From tv shows like Law & Order and The Closer, to films like the Spider-Man trilogy, Juno and his Academy Award-winning performance in Whiplash, J.K. Simmons can do it all. Did we mention he is an accomplished theatre actor, has performed on Broadway, and his television commercials make us want to buy Farmers Insurance? But it is his role as dad that moves us most.
How could we forget his heartfelt and spontaneous Oscar acceptance speech that went viral in 2015 when he said, “Call your mom. Call your dad, if you are lucky enough to have a parent or two alive on this planet. Don’t text. Don’t e-mail. Call them on the phone. Tell them you love them, and thank them, and listen to them for as long as they want to talk to you.” He concluded by tapping his hand over his heart and saying, “Thank you, Mom and Dad.”
It was the first Oscar for Simmons and he also thanked his wife and said of his kids, “Even though I may try their patience, Joe and Olivia, you are extraordinary human beings.” With his kids now teenagers, the 61-year-old father reflects on how with a 15-year-old and 17-year-old “you don’t have that sit-on-your-lap, read-me-a-story time anymore.” Joking that he needs to wait for grandkids to experience that again!
Simmons can currently be seen on-screen in The Accountant with Ben Affleck.
