Hugh Grant Jokes About His Free Time: 'I'm Swamped in Children and Too Old for Them' (Exclusive)

The actor is dad to five kids — Tabitha, John, Felix and a daughter and a son whose names have not been revealed

Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Hugh Grant at the
Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Hugh Grant at the 'Paddington 2' premiere

Hugh Grant has his hands full.

While chatting with PEOPLE ahead of the premiere of his new movie Wonka, the actor, 63, shared that his free time is largely occupied by his five kids.

Asked how the actor spent his downtime during filming in the U.K., Grant jokes, "Well, I live here and I have no fun at all. I'm swamped in children, and I'm too old for them."

The Notting Hill star is dad to daughter Tabitha Xiao Xi, 12, and son Felix Chang Hong, 9, whom he shares with Tinglan Hong, and kids John Mungo, 11, and a daughter and son, whose names have not been revealed, with wife Anna Eberstein.

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<p>LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP/Getty</p> Hugh Grant and Anna Ebersetin

LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP/Getty

Hugh Grant and Anna Ebersetin

Related: Hugh Grant Says Wonka Director Sent Him Naked Oompa Loompa Image: 'My Children Were a Little Alarmed' (Exclusive)

Although he's notoriously private about his family, Grant has shared a few stories about his kids on occasion.

In 2018, the father of five shared that he loved making his kids laugh.

"I think it's always amusing to put your underpants on your head," he told PEOPLE, adding that his daughter had taken to doing the same with her diapers. "I made the mistake of showing one of my sons my ass all the time. 'Hey, look at this!' Then he got the habit and taught every single child in west London to do the same."

TOBIAS SCHWARZ/AFP via Getty Images Hugh Grant
TOBIAS SCHWARZ/AFP via Getty Images Hugh Grant

In learning to balance his family and career, Grant realized how much he valued family time. "I thought, 'Oh, fantastic opportunity to get away from my screaming children,' " he recalled of filming The Undoing in the U.S. "As soon as I got to New York each time ... I missed them so much. It was awful. I remember almost every scene I acted in made me cry."

In 2020, Grant shared with Radio Times magazine what he's like as a parent. "Stylistically, I'm probably more like my mother than my father," he said. "As children, she was quite silly with us with lots of silly voices. I do that with my children, but I'm not sure they enjoy it. They roll their eyes half the time."

<p>Warner Bros./Courtesy Everett Collection</p> Hugh Grant as an Oompa Loompa in "Wonka" (2023).

Warner Bros./Courtesy Everett Collection

Hugh Grant as an Oompa Loompa in "Wonka" (2023).

He also said that he had come to understand it was "damned nice" having a family.

"Anyone with young children would probably agree that it's simultaneously the worst time in your life and the best," he told the outlet. "On a day-to-day basis, as you tread on another broken toy with a hangover, it's just awful. But when you look back at the photographs on your iPhone, you realize, 'Oh, I have been extremely happy. This is very nice.'"

Wonka is in theaters Friday.

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