Christopher Abbott has said becoming a father was the defining milestone of his year, ranking it above turning 40 and receiving a Tony nomination. The actor discussed parenthood after welcoming his first child with Aubrey Plaza.
Speaking on Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast on Thursday October 1, Abbott was asked to reflect on the events of the past year.
“When you really reflect on it like that, I got to put dad first,” said the East of Eden star.
Plaza gave birth to their first baby earlier this year, a few weeks after Abbott was nominated for a Tony Award for playing Biff Loman in the Broadway revival of Death of a Salesman.
Abbott also looked ahead to the next stage of his life, saying fatherhood and getting older had prompted him to think more deeply about the future.
“I think by now, at least in my work, I sort of worked long enough and feel like I’ve been around and have met and kept really good friends within the business,” he said. “I feel sort of comfortable with work in terms of, like, it comes and it goes. … I’ve gotten more comfortable with that, but having a kid, [turning] 40, getting older, like the bigger existential things, weigh a little bit more.”
The actor also mentioned the New York Knicks winning the championship, saying he was a lifelong fan who had been waiting for that victory “the longest”.
Plaza later attended the premiere of East of Eden to support Abbott.
