Actor and director Chad Lowe sits down with Steve for one of the most deeply honest, funny, and unexpectedly emotional conversations we’ve had on Still Here Hollywood. From growing up in the shadow of a wildly famous big brother to discovering his own path through acting, sobriety, fatherhood, and directing, Chad tells the story of a life shaped by love, rivalry, reinvention — and a few surreal Hollywood moments. He opens up about the early days when teenage girls hung posters of Rob but not him… auditioning for roles that went on to define a generation (On Golden Pond, Running on Empty, Goonies, Say Anything)… and the moment River Phoenix’s performance inspired him to become a better actor. Chad shares how Martin Sheen changed the course of his life on one unforgettable car ride, how he overcame paralyzing audition anxiety, and why Life Goes On became the most meaningful work of his career. For the first time, Chad also walks us through the real story behind Hilary Swank’s Oscar speech, how he actually felt in the car afterward, why he cried at the ceremony, and how the two of them found peace and perspective years later. We cover the state of Hollywood post-strikes, directing 911: Lone Star alongside Rob, taking his daughters to Taylor Swift (and surviving the ticket wars), his years of sobriety, what scares him most as a “girl dad,” and how a tuna melt changed his life at Elizabeth Taylor’s house. It's heartfelt, self-deprecating, and full of moments that remind you why Chad Lowe has quietly built one of the most beloved, complicated, fascinating careers in the business. A must-watch episode for anyone who knows the highs and lows of following your own path — even when the world thinks it already knows who you are.
Steve Kmetko
Yes, I'm Still Here Hollywood, just ahead on today's episode.
Chad Lowe
There was always a little sibling rivalry with girls, but I always lost. So, I just, it was like, if I had one more girl in high school tell me that they had my brother on there, a poster, my brother on the wall. I was It was like, that was really tough. It was tough.
Steve Kmetko
If we can go back just briefly to your ex-Hilary Swank. There was such a fuss made when she won her first Oscar for Boys Don't Cry and she forgot to. Thank you.
Chad Lowe
Yeah.
Steve Kmetko
What was the car ride home like?
Chad Lowe
Well, I can take you to that moment and what people didn't see. I remember Halloween coming out of a grocery store and hearing on the news that River had died, and I never met him. I didn't know him, but I started crying because River Phoenix made me want to be a better actor.
Steve Kmetko
Actors in Hollywood often wear different hats throughout their career. Most are content performing the Lions and Rolls written for them. Others like to branch out and flex as many creative muscles as they can. All while lending support to who might be their famous sibling or spouse. And sometimes people in Hollywood don't necessarily get the thanks the observers think they might deserve. This is still Here, Hollywood. I'm Steve Kmetko. Join me with today's guest director and Emmy-winning actor, Chad Lowe. Hi, Chad. Thanks for coming in today.
Chad Lowe
Thank you for having me in.
Steve Kmetko
Oh, it's nice, nice to have you here. We haven't seen each other in at least 20 years.
Chad Lowe
It's been a while.
Steve Kmetko
Yeah. It has been.
Chad Lowe
It has been a while. And I'm thrilled to get to see you too. I was mentioning to you, and it's, I like to embarrass you, put you on the spot, but we in the Los Angeles area get to grow up with you as kind of the trusted source in all thing’s entertainment. And in fact, you reminded me of a time right where I pulled you out of the press line, right. To make sure that you were front and center with my ex-wife when she was,
Steve Kmetko
Hilary Swank,
Chad Lowe
Winning an Oscar. And I said, I saw the,
Steve Kmetko
First of many.
Chad Lowe
I know. And I saw the line of people, and I was like, Steve, we need to talk to Steve. He's the guy.
Steve Kmetko
You did that. I was so touched that you did that because everybody's there. You know, there was I was a little starstruck.
Chad Lowe
I was like, this is the guy I see every day on tv. We got to talk to him.
Steve Kmetko
Thank you. Yeah. I was half tempted to come in here and say, okay, Chad.
Chad Lowe
I'll do it.
Steve Kmetko
Because I knew you could do it. Has there ever been any sibling rivalry between you and Rob?
Chad Lowe
Yeah, there, I think certainly there has been healthy sibling rivalry. I mean, and your kind of standard civil sibling rivalry when you're growing up and it's competitive with, whether it's sports or there was a al there was always a little sibling rivalry with girls, but I always lost. So, I just couldn't, it was like, if I had one more girl in high school tell me that they had my brother on their a poster, my brother on their wall. I was, it was like, that was really tough. That was tough. I would think. So, when you meet a girl and she says, yeah, you know, I have your brother on my, or you actually, they don't tell you, and you actually go in the bedroom and you see it. Oh, that's really a buzzkill. But we had a, I mean, it's an interesting question because I have given that a lot of thought.
And my brother Rob and I have two younger brothers as well, and I don't want to be remiss in mentioning my brother Justin, and my brother Micah. And Justin's an artist who, a true artist who lives in Woodstock, New York and does installation art. And then my brother Micah, who is getting his degree in psychology right now, Rob and I have the same parents and the others are half siblings. And so our parents were divorced, and Rob and I kind of only had each other. So, we were super close in the summers we would, when we moved out here, we would go back for the summer to visit our father in Dayton, Ohio. And there's really no structure. So, Rob and I kind of found our own fun for better or worse. And so, when he always wanted to be the actor from age six on in Dayton, Ohio.
He wanted to be an actor. And I was determined that I was going to blaze my own trail and I wasn't going to follow in anyone's footsteps. And so, when I found the, and I won't go on too much about this, but when I finally decided that I wanted to give acting a try I decided I'm not going to be the teen idol. I'm not going to be the guy that has the, the girls have the poster of him up in their bedroom. I'm going to be the serious actor. And so, I, at about 18, I moved to New York City and started studying in New York City. And so that was one of the ways I thought I was going to kind of differentiate myself from the shadow of a famous older brother.
Steve Kmetko
Did you do much theater work?
Chad Lowe
I did enough, I did a little, mainly it was to study with an acting coach who was in New York City that I was interested in working with. But I did some, I did an off off-Broadway play. I've done two off-Broadway plays, never have never done a Broadway play. And then did a play here in LA at one point called Blue Denim, which I did. But really what it was me trying to follow a blueprint that, to being an actor that was laid out to me by Martin Sheen of all people. And long story short was when we moved from Ohio to Point Dume, we ended up living, moving right down the street from the Sheens. And Martin is from Dayton, Ohio.
Steve Kmetko
Oh, I didn't know that.
Chad Lowe
And his son, Charlie, who I knew at the time as Esteves, was a huge Cincinnati Reds fan, as I am, huge Cincinnati Reds fan. So, we bonded over that, and then we had the brothers who started acting, and Charlie and I, we're not going to be the, we're not going to do that. We're not going to be like our brothers. And so, there was a trip to a David Bowie concert where I somehow, I think Martin was going to meet David afterwards. Bowie David as though he's, I'm on a first name. I was on a first name basis with him, but he was going to meet David Bowie and Charlie, and I was going to meet Charlie, but I needed a ride. So, Martin drove me from Point Dume to Anaheim in the Traffic, which is about four hours.
Steve Kmetko
I've never interviewed Martin.
Chad Lowe
Oh, my goodness. He's one of the best human beings. He also, as he was the, as he will say to you, he's a self-proclaimed windbag. You can't get a word in edgewise. So, for four hours he regaled me with stories about the public theater in New York City and Joe Papp, and how he felt I was an actor and I was 14 at the time. And hearing that from somebody that I really idolized was all I needed. And it also, he kind of presented a way into the business as an actor that seemed different. To circle back to your question that seemed very different from my brother.
Steve Kmetko
Is that what led you to acting? I mean, if you said you didn't want to be a, you wanted to be a trailblazer, or you didn't want to follow in your brother's footsteps yet here you are.
