Ryan Reynolds Says He and Blake Lively Grew Up in "Very Working Class" Families

Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively might be Hollywood A-listers, but the couple wants to give their four children as normal of a childhood as possible. Reynolds revealed that their desire to give their kids a regular upbringing is because both he and Lively come from "working class" families.

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Reynolds opened up about being a parent alongside Lively to their four children, Betty, Inez, James, and Olin when asked how he's been able to keep them away from the spotlight.

"We try to give them as normal a life as possible. I try not to impose upon them the difference in their childhood to my childhood or my wife’s childhood," he explained. "We both grew up very working class, and I remember when they were very young, I used to say or think, 'Oh God, I would never have had a gift like this when I was a kid,' or, 'I never would’ve had this luxury of getting takeout,' or whatever."

The 48-year-old's upbringing saw him being raised by his parents as the youngest of four sons, with his father, James, working as a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman before retiring to become a food wholesaler; Reynolds's mother, Tamara, worked in retail sales.

Lively's mother Elaine worked as a talent scout in the entertainment industry, and her father Ernie Lively was an actor that had appearances in The X Files, That 70's Show, The Dukes of Hazzard, The Sister of the Traveling Pants—in which Blake starred—and more; he also directed Blake in her film debut, Sandman. The Gossip Girl actress's four siblings—Eric, Lori, Robyn, and Jason Lively—have all worked as actors in Hollywood.

Reynolds added in the interview that he feels it's unfair to his and Blake's four kids to compare their upbringings to their own, though he hopes their kids move through the world with compassion for others.

"They’re already very much in touch with gratitude and understanding the world enough to have a strong sense of empathy," he explained. "Those are the things that I would think [would indicate] we’re doing an OK job—if our kids can empathize with other people and other kids. But yes, it’s different. When I was a kid, you would just suck it up, get out of the house and be back by sundown, which I just can’t even imagine now."

Read the original article on InStyle