Patrick Dempsey Reveals the Lesson His Children Taught Him About Child-Rearing

Patrick Dempsey, People’s newly anointed Sexiest Man Alive spoke with the outlet regarding the lessons his children taught him about child-rearing. Dempsey shares three children—daughter Talula, 21, and twin sons Darby and Sullivan, 16—with wife Jillian Fink. The Grey’s Anatomy star reported that as their children aged into teens, he and Fink saw how important it was to let them make their own mistakes.

“Because you need to be around, but they don’t want you around because they’re fighting for their independence, which they should,” Dempsey said. “They need to find out how they interact in the world, they need to learn those boundaries, they need to make mistakes. And you need to be there for them and allow them to learn from that.”

Dempsey also revealed the difficulties of raising his children in the glare of Hollywood’s spotlight. Though he’s had tremendous success in an erratic business, Dempsey realized early on how important it was to maintain a consistently stable environment.

“[It’s] very challenging having your children grow up in Hollywood and to be in that environment. When you have children, the environment that they’re in will be the most important thing for them and their development," he explained. "So [we’re] trying to keep that a good, calm, loving, safe environment for them."

The veteran actor credits his family with maintaining his vitality and athleticism. “They keep me very active,” Dempsey chuckled. “I need to stay in shape to keep up with them. The older you get, the more work you have to put in…They keep me young.”

In addition to being named 2023’s Sexiest Man Alive, Dempsey will have a busy holiday season at the multiplex. He’s starring in Eli Roth’s holiday slasher Thanksgiving, which hits theaters on November 17. The noted car aficionado is also appearing in Michael Mann’s buzzy biopic Ferrari, in cinemas on Christmas Day.