Chad Lowe
Yeah, here I am. Yeah, exactly. And there's, I've thought about that quite a bit, is how did I end up in that place? And also, going from sibling rivalry, if you will, to sibling admiration. And like most family members, like many families, we've had our moments of estrangement and we've had our moments where we weren't as close. But I think when our mother passed away, which is about 20 years ago now, you think it all, I know for me, I realized that any bickering or differences or rivalries that we had were really trivial and silly in the grand scheme of life. And that what mattered most was the closeness and the family bond and the experiences that I have shared with my brother Rob and my other brothers as well. And so, there's nothing but like incredible love and respect that I have for him. And I'm, I know he has for me.
And also, a realization that I am my own person and my journey is my journey. And it's unique. I mean, I think to the kind of casual outside observer, it may feel like sibling rivalry or somebody following in footsteps, but I have my own path and I'm my own person and he's his own person. And the other thing that really helped me with any sibling rivalry was I realized that when good things happen to me, he was always the one person I wanted to tell first. And I wanted to share my joy and happiness with him. And so, I needed to return that when he would share with me. So, there's no room for jealousy or envy when you come from that place in your heart.
Steve Kmetko
That's nice. I know when I moved out here and my family was all back in the Midwest, I would hear things like, you go out to Los Angeles and you fall off the face of the earth. We never hear from you. We never see. Okay. Guilty. Alright. I don't like picking up the phone all the time. But you know, it is, what it is. We all have our own journey.
Chad Lowe
Yes, we do.
Steve Kmetko
Hey, tell me about more of your journey. Give me a list of the credits you have acting credits.
Chad Lowe
I have a very, it's been an odd circuitous journey to get here. I mean, I like to tell people all the things I auditioned for that I didn't get, because it's a really impressive list of credits.
Steve Kmetko
That's one of my questions. What was the most disappointing job you didn't get?
Chad Lowe
Oh, my goodness. One of the first things I remember auditioning for when I finally decided that I was going to give acting a try was on Golden Pond. My memory is, I got pretty close to that role. And I forget who ended up doing it. Doug.
Steve Kmetko
Yeah, Doug is the first name.
Chad Lowe
Yeah. And, but anyway, he was great. I didn't get the part, but to think that I even had an opportunity to read for that and be considered for that role. I read for Goonies. I didn't get Goonies. I read for 16 Candles. I read for Say Anything. It's like a pretty nice list of things. I didn't get. But I think the one that, and I developed, I think I out of survival, you kind of have to develop an attitude that if you don't get it, it wasn't meant to be. And it was meant for that person who got the part. And so, I had always battled some, I would call it anxiety and depression. Like many artists do. I've come to learn and I would get horribly nervous before auditions, like debilitating nerves.
And there was a lot of, I think shame around that and embarrassment that I had this kind of, the nerves take over to the point that I would shake and sweat. And so, I was always super sober, self-conscious about auditioning and going in and putting myself out there. Which is odd because you think, well, why do it then? But there was a calling. And if I could manage the nerves in an audition, or even in a performance, whether it was a play or on a set, I felt this elation and joy and a sense of accomplishment. And it was incredibly satisfying. The problem was I had these nerves, I had to overcome that.
So, one of the ways that I've been able to do that was to realize that it wasn't a competition. And when I went into a room filled with 10 or 15 other actors, some of whose work I admired instead of looking at it as a competition, look at it as an opportunity. And for me, I also had to realize there was abundance. And so, if this job wasn't meant to be mine, something down the road would be. And so, I had to come from that place mentally, and it really helped. I just stopped looking at other actors as my competition. I just had to stop doing that.
Steve Kmetko
I have to go back to, on Golden Palm for just a second. Did they have you read with Catherine or?
Chad Lowe
You know, I was, I don't believe so. I think I read; I think it was Mark Rydell who corrected that. I think I just read with, with Mr. Rydell. But I didn't get to that point. That would've been incredible. I mean, that would've been incredible. I did then on, as we stay on the topic of things that I didn't get one of the movies that I, and again, now coming at it with this attitude of, it's not a competition, and if it's meant to be, it will work out. And I read for running on empty which was River,
Steve Kmetko
River Phoenix.
Chad Lowe
Yes. And Sidney Lumet. Was running on empty?
Steve Kmetko
And wasn't it Christine Lahti,
Chad Lowe
Christine Lahti,
Steve Kmetko
Judd Hirsch.
Chad Lowe
Nice.
Steve Kmetko
Plimpton.
Chad Lowe
See, this is why you're a legend. You just yes. So, it's a long story that kind of leads to something. And this is also one of the realizations for me, that is that if I didn't get the part, there was a reason why. And maybe it was preparing me for something else, or it was, or I was now available for the next thing that was going to come along. And so, when I got this message, or my agent said, look, there's this movie, you should read the script. They're seeing people in New York. You'd have to get yourself to New York, but you can meet Sidney Lumet. And I thought, well, I'm going to fly myself to New York and meet Sidney Lumet, and that's no brainer. And then I read the script and it was incredible. And the role was incredible. So, I flew out to New York to meet Sidney Lumet.
I remember going into his office, and he was so disarming and just so wonderful. And he's got, he's eating a big ham sandwich. He's got mustard all over his face. Come in kid. And I was like, this isn't very formal. I'm immediately comfortable. And he hands me the sides. And he says he said, why you read this? And we read together just with Sidney Lumet and his ham sandwich and the mustard on his face. And when I finished reading, he says, can you come back in tomorrow? Well, of course, I was supposed to fly back, but I said, yes, of course, I'll come back. And I ended up reading with, I believe it was Martha Plimpton. Was it Martha Plimpton?
Steve Kmetko
Yeah, I think so.
Chad Lowe
I believe it was Martha and Griffin Dunne was producer, and it was a bunch of producers. And it was, now, it felt like a real audition. And I read and it went really well. And I felt really good about it. And I flew home, and then River Phoenix, who had apparently been involved at one point, but fell out, came back into the picture, and they went with River. And I got a letter from Sidney Lumet that I have frames still to this day on my desk that says, thank you so much. You were wonderful. I hope to work with you someday in the future. Well, and he signs it, and so I have this prize possession, which is a signed letter from Sidney Lumet. And another way that I cemented this philosophy of their abundance, and if it's meant to be for me, it will happen for me. Of course, river goes on to be a nominated for an Academy Award for the role.
And it's like, what if that had been me? And I remember Halloween coming out of a grocery store and hearing on the news that River had died. And I never met him. I didn't know him, but I started crying because River Phoenix made me want to be a better actor. He was somebody that I looked up to and somebody who, did a role that I was very close to and did it incredibly well. So, he was the standard for me. And then he was gone. And I realized how precious this time is, and how lucky and fortunate we are to get to do any of it. And so, it really affected me. His death, even though I'd never met him, didn't know him at all. I mean friends who knew him. But just to see somebody who, in a blink of an eye with so much talent, with so, such a bright future, gone from the Earth, was incredibly powerful for me. And I've kept it with me to this day.
Steve Kmetko
Maybe your hearts in the right place. Compassionate,
Chad Lowe
Compassionate. Can I finish on a where this goes?
Steve Kmetko
Yes. I was just looking up to see if I was right about Martha Plimpton.
Chad Lowe
I'm pretty sure it's Martha. So, if we fast forward now. I'm married to Hilary,
Steve Kmetko
Right.
Chad Lowe
And she has read for a little independent movie called Boys Don't Cry. They've come to Los Angeles; they've met all every actress in town wanted to play that role. And they, afterwards they go back to New York. It's killer films this small great you know, art house film, studio killer films, and Christine Behan who runs it. And they just make incredible films. And so, the director says and the producer say, we really like Hilary, but we don't have it in the budget to fly her out to New York, and we need to see her read again. So, her manager says, absolutely not.
No way. You can fly her out. You can offer it to her. But she's not coming out there. And there's this kind of standoff and Hilary's saying, I don't know what to do. You know, I mean, they're not going to, I don't think I'm going to get this role, but I really want it. And I said many years ago I flew myself out to read for Sidney Lumet. I didn't get the part, but boy, what an incredible life experience that was for me. And it made me a better actor. I suggest you fly yourself out there.
