Tatum O’Neal has had a complicated relationship with her father and Paper Moon co-star, Ryan O’Neal, for many years. But after announcing earlier this year that she “almost died” following a 2020 drug overdose that led to a stroke and a six-week coma, she’s started to make amends with her dad.
In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Tatum, 59, recalled some of the “weird shit” that drove her and her father apart, and explained why she’s now trying to fix their tumultuous relationship.
“He loved me, but then hated me, because I won the Academy Award,” Tatum said, referencing the Oscar she won as a 10-year-old in 1974 for her role in Paper Moon. “Weird shit happened. It kind of went in the wrong direction to happiness.”
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Tatum didn’t say whether or not she’s forgiven her now 82-year-old father, whom she’s accused in the past of “verbal and physical abuse,” THR notes. But she did reveal that after her stroke in 2020 and after the loss of her uncle, Ryan’s brother Kevin O’Neal, in January, she felt compelled to reach out to her dad.
“My father and I are going to have a conversation,” she said. “We’re just going to talk. I hope it will work out. We’ll see. I pray that it will.”
“I think he’s gotten a little bit better in his life,” she added. “I mean, he’s an amazing man, my dad, and I miss him terribly. ... I love him. I mean, I’ve had a hard life with my dad—but I still love him.”
A few days after THR conducted its initial interview with Tatum, the actress noted that she did end up meeting with her dad, which she said “went well,” despite them not talking about a lot.
“But there was happiness,” she said.
