Jack Nicholson Second-Guesses His Parenting While He Tries His Best: "I'm Not A Role Model"

Mar 22, 2022 by apost team

Jack Nicholson is the award-winning actor known for his roles in "The Shining," "The Departed" and "Chinatown." Since his film debut in 1958, the 84-year-old American actor has made a name for himself in more than 30 films as one of the most iconic motion-picture talents of his generation.

Nicholson made his mark by playing dark characters that are sure to haunt some movie fans for decades. It is, therefore, no surprise that the Hollywood star consistently makes it on to lists celebrating the best actors of all time. There's no doubt that Nicholson is up there with other film greats, such as Al Pacino, Meryl Streep, Morgan Freeman and Daniel Day-Lewis.

With that said, it seems like the 84-year-old has taken a hiatus from acting — if he hasn't completely retired. But that's what makes art so great. Even as Nicholson's career slows down, even as he steps away from Hollywood, he will continue to live on in the dozens of movies he's starred in. And even if you aren't a Nicholson fan, no one can deny that the man was prolific. There were even some years in which the actor appeared in three movies. 

Nicholson has been married only once in his personal life but has been in long-term relationships several times. He has six children, including his youngest son Raymond, born in 1992. Ray has followed his father into the world of acting and currently appears in the series "Panic." Keep reading to learn more about Nicholson and his relationship with his son.

Nicholson has come a long way since the late 1950s and early '60s when, according to Biography, he was starring in low-budget horror films like "The Cry Baby Killer" and "The Terror." But despite the departure from those early B-movie flicks that followed after his breakout performance in the classic road film "Easy Rider" in 1969, it seems that Nicholson never really lost his taste for crime and horror flicks. Because, as Biography describes, Nicholson is ultimately known for his portrayal of "unconventional outsiders."

In what might be considered the greatest cinematic triumph of his career, Nicholson played a crazed hotel caretaker in Stanley Kubrick's 1980 film adaptation of Stephen King's horror novel, "The Shining." Even for those who haven't seen the film, Nicholson's haunting performance — especially his famous line, "Here's Johnny!" — have indelibly marked the American cultural imagination. We'll never forget that line.

In a similar vein, Nicholson starred in "The Departed" back in 2006, another film that was lauded by critics, according to Biography. A remake of the 2002 Hong Kong crime film "Internal Affairs," Martin Scorsese's "The Departed" is the story of an undercover police officer, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, who infiltrates the Irish mob in Boston in what makes for a tense crime drama, according to The Guardian. As for Nicholson, he plays the mob boss, Francis "Frank" Costello, in what makes for a fitting role. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian writes in his review that Nicholson's performance in "The Departed" is one "no one else could possibly do," adding that the actor's on-screen "charisma has, through the decades, rolled over like a recurring lottery jackpot."

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Nicholson's youngest child, Ray, has always seemed destined for show business. "Ray may have a problem with being a little too good-looking," the actor said to Vanity Fair in 1994. "Looks exactly like Rebecca. When he was born, he looked like one of the farmers in 'The Magnificent Seven.' He does move like me. There's a lot of body language on him. You don't miss them Nicholson legs. Somebody's got to get them, poor thing. They're useful but short. Most infants pretty much don't have chins. But Ray always had a jaw. You can't wait to get him into a collar or a shaving commercial."

The star has always loved being a father, even if he second-guesses himself at times. He said: "I surprise myself positively a lot of times, but I don't count on my own courage in advance. I'm not a role model as a person. I can sort of do it for my children but I'm not particularly great at that part, either."

When asked what kind of parent he is to Ray and his sister Lorraine, Nicholson responded, "Well, it's a divided parenthood, with their wonderful mother and myself. We've always gotten along. I want to be inspirational, or some kind of good influence on them without overburdening them."

The father added: "It's their time of life to find out who they are. I always read to them, from childhood on; I think that's a father's responsibility. I took them to things I knew they might not love — opera, ballet. They like going to the ball games with me. And they are very comfortable around show business; they are good set rats. They walked in on my death scene in 'The Departed.' I said, 'If I can get these two kids really worried, I'm doin' my job!'"

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