We'll figure it out. It can't be that much money. We'll, I mean, in those days, neither of us had much money. So, it was like, we'll, we'll make it work. Just fly yourself out there. Stay with a friend. And of course, her manager was furious, her manager, who she was not with much longer after that, you can't do this. They should be paying you. And so, it was the Sidney Lumet experience that where I was able to have the perspective and the foresight to say to her, no matter what happens, this is going to be a good experience for you. You'll always take this experience and grow from it. Because I mean, the odds of getting any job are, you know.
Steve Kmetko
You got to take chances here.
Chad Lowe
Boy, don't you ever, so you know, again, the Sidney Lumet thing, didn't get the part, but got such an incredible valuable life lesson from that experience and cherish that experience and that memory.
Steve Kmetko
We'll be back in a moment.
Chad Lowe
My 14-year-old was turning 15, and she said, all I want for my birthday are tickets to see Taylor Swift. Now, that would be fine if it was just two tickets. I mean, I still wouldn't spend eight grand, I don't think. But I could figure it out. But of course, I've got two other daughters. Really Well, we're going too.
Steve Kmetko
How have you seen Hollywood change since you got into the business? Have you seen it change?
Chad Lowe
Yeah. Yeah. It has changed a lot. When I came up, there was a certain snobbery about what an actor would do or wouldn't do. And it was beneath you if you were a serious actor to do a commercial, for instance, or even television, remember those days were like, they're a television actor. Film actors don't do TV. Boy has that changed.
Steve Kmetko
Yes.
Chad Lowe
And is going to continue to change.
Steve Kmetko
Now they do TV commercials.
Chad Lowe
Do they. Exactly. And they're dying to do them. They're like lining up to do them. I think in some, I mean, it's always driven, I think, by the economics of the business, how it changes. And I'm know that and I primarily direct now. And so, I'm very conscious of the business side of entertainment. And there needs to be this symbiosis between the art and the commerce of it. And you can't have one without the other. I think currently that maybe the pendulum is swung a little too far into the commerce side of it. And so that's why, you're getting a lot of the franchises that people are familiar with the studios that are spending the big money want to hedge their bets. And if you have what's called IP, which is the what, Intellectual,
Steve Kmetko
Intellectual Property.
Chad Lowe
Intellectual, intellectual, I want to say Intelligent Property.
Steve Kmetko
Close.
Chad Lowe
It's like AI, this is IP if you have that. A not, you have the Harry Potter books that everybody has read. I was on a show as an actor and a director called Pretty Little Liars, which was IP, which was a big, young adults hit novel series. And so, Spider-Man, people immediately know, whatever, Superman, Batman, and I think, my God, how many more of these movies do we need? Where are the, where's this original content? And then it's nothing against the, I'm not going to enter into the Martin Scorsese bashing of Marvel, because I do enjoy those movies, and they're valuable. And again, we're entertainers. So, if, that's what we do. It's like, give people escapism for 45 minutes on TV or an hour, or let them go to the cinema and forget their troubles. Maybe get a perspective on the world that they didn't already have. But I do think now the changes that the business went in the seventies from the kind of auteur and the filmmaker driven and there were abuses that happened. I mean, the budgets were wild. You hear all those stories about like making Apocalypse Now and Lo and spending all the money.
And so, the budgets were out of control. And there wasn't a sense that, hey, we're spending somebody's money and this is a business. Now it's, all the executives are coming from Ivy League business schools. And they're, not to say that they're not creative, but they're driving their decisions to make projects based on the economics. And the art of it is kind of second, you know, it's secondhand. It's like they consider that after they look at the metrics of what it's going to make as an investment for Wall Street. So, it's really, and I think that's happening in many sectors. I mean, I'm not sophisticated enough in business, but I have this suspicion that that Wall Street and corporate America is, is really kind of the pendulum has swung too far in their favor, let's say. That's why I was so excited, and I haven't seen it yet, but to see Coppola's movie.
Steve Kmetko
Oh Megalopolis,
Chad Lowe
Or have you seen it yet?
Steve Kmetko
Megalopolis, no,
Chad Lowe
I'm dying to see it because that's the spirit of movies that I came up in. You know, when you'd go to Westwood and there would be a blockbuster that term came from that these blockbusters meant, there were lines around the block. They busted the block with the lines. I mean, remember those days, the golden era of cinema, when it was an event. And you'd go and you'd get in line to see, and you had to be there the first day that it opened. That doesn't happen as much as it used to.
Steve Kmetko
No, it doesn't.
Chad Lowe
And it's a shame.
Steve Kmetko
I remember going to a theater, my neighborhood theater in Chicago when I was a kid. Not that much of a kid. And The Exorcist, they were lined up around the block. It was an R-rated movie. And my brother-in-Law had to take me. Because I couldn't go in on my own.
Chad Lowe
Interesting. Did you ever recover?
Steve Kmetko
Yeah, I did. I did.
Chad Lowe
I didn't recover from that movie. Oh, I'm still horrified. But
Steve Kmetko
It was so big. The effects and everything were so big that I tended to think back on it and laugh now. I've watched it on television not too terribly long ago. And they added some things to it. Her walking down the stairs backwards.
Chad Lowe
Yes. Of course.
Steve Kmetko
Yes. On her hands and knees or whatever. So anyway, let's see. Oh, you won two Emmys, didn't you?
Chad Lowe
I was nominated for one, a Daytime Emmy for an after remember afterschool specials that we do. Those were the best, very important subject matters. So, I was nominated for an afterschool special a Daytime Emmy. And it was funny because in the category, I'll never forget, I think I was up against Whoopi Goldberg for some daytime thing she did. And I'm like, I'm not going to beat Whoopi Goldberg for an Emmy for some afterschool special that I did. And then there was Life Goes On, which I did end up winning, if you call it that, getting the Emmy for Best Supporting Actor on a drama series. And you know, Life Goes On was just like one of the most incredible experiences of my career.
Steve Kmetko
How come?
Chad Lowe
It was meaningful. It was entertainment. Because again, I really wrap my mind around the import of what we do, because we're not curing cancer. You know I mean; my heroes are teachers and civil service,
Steve Kmetko
Your mother was a teacher.
Chad Lowe
She was. And people who kind of quietly serve and provide services in their communities and actors. I'm very uncomfortable with the amount of attention that's paid to celebrity and to actors. When I see other people who just do things that are really shaping and changing society for the better. And I just go, well, my job is important because I give those people, escape or I give them entertainment and that's valuable. But when Life goes on came around, it was, it kind of fulfilled a social message. And so, I felt like what we were doing Rose a little bit above just pure entertainment. And the character that I played, because I came in the third season, I believe it was a young high school student who was HIV positive.
And what had been done before was, they had boys in the band and they had other shows where they dealt with the AIDS crisis in a way that showed a character with AIDS and then they died. But what we were the first to do, and I have to give all the credit to the producers and the writers because they were the ones who wanted to tell this story and to the network. Because the network kind of said, okay, fine, you guys are opposite 60 minutes on Sunday nights. Do what you want to do. And they said, we want to tell the story of living with HIV and aids. And so, I was cast in this role and was given the opportunity and the privilege of playing the first character on national television who was not dying of aids, but living with it.
And the amount of people who still to this day stop me on the street and tell me how seminal that was, how important it was for them to see that and how it opened up a conversation in their family with their parents. Just was, I mean, it's humbling on such a deep level that you actually can have that kind of impact on people's lives. So, it's been hard for me to sense because I've never had anything that had the same effect or value. But that show, which we've tried to reboot, which is a whole other story just was everything to me. And I've never had another role quite like it.
Steve Kmetko
Patti LuPone was in it.
