During a Sunday Morning appearance on CBS in April Kate Hudson became open about her strained relationship with her biological father, Bill Hudson. When asked what her relationship with her father is like now, Kate, 45, replied: “I don’t really have one,” before adding a glimmer of hope about what the future might hold: “But it’s getting warmer.”
It’s been a long and winding road for Kate, her older brother Oliver Hudson47, and Bill, who was married to her mother, Goldie Hawnfrom 1976 to 1982. As children, the siblings openly expressed that they felt abandoned by Bill.
In 2015, Oliver posted a scathing Father’s Day message on Instagram, writing: “Happy Abandonment Day” alongside a throwback photo of Oliver and Kate with Bill. Afterwards, Bill said he “never wanted to see his eldest children again,” but reconnected with Oliver three years later.
Now Bill, 74, exclusively shares the latest edition of Us weekly that the family starts a new beginning together.
“Kate said it perfectly. We’re warming up [and] “Let things take their course,” says Bill, who is also the father of Emily (42) and Zachary (38) with his late ex-wife. Cindy Williamsand 18-year-old Lalania with her ex Caroline Graham. (As a teenager, he also had a son, Paul, who was given up for adoption.) “All families have cracks. It’s nice that our divide is healing.”
In 2016, Kate shared Howard Stern that Bill “was there when we were young, then it kind of faded away.”
His absence was painful for the siblings. “I think we probably both suffered differently and in a very similar way to anyone who feels abandoned by a parent,” Kate said a few months earlier. (Goldie’s long-time partner, Kurt Russell – affectionately known as “Pa” by Oliver and Kate – was a practical stepfather. Goldie and Kurt, 73, are also parents to Wyatt, 37.)
Bill tells Us There have been “years of ups and downs” in their relationship, and as the family mends their kinks, they are taking things slowly.
“There’s no pressure,” explains Bill. “We’ll just let it be what it’s going to be. Because no one is putting pressure on us, there are no unrest or problems.”
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They also do their best to look forward. “A lot of things went wrong and we won’t go back to them,” says Bill. “Nobody wants to rehash the past. You won’t move forward if you only analyze the past. We are in the present.”
Kate and Oliver not only meet their father again, but also have contact with their step-siblings again.
“My sister, me and my brother just started communicating again,” Kate revealed during a January episode of the Sibling Revelry podcast, which she co-hosts with Oliver. “Last year I had this moment where I thought, ‘I don’t know why I don’t talk to my other siblings.'”
Kate realized she had turned to one of her sisters, who was presumably Emily. “I called [her], and we just started crying our eyes out. It was great. She even said it. We’re starting now. “We’re starting now,” she said.
Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell are an iconic Hollywood love story – with a modern Hollywood family. The actors have a blended family of six people. When Hawn and Russell met again on the set of 1983’s “Swing Shift,” they first met as 21-year-olds and teenagers, respectively, during the filming of “The One and Only, Genuine.” […]
Bill says he’s thrilled everyone is getting along. “My daughter Emily just had a baby [and] “Kate did great,” he says Usand added that Emily – a songwriter – and Zachary – who is also a musician – recently attended Kate’s launch party for her upcoming debut album. Splendid.
“It’s great,” he says of the renewed bond. “I love it. We’re all coming back. Everyone’s been through their life experiences and all the bullshit in the public eye and realized that all you have is your family.”
As for future get-togethers between the step-siblings, a source reveals Us that things “work themselves out,” adding, “Everyone is married, has kids, and everyone is busy and doing their own thing.”
The insider also notes that Bill has met his grandchildren: Oliver is married to Wilder (16), Bodhi (14) and Rio (10). Erin Bartlett; Kate has Ryder, 20, with her first husband Chris Robinson; Bingham, 12, with ex Matt Bellamy; and Rani Rose, 5, with her fiancé Danny Fujikawa.
Goldie, 78, is tasked with supporting Kate and Oliver as they seek to make amends with their father. “She’s happy about it,” the source says. “They are adults and can do whatever they want. Everyone is okay with what everyone is doing at this point.”
During a recent episode of “Sibling Revelry,” Oliver talked about his experience taking a week-long course at the Hoffman Institute. During the personal development retreat, he spent time “unpacking” some of his childhood traumas.
He said that he sometimes felt “unprotected” by his mother when she was away working and that the limited time he spent with Bill was “unbelievable”, adding: “We played football, we played basketball, we went to the beach, he taught me how to fish. He was so present, but he was never there.”
Oliver later clarified that he was not demeaning his mother: “I don’t know who I would be without my mother. The love I have for her and the respect and awe I have for her is beyond anything.”