Everybody knows who the legendary singer Philip David Charles Collins, better known as Phil Collins, is. Right? One of his most iconic songs, ‘In The Air Tonight’, has inspired generations and even Eminem mentioned his song in his hit track ‘Stan’. One of Collin’s children is Lily Collins who is incredibly famous for playing Emily Cooper in the hit Netflix series Emily in Paris. While she’s now famous and has made her separate identity, it has not been always been for her to be identified by her first name. The actress has talked about the time when she would be referred to as Phil Collin’s daughter.
The 33-year-old actor opens up about her famous father and the baggage that comes with it. However, she does not demean her father’s success. She is inspired by her father. But on the other hand, she has worked for her identity too. Lily Collins says, “When I was younger, trying to start my journey into the entertainment world, I was told by quite a few people, ‘Well, what makes you special? There’s so many different siblings and family members and people out there. Why you?’ I’m so incredibly proud of what my surname represents, for what my dad’s done. And I’m an incredibly proud daughter, but I am going on my own path, my own journey. I didn’t want to change my last name.”
Lily Collins and her rising career
Other projects she’s known for are Love, Rosie, Stuck in Love, The English Teacher, Rules Don’t Apply, and more. She recalls how she would be introduced as “the daughter of Phil Collins,” and how badly she wanted to contest that introduction. Collins says, “I so badly wanted to always fight that, because it wasn’t the place that I was coming from. And so I am really proud of where I am today because I know how hard I work.” This was before she even had her first feature film. She even recalls her first film and what got her through.
Collins recalls, “My first film was with Sandra Bullock, and she helped guide me through that experience. And we stayed in touch, and she’s just such a warm, wonderful spirit, who just really took me under her wing. Julia Roberts is the same way; on Mirror, Mirror she’s playing my evil queen, and yet she couldn’t have been more warm – and helping me to understand and navigate a set.” Phil Collins shares Lily Collins with his second wife, Jill Tavelman. In the beginning, she was not aware that her father is a superstar until one Disneyland trip changed all that. One stranger came up to Phil and asked for a picture. Eventually, she started noticing more of these situations and she accepted that he father was no stranger to fame.
Phil Collins and Lily Collin’s troubled relationship
While it might sound cool to have a super famous father, it comes with a drawback. Lily was also exposed to the other side of this harsh reality as Phil, who was almost always touring, was hardly home. She has also discussed the rocky relationship with her father. Lily says, “Because my dad was often gone, I never wanted to do anything that would make him stay away even longer,” Lily wrote. “I became extra careful about what I said and how I said it, afraid he’d think I was angry or didn’t love him. And the truth is, I was angry. I missed him and wanted him there. I became extra careful about what I said. And how I said it, afraid he’d think I was angry or didn’t love him. And the truth is, I was angry. I missed him and wanted him there.”
Lily says that most of her “deepest insecurities stem from these issues” with her father. Moreover, it has taken “over a decade to resolve some of them (others I’m still resolving) and to finally build up the courage to speak my mind to him.” However, the aspiring actress is looking forward to better stuff in life. She concludes, “There’s still so much time to move forward. And I want to. I’m inviting you to join me. I’ll always be your little girl.”