Chad Lowe
Yes, she was. Patti, God, Patti LuPone, Bill Smitrovich, Kellie Martin, who I still am very close with have a couple projects that we're trying to develop together, which has been great. We both have families. You know, she's married two kids. And it's just funny to like look back and know that we had that. I always felt like when I looked in, her eyes as an actor, because I mentioned that I had this anxiety and these nerves that I was always trying to manage. I always felt safe with her when I'd look in her eyes. That was one of the best ways for me to get over my anxiety and nervousness was to get out of myself. And so, I think that's what makes me a good actor, if I may say so, is I really have to focus on the other person. And it doesn't, and then it's no longer about me. It's about them. It's about you.
Steve Kmetko
You may say so, by the way, has Rob ever given you any advice?
Chad Lowe
Oh yeah. He'll give me advice all the time. Especially when I don't ask for it. You shouldn't do that.
Steve Kmetko
Oh, unsolicited.
Chad Lowe
Oh God, unsolicited, he's great with the unsolicited advice, but he's super smart. He's super wise. He is. He's, because I work with him a lot now as I direct, I've directed his show lone Star 911 Lone Star. I've directed a bunch of those. And I actually was cast to play his brother, which is very meta, I guess the term is today. But,
Steve Kmetko
I would call it type casting.
Chad Lowe
Type casting. Yeah. It was a stretch. It was a real stretch. But it's funny because I have been directing 911 Lone Star and the show runner and the creator of the show said, called me and said, hey, by the way, are you still acting? I said, yeah, of course I'm still acting. I mean, I just, whenever somebody wants me to do it, I'm thrilled to do it. He said, how would you feel playing Rob's brother?
Steve Kmetko
It's kind of a funny question.
Chad Lowe
Isn't that funny?
Steve Kmetko
Yeah.
Chad Lowe
And my first response was, well, you better ask him how he feels about me playing his brother because I'm not sure. I mean, and he said, oh, he loves the idea. So, I was played his long. It was a really, what was neat about it too was the, the way the characters met was we didn't know in the story. We didn't know about each other. And the Rob's character's father Owen was, his father was dying and he went back to California to be by his dying father's bedside and meets this guy in the waiting room who talks about how incredible his dad is. And like, my dad's here and he's not well. And he says, yeah, my dad’s here too. And he's not. Well. But we both have incredibly polar opposite perspectives on our fathers.
He was the greatest dad in the world to my character and to Rob's character, he was this deadbeat father who was never there for him. And then we come to learn, it's actually the same man. And that role was played by Robert Pine, which was really thrilling because Robert Pine and I had done played together many years ago where he played my father. And he's a legend. I mean, chips come on, Robert Pine and he's got a son now who's doing, I think he's doing okay. His son's doing okay.
Steve Kmetko
Oh yes, Chris just dawned on me.
Chad Lowe
Yeah. He's doing, okay.
Steve Kmetko
Yeah, he's doing okay. Yeah.
Chad Lowe
And what was really nice about that too is we talked about that and to see the pride he had in his son. Because it's not always that way. I worked with Donald Sutherland, I'm not sure. Anyway, I won't get into that. But it was complicated.
Steve Kmetko
Oh really?
Chad Lowe
His relationship with Kiefer was very complicated. But to see Robert Pine just gush about his son with the pride he has for his son was really incredible.
Steve Kmetko
By the way, Chris Pine is now the captain of the Star or the of the enterprise. Is it the enterprise?
Chad Lowe
Yeah. Starship Enterprise Still.
Steve Kmetko
Is it?
Chad Lowe
Yeah. He's doing fine.
Steve Kmetko
Yes. Yeah, very good-looking young man.
Chad Lowe
So, I played Rob's brother and we, it was so great to work with him. It's great to work with him on so many levels. Because we've grown so much. We started with sibling rivalry and I kind of alluded to this to some of the estrangements we've had and some of the difficulties we've had. And now as two grown men and I don't want to say his age or my well, that's okay. He's 60.
Steve Kmetko
Yeah. I can tell you; you really don't want to say that.
Chad Lowe
He's 60. It's so funny because I, when he was right before his birthday, I was, I don’t know where we were, but I said, I was like, dude, how are you? How are you doing with the big six? Oh, how are you feeling about it? He goes, I don't want to talk about it. He goes, I can't even talk about it. I just, I can't even acknowledge. I, I don't want to talk about it. But he's aging. He's aging in a way. He's, you know, look, he's older, so he's always going to be there. He's always going to have that experience first. But I want to emulate the way he ages. I mean, he just, he charges life and lives life to its fullest. But we have so much fun when we work together. It's a little bit like being back in Dayton, Ohio playing, Nerf football and drawing up a play in the dirt. It's like, it's that kind of joy.
Steve Kmetko
And really as he ages, is he really losing so much as a shred of his handsomeness?
Chad Lowe
Well, I mean, I don't know what would happen if he lost an even a threat of that. I don't know what would happen to that ego that would be tough.
Steve Kmetko
Well.
Chad Lowe
And now it's fun to watch his son, John Owen, who, they created the show together. This unstable that's on Netflix that is so funny. And it was born, the whole genesis of that show was born out of John Owens kind of ribbing him and holding him accountable in a way. And my god bless my brother, he's got, he's so self-deprecating, and so comfortable in that space. And anytime he gets, starts to take himself too seriously, it's not my job anymore to hold him accountable. That's not, I'm, I've let go of that responsibility. It's now on his sons. I'm like, that's your job now guys. Keep him in track. Keep him in place.
Steve Kmetko
I have a fond space for him in my head. My niece was in a, what was it, a Marshall Fields in Chicago, I think. On some kind of a commercial campaign. And Rob was there and she went up and said, my brother is, or my uncle is Steve Kmetko. And he made like a big deal. You're, it just, you know, it made me look really good in her eyes which I'm grateful for. There are so many things I want to talk about. You were telling me about being a girl dad.
Chad Lowe
Yeah. Yep, yep. I'm a girl dad. It's, so interesting because always wanting to have my own experiences and not live in the shadow or in the footsteps of somebody. I get the experience of being a girl dad, which is such a privilege. And I feel bad. I'm like, for anybody who's a parent who I feel like having a daughter is such an incredible privilege because, and I explain it this way, it takes what I have known intellectually about women and all of equality and the glass ceiling that's there and how it's a misogynistic world in many ways. And knowing, and being and loving women. I've always loved women. I mean, and my mom was one of my heroes. And I've always respected women in that way. And I've seen the struggles. You know, I know that there are struggles to, are you a mother or are you a professional? You can be one or the other. And having to make that difficult choice and having to navigate the, all of those challenges.
And now it's taken what I've known intellectually and it's put it in my heart because I now have three daughters. And so, I look at the world from really, from their perspective, and I see the world and a lot of the injustices in the world from their perspective. But I also see all the opportunities that are there now too. It's not all doom and gloom. It's, you know, society is changing and we're starting, thank God. But like, my mom was one of the first of her sorority sisters to get divorced back in 1968. And so, she was a trailblazer. And so, I see how we are really becoming conscious of the role of women. I mean, we may, who knows, we may have the first female president. I mean really empowering women and seeing how much women have to offer. I mean, I personally think that if women were in charge of nations, we'd be a lot more peaceful world.
Steve Kmetko
Sure. Seems that way, doesn't it?
Chad Lowe
I think so.
Steve Kmetko
You must be a good girl dad because you took them to see Taylor Swift. Did you sure?
Chad Lowe
Oh, God. I mean, you can't, I mean, boy, that was stressful though, trying to get those tickets.
Steve Kmetko
Really?
