on about little stuff like teaching your son this or teaching your daughter that,” Keoghan, 31, shed light on his parenting techniques.

The Irish actor, who welcomed his first child Brando in August 2022 with ex-girlfriend Alyson Sandro, said his own version of parenthood had a major impact on his performance in Bird.

"Going into this, I didn't have that [normal experience], so it's a very brother-sister kind of chemistry going on [for Bug and Bailey], which I felt was right for it," he continued. "And you see that these days — there's a lot of young fathers out there and young mothers and they're almost like sibling-like, you know what I mean? Which is beautiful."

The Batman actor stars as a single father, Bug, in director Andrea Arnold's Bird, having a fraught relationship with his 12-year-old daughter Bailey, played by Nykiya Adams.