Corey Stoll Says His Son, 8, Won't Watch “Ant-Man ”Because It 'Feels Weird' Seeing Him as a Bad Guy (Exclusive)

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The actor opened up to PEOPLE about his role as super villain Yellowjacket in the Marvel franchise while discussing his Tony Award nomination

<p>Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty</p> Corey Stoll is nominated for his role as Bo in the Broadway show

Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty

Corey Stoll is nominated for his role as Bo in the Broadway show 'Appropiate'

Corey Stoll’s 8-year-old son Nico is starting to understand his dad’s job as an actor, but still hasn’t been able to watch him in Marvel's Ant-Man.

In an interview with PEOPLE earlier this month at the 2024 Tony Awards Meet the Nominees junket, Stoll, 48, reveals that his son “just started trying to watch" the 2015 superhero film, but abandoned the movie when he saw his dad playing super villain Yellowjacket.

"He was like, ‘This is weird,' " Stoll says, adding that he thinks “seeing me as a bad guy is a little weird for him.”

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Stoll starred Ant-Man opposite Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas and Evangeline Lilly. While his character appeared to die in the end of the film, he re-appeared — this time under the moniker M.O.D.A.K. — in 2023's Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

The actor goes on to share that he and his wife Nadia Bowers aim to ensure that the fame part of his job is “not a central part of [their son's] life.”

It was a lesson Stoll and Bowers, 50, were able to teach during a previous trip to Italy, where Stoll and Bowers were creating a theater piece together.

“He actually got to see what went into creating the work,” Stoll recalls. “That was really important for us, for him to know that I'm not doing this to be famous. It's not fame for fame's sake. That fame is a byproduct and something that helps you get more work, but it's the work that is why I do it and what gives me satisfaction.”

Related: Bradley Cooper, Pedro Pascal and More Stars Flocking to See Sarah Paulson in Broadway's Appropriate

<p>Arturo Holmes/Getty</p> Corey Stoll with his wife Nadia Bowers at the 2024 NYU Tisch School Of The Arts Gala at Cipriani South Street

Arturo Holmes/Getty

Corey Stoll with his wife Nadia Bowers at the 2024 NYU Tisch School Of The Arts Gala at Cipriani South Street

Stoll is currently on Broadway in Branden Jacobs Jenkins's acclaimed play Appropriate. The drama, which also stars Sarah Paulson and Michael Esper, follows a trio of siblings "forced to face the ghosts of their past" when they return to their late father's estate in Arkansas after his death.

Both Stoll and Paulson received Tony nominations for their roles. The play is up for eight awards in total, including best play.

Asked about his character Bo, Stoll describes him to PEOPLE as “a Taylor Swift dad," joking that he drew inspiration from “images of a bunch of dads at a Taylor Swift concert waiting for their daughters. Just their body language and the folded arms or the hands on the hips.”

“There's something about this masculinity that's being constantly tested and this overcompensation," Stoll says. "Bo is a good guy, he's trying his best, but he's got some big blind spots."

<p>Bruce Glikas/WireImage</p> Corey Stoll and Nadia Bowers at the opening night after party for 'Appropriate'

Bruce Glikas/WireImage

Corey Stoll and Nadia Bowers at the opening night after party for 'Appropriate'

Related: Sarah Paulson Reveals Actor Who Sent Her 6 Pages of Notes on Broadway Show: 'I Hope to See You Never'

The House of Cards alum said he was "thrilled" about his Tony nomination — but jokes that his wife has "a crazy reaction” to his nomination, saying that she was “just screaming” about it.

“We had some technical difficulties, and they didn't announce my category in the first batch, so I couldn't watch the first part,” he remembers. “I thought, ‘Oh, I'll get a call if I get a nomination,’ but then time passed, and I didn't get a call. So I actually was in the middle of my workout, trying to just sort of work off that stress. Then they're like, ‘Oh, now we're going to announce the best supporting actor.’ "

<p>Bruce Glikas/Getty</p> Corey Stoll with the cast of 'Appropriate' on Broadway

Bruce Glikas/Getty

Corey Stoll with the cast of 'Appropriate' on Broadway

Related: 2024 Tony Awards: Sarah Paulson, Jeremy Strong, Rachel McAdams and More Nab Nominations — See the Full List

And though the actual story is ridden with a lot of intense family drama, Stoll confirms that it’s a “dream” working closely with Paulson and Esper, who play his Bo's siblings in the show.

“We love each other in real life, but we're not afraid to really go for the jugular on stage," says Stoll. "I think maybe in some ways, knowing that we have each other's back allows us to really become savages with each other on stage. It really is a joy to work with them every night.”

Appropriate
is running through June 23 at the Belasco Theatre in New York City. Tickets are now on sale.

The 2024 Tony Awards will take place on Sunday, June 16 at Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater in New York City. Viewers can watch the show on CBS and Paramount+ beginning at 8 p.m. ET. Select awards will also be handed out on a pre-show that will stream on Pluto TV.

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Read the original article on People.