Chad Lowe
Oh my God. I mean, I think any parent who tried to get Taylor Swift tickets can, can attest. They were out. I mean, it's a, there's a whole other subject about ticket gouging and what's happening with tickets. And I know Taylor Swift's team has tried to change that. And I'm a huge Spruce Springsteen fan, and he's tried to change it, but I mean, the tickets nosebleed section, were going for $4,000 apiece. And I'm like, guys, that's not happening. I'm sorry that is not happening. But my 14-year-old was turning 15 and she said, all I want for my birthday, our tickets to see Taylor Swift. Now that would be fine if it was just two tickets. I mean, I still wouldn't spend eight grand, I don't think. But I could figure it out. But of course, I've got two other daughters who are like, well, we're going to,
Steve Kmetko
If they're going,
Chad Lowe
If, yeah. So, it worked out. But I know some people in some pretty high places and I leave them alone. I'm never asking for favors. I'm never, but for this, it wasn't for me. So, I called some pretty high-powered people, and even they were like laughing at me be like, what do you think we can get tickets? And I'm like, wait, you can't get tickets if you can't get tickets and you're the president of this agency, or what? I mean, so it ended up working out like as a Miracle Moonshot in the last week before the show. I got a code to get tickets. It was crazy. And I went, I like her music fine. But I watch the documentary miss Americana in preparation. Because I do my homework and God knows, I know every lyric from road trips. So, like, I know all the lyrics, but I'm like, it's not really my cup of tea. But I appreciate her talent and her artistry. But when I saw this documentary, I really had so much respect for her as a artist and a human being. And then when I saw the concert, I was blown away, like, blown away. And I've seen some great concerts. It was up there in the top five for me. Like, it was incredible. It was incredible.
And so, people were like, oh, Taylor Swift. I'm like, you know what? If you're a football fan and you're offended by seeing Taylor Swift at a chief's game in the supporting her boyfriend, and that bothers you, that says a lot more about you than it does her. Because guess what? My daughter's now want to, whenever the, who's playing the Chief's? Oh, is Tay there is Taytay there. I'm like, I don't know you guys. I'm trying to watch the game.
Steve Kmetko
We'll be back for more in a moment. If we can go back just briefly to your ex-Hilary Swank. There was such a fuss made when she won her first Oscar for Boys Don't Cry and she forgot to thank you.
Chad Lowe
Yeah.
Steve Kmetko
What was the car ride home like?
Chad Lowe
Well, I can take you to that moment and what people didn't see.
Steve Kmetko
You went on a kind of a trip to the wilderness this summer, didn't you? With your daughters? I saw something posted on Instagram or something where?
Chad Lowe
We try to get them outside. You know, we try to counter screen time, which all parents, that's kind of, that is the challenge I think for all parents now is how to manage screen time because these, they're so addicted to the devices and if you don't let them have the device, then they feel like a pariah and then they can't relate to their friends. And so, we're kind of like everything in moderation. You can have ice cream and sugar and you can have everything in moderation. So, part of the way we try to moderate screen time is like, alright, now it's time to go outside. And for me, especially as I get older, I just find hiking and biking and being outdoors is, it's like, I called it nature bath, like during the pandemic I got a mountain bike and I wasn't much of a mountain biker.
But during the pandemic when all the gyms were closing and we were all stuck in our houses, I got a bike and started riding up in the Santa Monica Mountains. And it was like, I'm in a, one of the things of being a girl dad to three daughters is there's never a dull moment in my house. And it's never quiet. So, getting out on the trail in the middle of nowhere was like, I mean, it was like going to church for me. So, my wife Kim and I try to really keep our girls, active and now they appreciate it. One of my proudest moments is, I'm kind of a sunset junkie. Like I love Sunset, so I always try to go watch the sunset and I always try to bring one of the kids along. I'm like, who wants to come watch the sunset?
And I also don't drink anymore. So, it, when my wife's having that 5 o'clock glass of wine or 6 o'clock glass of wine, which normal people can do I'm not doing that. So, I'm like, I need something to take the edge off. So, the edge for me, taking the edge off for me is getting into nature and watching the sunset. And my 15-year-old daughter now, like if I'm away shooting something up in Vancouver or I'm in Atlanta, will send me pictures of the sunset. And that's sweet. And say, dad, there was a great one tonight. Like, wow, I wish you could have been there with me. So, it rubbed off. And so, there's an appreciation of the world around the natural world around them.
Steve Kmetko
Do you miss drinking?
Chad Lowe
No. I don't. Sometimes I do. That's, oh wait, no, I don't. Sometimes I do. How's that for an answer?
Steve Kmetko
Well, it's both sides of this coin.
Chad Lowe
Both sides of the coin. I got sober 21 years ago. And here's the other thing about my brother and I that's, so, we're so connected on so many levels. Like I can go three months without talking and we pick up right away. He's sober 30 some years.
Steve Kmetko
Well, he is 60.
Chad Lowe
I know. And he was a child of the eighties. And there's two ways that goes.
Steve Kmetko
Oh yeah, sure is.
Chad Lowe
So, I got, my sobriety date is May 11th, 2003. His sobriety date is May 10th. Which and I remember calling him going, hey man, so I guess where I'm going. And he's like, wow, I'm going getting sober. He's like, my birthday was yesterday. So, we share that bond as well. And that the kind of language of sobriety and also a worldview that it gives you. And I always say like, if it weren't working for me being sober, if I wasn't finding a joyful life and a life of peace and feeling comfortable in my own skin, cause it's all I ever wanted my whole life, that's all I've ever wanted. And I think it's one of the things that drew me to acting is I could get out of my own skin and get into somebody else's skin. I didn't have to be me. So, finding something that helps me feel comfortable in my own skin and authentically me is it's priceless. I mean, like, the thought of having, I don't miss the depths to which I got, which were scary.
But sometimes you're at dinner with friends and somebody opens a nice bottle of wine or somebody pours a nice gin martini, which was my thing. Gin. I know people are like gin. I'm like, you didn't have the right gin. I'll tell you how to do it. But the right, like sometimes I think, yeah, that'd be nice. But then I play the tape through as I was taught. And it's like, well, where's that leading? And for me, his history was always, if one felt that good and got me that far out of my body, then two's certainly going to be even better. And if two works that well, then let do the math, then you should have four.
Steve Kmetko
That was my way of looking at it. If too much of a good thing is still not enough.
Chad Lowe
Right. And full disclosure, my as it does my drinking led to other things. And it took a toll. It took a toll on my first marriage. It took a toll on my relationships with my family as the disease of alcoholism does. And the miracle and honestly, I believe in miracles now cause I've seen them. I've actually seen miracles, but I also know what it takes. You know, it takes hard work, to change. But people can change, because people say, oh, he's changed. They've changed, really. Like, what did they do to change? And sometimes you have to change everything you have to do, and for me, I had that, what they call the gift of desperation, and that was a gift. And so, I was willing to do anything at that point.
Steve Kmetko
There's another saying I adopted from the rooms. And that was nothing changes. If nothing changes. That yeah. When you think it through, that's true.
Chad Lowe
Nothing changes. If nothing changes.
Steve Kmetko
And speaking of change if we can go back just briefly to your ex-Hilary Swank. There was such a fuss made when she won her first Oscar for Boys Don't Cry, and she didn't, she forgot to Thank you.
Chad Lowe
Yeah.
Steve Kmetko
What was the car ride home like?
Chad Lowe
You know, well, I can take you to that moment. And what people didn't see is that as soon as, cause and now people are kind of become aware that they as soon as a somebody gets up there, they start flashing, a countdown of like 30 seconds. And I think that's crazy because you and an artist works their life for that moment, and you're giving them 20 seconds. Whereas then, you got your hosts going on and on with scripted jokes for 5, 10 minutes, and you're like, I'm there to see those moments where someone's life goal is recognized. So, there was the pressure of that. And once they said, basically wrap it up and they play you off the stage, remember Julia Roberts with her calling? Stick Boy. You know, the look of terror and horror on her face as they were basically ushering off because she recognized that she didn't was, so was a horror.
I felt so bad for her. I wasn't really, I didn't really even think about it from my perspective. I just felt so terrible for her. And I also, the first thing I said to her is she didn't need to thank me. I mean, she thanked me enough. Like I, yes, there's an expectation publicly that you'll do that, but I didn't feel unappreciated, I didn't feel taken for granted or forgotten at all. I just felt for her really, like, I wished I could change it for her to kind of ease her burden. And it is interesting that it comes up quite a bit.
