John Owen Lowe Says He Struggled to Find a 'Healthy Perspective' on Working with Dad Rob Lowe: 'It Drove Me Bonkers'

John Owen Lowe admitted teaming up with his dad Rob Lowe again for 'Unstable' was initially "a terrible idea in regards to my mental health"

For John Owen Lowe, working with his dad, Rob Lowe, wasn't always smooth sailing — but he has since found the silver lining.

John Owen first worked with his father when he had a recurring role on Rob's Fox sitcom The Grinder. He later was a writer for his father’s show 9-1-1: Lone Star. Now, the father-son duo co-created, co-executive, and co-write the Netflix comedy Unstable.

On the latest episode of SiriusXM’s Andy Cohen Live, John Owen, 29, acknowledged there were tough moments during their close collaborations, noting that it sometimes “drove me bonkers” to write material for his father’s character Owen Strand on 9-1-1: Lone Star.

In fact, the idea for Unstable — on which Rob, 60, stars as biotech entrepreneur Ellis Dragon and John Owen plays his on-screen son — came “because I was going insane working in proximity to him, and we thought that was a funny story as hell.”

Related: Rob Lowe's Son John Owen Says He's 'Eternally Grateful' for His Dad's Help in Getting Sober

The actor and writer, who shares a close bond with Rob off-camera, said that teaming up with his dad again for Unstable was initially “a terrible idea in regards to my mental health.”

“Two weeks into filming the first season… I had a legitimate little mental breakdown,” he recalled. “I walked off set and I went into my trailer, and I went, ‘Oh s---. I was trying to become my own person and get distance away from him and I am now his co-star.’”

“My face is next to his on a one sheet and I'll be doing press with him," he added. “It was like all these realizations dawned on me and I remember calling my representatives, which is so funny. I said, ‘I gotta call my reps.’ That's the first thing.”

John Owen revealed that his reps promptly told him to “chill out.”

Related: Rob Lowe and His Son John Owen Are Back for More Zany Fun in Unstable Season 2: First Look

He shared that they helped him to find a “healthy perspective where it's like you should feel grateful that you get to do this for a variety of reasons.”

“Namely this, you know, my dad won't be around forever,” he added. “It'll be amazing that we share this together and b, it's hard to work in the entertainment industry.”

Host Andy Cohen told John Owen that he thinks the experience “will weirdly be therapeutic for you.”

“I agree. I hope so and I believe so too, but you know, I'm walking through it right now,” John Owen responded.

Related: Rob Lowe's Son John Owen Is Aware — and 'Grateful' — He Got His 'Foot in the Door That Most People Don't'

John Owen has previously spoken about having a positive outlook on being the son of a famous actor in Men's Health April 2023 cover story.

"I'm always more than willing — and I think it's important — to acknowledge that I did have opportunities that other people didn't have. I did get that foot in the door that most people don't, and for that I'm grateful," he said. "And what is also true is that after getting that foot in the door, you do have to prove yourself. There's a difference between children of nepotism who have just been platformed and coasted on that and the ones who have worked hard and care about what they do."

Speaking about their time working together on Unstable, John Owen added, "Neither one of us could have made this show without the other."

Rob shares John Owen with wife Sheryl Berkoff. The longtime couple, who wed in 1991, are also parents to 31-year-old son Edward Matthew.

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Unstable season 2 premieres Thursday, Aug. 1 on Netflix.

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