Steve Kmetko
Does it really?
Chad Lowe
You know, around the Oscars, there's always the Oscar Curse. And I don't believe in an Oscar curse, but I do know that it's an incredible amount of pressure to be in that position. Because what we do as a society is we love to elevate people and put them on a pedestal and then take turns throwing stones at them to knock them down. And where do you go from the top of a mountain? A friend of mine used to say nothing grows in a mountaintop. It's true. And so where do you go when you're at the pinnacle of your career? And I think Jung used to say, my condolences when someone would win an award, because you know where you're going from there, there's only one place to go from there. And it takes a very evolved person to be able to handle that fall from being at the top. It's lonely at the top. And I've witnessed that I've seen what that does and I've witnessed it in other people too. And so, it was a, now I look back and I'm, it's like, it, to me, it's such water. All of my, all of it is Wonder Water under the bridge for me.
I mean, I have a, my wife and Hilary have a relationship. Oh, I mean, they don't hang out, but she would call her if she needed something or my daughters, it's interesting. When we went to Telluride in Colorado during the pandemic, my wife Kim was so smart and said, we need to get out of LA. The kids are going to be remote. Let's get out of this house. Let's go somewhere where we can be outdoors. So, we went to Telluride and it just so happened that Hilary bought a big ranch in Telluride. And I didn't know this. I mean, I don't talk to her every day. She's married and as kids and let her have her life. But we ended up visiting her up on her ranch. And I have this amazing picture of Hilary in like a, one of those off, whatever, like a, I don’t know what they're called, but a TV kind of like farm vehicle. Hilary's driving. And my three girls are sitting next to her in my wife's in the passenger seat.
Steve Kmetko
Well, that's a nice keepsake.
Chad Lowe
And I just thought, that's, it just warm my heart because I went through as a child, parents who divorced and didn't like each other, and were pretty vocal about that at times. And that takes a toll and I'm sure it took a bigger toll on them to have that kind of anger and that kind of bitterness and resentfulness in their hearts. And that'll just eat you up if you just hold onto that kind of stuff. And I've made peace with my past on in so many ways. My side of the street is clean. I wish nothing but honestly the best for her, and I want her to succeed. And I will cheer all of her successes as I would anybody.
And it's like, just, we were married, we were in love and did it work? I don't know if it didn't work ultimately, but I'm grateful for that time. Things happen. Things, things happen. And like I'm so happy in my life now and I'm so happy with my wife and my kids. I feel so blessed. It's like, it would be really hard to look at that and not feel incredibly grateful. And like things you, some jobs you don't get, but they lead to other jobs. You know, like some relationships run their course and you learn from those relationships. And I think I'm a better husband now. You know, I think I'm wiser, probably more patient now. I'm certainly a better dad than I would've been, I think.
Steve Kmetko
Let me ask you, do you enjoy acting or directing more?
Chad Lowe
I think if I had to choose, I would choose to directing. And I think finding, directing for me was when I really realized that was kind of what I was called to do. Now, I love being an actor and as Martin Sheen said to me when he sold me on being an actor, he says, being an actor is a way of life. He said, being an actor is being able to put yourself in other people's shoes. It's about empathy and it's about observing the way people behave. And I just was so in when he described it that way because it was so contrary to acting is about getting the job and being on magazine covers and winning a war. It was a way of life.
And so that's what I bought into and that's what I pursued. And I've always been somewhat uncomfortable in the spotlight in a ways that I see other people aren't, or at least I can't speak for them. What's, you know, I don't know what's in their hearts, but some people seem incredibly comfortable and kind of crave the spotlight. I'm now comfortable in it, but I don't crave it. And I'm much more interested in hearing other people's stories than I am telling mine. Although you wouldn't know it today, but, so what I,
Steve Kmetko
You used the word earlier; I think it was Windbag.
Chad Lowe
Now I'm channeling my inner Martin Sheen. But I think what happened for me with directing is it kind of brought all these things in my life to up to the surface. And I recognize that all of my experience has led to me being a director because I take great pride in helping guide a career. I take great pride in helping somebody find a beat or a moment in a performance like that I feel so much satisfaction in, I felt when taking it back to my ex when she went to New York City on my recommendation to read for boys Don't Cry and got it. I mean, that's all she did it. But I certainly felt like there was real value in being there to help shepherd that along.
Steve Kmetko
And giving the right advice.
Chad Lowe
And help guide that. And I didn't need the spotlight that I didn't need to be thanked at the Oscars for that. That's not, that I wasn't at the Oscars to be thanked. I was there to support her. One of the things about that's bothers, that does bother me, is I cried when she won. And I got taken to task for that in some stupid magazines. In fact, there was, I played John Denver. I never told you all the things I did because I don't have like that one big seminal, like I was in Top Gun, like I did a lot of TV stuff. And I've been in a, I did er and I did 24, and I've done a lot of stuff. I've been very fortunate. But I played John Denver in the John Denver story, which is a TV movie for CBS.
And I'll never forget, because one of the reviews, I think it was in USA today came back and it said, we now know why Chad Lowe was crying at the Oscars. They were trying to make the point that my performance was so bad. And or the movie was, that's so bad that that's why it was. And it was like I get it. The journalist is being clever and, but I was like, really? Like, you know, men aren't supposed to cry. It was all that macho of like, and I say like, if you can't see somebody who you love and have been there as they've built their career and their life, get to that moment and not get a lump in your throat, something's wrong with you.
So that was the only thing that I, at the time, and thank God it's changed. And I think we are evolving as a society to realize that it's okay for men to emote and feel feelings, and it doesn't make you less manly, whatever that means. So, that was really weird when that happened. And that hurt, that I felt angry about. When people were taking me to task for shedding a tear at that moment, I was like, really.
Steve Kmetko
What are your biggest concerns raising girls in Hollywood?
Chad Lowe
Well, I have one who's like on the, she's like, I am going to be an actress. I mean, she reminds me a little bit of Rob in that Rob knew what he wanted to do. He'd tell anybody, hey, I'm going to be an actor. This is what I'm going to do. And she's that way. And she's confident in the ways that I haven't been. I see her and you know, like, it's funny cause all these self-tapes, you do all these self-tapes. She has an agent now, and she'll call me Dad, you call my agent. Why am I not getting more auditions? I'm like, what? Let me call my agent first. Find out why I'm not getting an audition. But she's an actor. She's just determined to do it. So, I feel like, look, some of the best people and some of the smartest people I've ever met were actors or our actors.
And I mean, I look at my friend Kellie Martin, who was on life goes on and schooled on the set and ends up going to Yale and has a degree from Yale. And like, you hear about these people who, not that getting a degree from an ivy is our goal for our daughters, but the point is staying involved, helping them navigate. And I have some experience with that is I think what separates a successful, and I don't mean success by measured by jobs or stardom, but I mean success as far as being a fully evolved human being whose life is filled with meaning. And that result will be happiness to help shepherd them along. Our daughters, my wife and I both feel this way as we just, we're involved. And we're not just sending them out.
It's, this is there, this is their calling. We're not pushing it on them. We're just helping them navigate these waters. I'm also slow playing it a little bit with her because she's in such a hurry as I was. And I'm like, there's plenty of time. And so, it's being involved in the choices that they'll ultimately make as actors and what they'll do, what they won't do. And just being there in a way. And, because I've, I've noticed that a lot of the cautionary tales of young actors in their far too many dimensions and they're well documented, the kind of common theme is really fractured family life and childhoods where they were kind of raised by wolves, or they didn't have, or they had a parent who was overbearing.
You know, you think of the Andre Agassi when he wrote his memoir about his dad, and you think of some of the other young actors who came up and they were basically living their parents' dream vicariously. So, we're very conscious and purposeful, I guess is the word, about how we expose them to the entertainment business. Because it's not all bad. I mean, it looks, it's provided me a really beautiful, incredible life. I'm really, really grateful. And yet there are a lot of pitfalls along the way.
Steve Kmetko
And we'll be right back. What was the scariest thing that ever happened to you on the set?
Chad Lowe
I've, oh, well, it's not scary in the way you might that would apply to the conversation that we were just having about the pitfalls of being a child. But I had I did a thing called the Apartment Complex, which was a, it was supposed to be a, it was like a TV movie that was going to maybe become a series for Showtime and my character was supposed to be swimming in a pool. He was the manager of an apartment complex that was somewhat haunted, and he's swimming in the pool and a huge boa constrictor or anaconda or some huge snake. It pops up in the water and chases him out of the pool.
And so of course it was not the highest budget. I'm not sure they had any special effects budget. They used a real snake, and they put it in the pool. So, the snake is at one end of the pool, and I'm at the other, and the Snake Wrangler says to me, now, listen, it's not going to happen, but if for some reason it got a hold of you and bit, you don't try to pull it off of you because it's got like thousands of teeth and we'll come over. And I'm thinking, what?
Steve Kmetko
In just chill, just till we get over there.
Chad Lowe
But it was good because my, when they said action, I was supposed to see it and swim out of the pool as fast as possible. Well, of course, when it had palping was, the snake got in the water and didn't do anything. And I just was out of there so fast. I'm not even sure they captured it on film. So that was pretty scary. I've been really fortunate. I've had really good experiences on sets. I've had, I've worked with some incredible people. I've worked with Elizabeth Taylor.
Steve Kmetko
Oh, that's right.
Chad Lowe
I did a TV movie with Elizabeth Taylor and Robert Wagner, and I got to go up to meet Liz at her house. And it was funny because I was sitting in her kind of, I don't know, in her living room, and she was not on time. She was, which it was like, I think I was there an hour or something waiting, and it was really quiet and I'm, it was just me on this couch. And I look up and there her two Oscars up on the mantle, and I'm like, looking around I said, I'm going to get, so, I guess it was a jinx. I will never win an Oscar now. But I picked up both of her Oscars and I was like, this is incredible. I'm at Elizabeth Taylor's house and I've got both of her Oscars, put them back, sat down, we had a meeting. She was, she couldn't have been lovely. Or what was interesting about working with Liz is and it was a great director named Joe Sargent, who was kind of a legendary director.
And he was this incredible gentleman. And we were doing a scene where I was supposed to be crying, and she played this washed-up movie stars called, there must be a Pony. And so, she was this washed-up movie star, and I was her son. And there was a scene where I come in and I'm upset and I'm crying about something, and she's, oh, I says, come here. It's okay. And I like, she lay down on the bed with her and she kind of comforts me. And so, we do her the master and we do her coverage and then set up on the turnaround for the lights and come back and there's a script supervisor holding the script. And I'm like, where's Liz? Where is she? And the director says, darling, let me tell you something. She's gone home. And he goes, what can I say? It's the price we pay for working with royalty. That's what he said. So, that was interesting. I didn't have a grudge against her. I thought, well, that's Elizabeth Taylor.
I mean, we're working with royalty. I remember doing a, we were doing a, they were towing the car and up and down Sunset Boulevard, and they were filming us in the car, and we went one length up Sunset Boulevard. And people were kind of looking, oh, they're filming something, what are they filming? And by the time, 10 minutes later, we came back, it was lined like it was a parade. It was like Macy's Day Parade. And people were, because the word had gotten out that Elizabeth Taylor was there. And so, what, at a certain point, I guess if somebody's not going to do their off-camera readings and dialogue, I guess if anybody's earned that, it would've been Elizabeth Taylor. So, yeah, I've had incredible, I worked with Donald Sutherland and learned, I directed a movie with William Hurt and Rita Wilson. And I've had the, and what I've taken away from that is I've, you've gotten to know them and gotten to know their process.
And I've taken a little bit of each one of those exchanges and experiences and it's kind of like, take the good and, you can discard the rest Butte, like as a director, if I see a somebody once said to me when I started directing, he said just remember these amateurs borrow and prose steal. And I've always remembered that. So, like, if I see a great shot in a movie, I'm like, I'm stealing that shot. I'm going to take that shot. And then it's like, that's great. Where did you come up with that? Everything's stolen.
Steve Kmetko
Wasn't Elizabeth Taylor beautiful?
Chad Lowe
Oh my God. It was Mickey Rooney, Jimmy Coco, Elizabeth Taylor, Robert Wagner, I mean, legends. And I'll never forget we were shooting down at the Hollywood Park racetrack, and in the scene, my character is not feeling well, and then feels better at the track. And they're at the track, and she says to him, are you honey? Are you feeling better? Are you hungry? And my line is, I didn't write it. Yes, I feel better. She, what would you like to eat? And I'm supposed to say a tuna melt. And Liz says, a tuna malt, which is the line, ugh, like who's gotten sick now feels better and wants a tuna melt. So, she keeps saying, a tuna malt. A tuna malt.
And this wonderful director finally, after about take four, goes up to her, says, Liz, darling, it's sounds like you're saying tuna malt, not tuna melt. And she goes, well, I'm, he says, no, no, it's a tuna melt. She goes, what is that? And I see them having this conversation for like 5, 10 minutes where he's explaining a tuna melt. Well, darling, what you do is you take a can of tuna, you chop it up, you get some mayo, you get some onions, and you get some celery. And she's going, that sounds divine. And she goes, she calls out to her assistant, she goes, I forget who it was. She goes, I'll have a tuna melt for lunch. And she invites me to sit and have lunch with her to have tuna melts. But she thought it was a tuna malt.
Steve Kmetko
That goes in the memoir.
Chad Lowe
You know, someday I do think I want to write something. I do have a lot of stories. And, but I've always wondered like, who would care? You know, who would want to buy it? Who, you know, like, so, that stops me from doing it. But then I think, you know what, that's exactly why you should write it. Because what I would write about is stepping out of the shadow. You know, and I always thought that would be the title of my autobiography is Stepping Out of the Shadow. Because I found myself at some point in my life, in the shadow of two very famous people who wonderfully talented people. And it forces you to look at yourself without rivalry. It forces an introspection in a way. And it was from that journey, it was from that place that I found myself in, where I actually found myself, where I really went, you know, who am I? And sobriety realizing that I had a, that I had a higher calling and a higher power and a plan.
And I don't know what it is, but my job is to show up for it authentically as me, not as someone else, not as an expectation of who I'm supposed to be, not my parents. And I think this is where it's relatable for everyone, is we all have a expectation of who we're supposed to be, oftentimes based on our childhood or based on our parents' expectations. And so, going back to being the father of any children, but especially these three girls is help them find their authentic center. Help them find their authentic self. And my father, I love him to pieces. He's a like, his life is about finding happiness. And for me, what I've realized is that's valuable. But that's the result of meaning, happiness to me is a result of having a life of meaning. And so, as we learn when stop chasing the result, and I can take that into my work, I can take that into my marriage. I can take that into my, you know, being a parent and a father. It's like, let's not look at the results. You know, let's look at the journey and let's focus on that.
Steve Kmetko
Chad, I think that sounds like a good ending. We've been talking for a long time.
Chad Lowe
I'm a windbag. Well, that's the only thing Martin taught me. When they ask you a question, just don't stop talking. Oh my God. We go on and on. Because I'm sure you got some stories too, don't you, writing your memoir.
Steve Kmetko
You know, I wrote quite a bit of it and I just put it down. I don't know why.
Chad Lowe
Maybe this is the motivation for you to pick it up.
Steve Kmetko
Maybe this gives me an ending, I think.
Chad Lowe
You have a very unique perspective on things. You know, you've observed a lot. I mean, it's, you've been the observer. You've witnessed a lot. I think it would be valuable.
Steve Kmetko
I participated in a lot of things. I shouldn't have,
Chad Lowe
Haven't we all? And here we are.
Steve Kmetko
Yeah. Chad, what is your perspective, the state of Hollywood now post strikes?
Chad Lowe
Well, it's a scary time. I know for a lot of people; I have a lot of friends who are crew members who are really struggling. Writers, actors, directors. It's contraction and it's predictable. We saw it coming. It was happening before even before the pandemic. I think a lot of the, again, we spoke a little bit about the economics of Hollywood and how it's really driven now by Wall Street and corporate America. And so, they need to show a profit. You know, we have Laslow come in and he's coming into slash I don’t know, it was a couple billion dollars from Warner Brothers. And, you know, so it's really a business. And first and foremost, it is a business. And so, anybody who was paying attention to the business saw that we were starting to cut budgets and streamers weren't profitable. And the model that everybody was working off of wasn't working.
So, something needed to change the golden era of too many shows on, we all got spoiled by, so many great shows that we could binge watch, but the economics of that just weren't making sense for Wall Street ultimately. So, then we had Covid and we had that shut down. And then we had these strikes, both the Writer's Guild, the Director's Guild, and the actors. Three strikes is tough on the heels of just getting back on our feet in the business post covid with the changes. Because as a director, I was aware of the budget cuts that were happening. You know, before Covid it was like, look, this show used to be a nine-day show. Now we're shooting eight days. You know, same amount of work. You just got to get it done quicker. You know actors were being asked to take cuts in salary. Those kinds of things were happening. So, it was there for anybody to see. But there were also the glaring issues of AI and creative rights. And also, part of the model of streamers that wasn't working was the residual platform for artists.
And I think many companies were kind of taking advantage of that and that needed to be corrected. So, there were really, I think, valid reasons to go on strike. I do, I'm of the opinion, however, that when the actors after the writers settled, and the actors kind of went back again, and they kind of changed a little bit of the ask. That was a real turning point for us as to why we find ourselves here now today.
Because I had a lot of friends who remain nameless and name, big name people who I was talking to, trying to convince them that, like when they say that if we don't come back, they're going to shut down until next year. They mean it. No, they don't. They're sitting on bags of money. And there was this attitude that somebody somewhere is hoarding bags of money and it just isn't. So, it's just a business. It's not personal. It's business. And so, I'm disappointed in the SAG leadership in how, where they took us in that final negotiation, because I think that they won the battle, but are losing the war. And the war is we're feeling the effects of that now there. I think I mean, I looked at the numbers and it was too depressing, but I think we're down like 35%, 40% of productions now.
I'm also frustrated too, that we're not getting some help in keeping productions here in Los Angeles. I think we need some help from Sacramento. It's funny, I asked my, I did say to my brother, I said, you should run for governor. Because you know, he could win, I think. But we need to do something about these runaway productions. I mean, I think Hollywood and the image of Hollywood, it's like what New York did when they got the design firm in to create the image of the big Apple. It's like, we are Holly. This is, people come here because they believe that it's the entertainment capital of the world. And it has that appeal. So, you can like, look at the value of that and what that adds in tourism and just we’re getting the Olympics again, but we're,
Steve Kmetko
I remember the last one.
Chad Lowe
Yeah, you are like, I don't need that. I don't, we don't need the Olympics. That was like a couple years ago. But we need to get, we need to stop runaway productions. We need, I mean, like my managers just said to me, said would you be willing to go to Bucharest to shoot a show? I'm like, the commute from LA to Vancouver is one thing. Like, how do I do that on weekends? How do I get home to see my kids on the weekends? You know, a lot of my friends are moving to Atlanta cause that's where all the work is. Or they're moving to New Mexico. Because that's where all the work is. And we got a lot of talented people who are out of work. A lot of studios that are empty here. And that needs to change.
Steve Kmetko
Talking about directing once more what was it like directing a high school musical?
Chad Lowe
Hmm. That was really fun.
Steve Kmetko
Did you find it like drastically different from what you were doing?
Chad Lowe
You know, not so, so different. I think what was amazing for me about directing high school musical was just to see this collection of incredibly talented young actors. I couldn't believe how talented they were singing, dancing, acting. I mean, I just was, it made me grateful. I came up when I did because I can't singing, dancing, that's not happening. But it seems like that's like every star today does all of that. I mean, you think of Sabrina Carpenter and now how she's become this global superstar. And Olivia Rodrigo, who my, it's funny because when we were there working, the producer who hired me said you should hear this girl sing. And I just knew Olivia's an actress and from some Disney shows. And I said, really? He says, oh, you should hear her sing.
And so, my oldest daughter had loved Olivia from a show she did called Bizarre works. Bizarre works. It was like a kid show, like a Nickelodeon or Disney, I'm not sure. And she said, would you get Olivia to say hi to me on a video? So, and Olivia's just so sweet and so kind. And I said, I feel weird as the director, but it's not for me. I'm asking for my kids. I said, would you say hi to my daughter Mable? So needless to say, now with the kind of meteoric like rise to fame and just, I mean, how she has become like a global superstar. My daughter's prize possession is a video from Olivia Rodrigo saying, happy birthday Mabel. You know. But it was a tonally, it was challenging that show because it was still finding itself. When I came on to direct, it was episode three and four of the, so they'd done episode one and two. I came onto three and four and it was still trying to find its tone. And I think there was a regime change at Disney. So, when I was there, I think it was leaning a little bit more on the dramatic side. And I think they started to steer it back to a little lighter hearted, a little more of the Disney brand. And so, I did those episodes. And I didn't go back to do more of them, but I really had a great time when I was doing it.
Steve Kmetko
Oh, what is your guilty pleasure TV show these days?
Chad Lowe
I don't watch a lot of TV because it feels like work to me because and it, a show has to be really, really, really good for me to not notice the cutting pattern. To not notice how things were staged, how they were blocked. Why did they use that cut? Oh, that's interesting. Why did they go from a wide, to a tight? Because I'm always working. And that's the work that I do as a director. Because the, as an actor, I come, I have this innate understanding and I've spent a lot of time understanding script analysis. And I'm very comfortable talking to actors. What I've had to do in my journey as a director is understand the technical side of it. And because I don't want to just be known as a director who's good with actors. I want to be a fully evolved where I'm good with camera, I'm good technically.
Because It's all the tools of storytelling. And so, when I'm watching tv, my wife watches has her shows. And I'll go in, I'm like, what are you watching? And I'll sit and watch it. And if it holds my attention, then I know it's really well done. But normally I'm watching like, well, that was an awkward blocking and like, what, this is a very static scene. And they, so I have things I love. I mean, I love severance. I cannot wait for that to come back. But I mainly watch documentaries. And the funny thing is my wife loves Grey's Anatomy, and I have a hard time sometimes watching Grey's Anatomy. Because it's always like somebody bringing in their kid who's sick and dying. And I'm like, oh, this is too painful. I can't, it's too, like I got kids of my own. I can't watch this. And she's like, what do you mean? It's and I was like, it's just, it's too pain. I just to close to, I can't watch this.
And then she comes down and finds me watching like some documentary about Dar four or some really serious documentary. She's like, wait, you can watch this, but you can't watch Grey's Anatomy, what is wrong with you? There's something about the documentary space that I'm just obsessed with and love. So, but I, Young Sheldon's, probably my, Young Sheldon is probably my, it's not guilty pleasure. I'm, I have no shame in it. It's a really well done. It's one of those shows that appeals to multi-generational, you know, my kids love it and I love it too.
Steve Kmetko
Well, thank you Chad. I really enjoyed this.
Chad Lowe
Yeah, thank you. I enjoyed it too.
Steve Kmetko
Till we meet again.
Chad Lowe
Let's not make it 20 years.
Steve Kmetko
No. Okay.
Chad Lowe
Okay.
Steve Kmetko
Well, I don't have that many left.
Chad Lowe
No. Come on.
Steve Kmetko
Still Here Hollywood is a production of the Still Here Network. All things technical run by Justin Zangerle. Theme music by Brian Sanyshyn and executive producer is Jim Lichtenstein.