Brendan Fraser is a proud dad of three from his previous marriage to Afton Smith. He and Smith met in 1993 and got married five years after. Their marriage which lasted till 2007, produced his boys: Griffin Arthur, Holden Fletcher, and Leland Francis.
Despite their divorce, the ex-lovers do well with co-parenting. In an interview with GQ, Brendan noted that his children visit “all the time.” The actor hardly reveals personal details about his children but does not fail to mention them in interviews from time to time. Recently, the actor graced the screen of his upcoming film, The Whale, with two of his children.
Here are things to know about each of Brendan’s children:
Griffin Arthur Fraser
Brendan and his ex-wife Smith welcomed their first son Griffin on September 17, 2002, four years after their marriage. He revealed to GQ in 2018 that his now 20-year-old is on the autistic spectrum.
“He needs extra love in the world, and he gets it,” he revealed. “He is a curative on everyone who meets him, I noticed. People have some rough edges to them. Or he just makes them, I don’t know, put things into sharper relief and maybe find a way to have a little bit more compassion. They don’t put themselves first so much around him.”
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Holden Fletcher
Fletcher came in August 2004, and the 54-year-old noted that he built a connection with Griffin right from when they were little kids.
“Ever since they were small, one was always the spokesperson, and the other was the enforcer,” Brendan revealed. Holden made an appearance with his dad at the screening of The Whale in New York City, along with his little brother, Leland.
He appreciates his children’s health even more after his film, Extraordinary Measures, where a man is on the brink of losing his ill children. “I always hug and kiss them whether they like it or not. I’m like, ‘Come here, you,’ and you blow raspberries on them. That’s what I do,” Brendan claimed. “I’d throw myself in front of a train if I had to for their well being. That doesn’t mean you can protect them from everything, but you have to try.”
Leland Francis
Leland was born in 2006, and his father described him as “a professional fire plug” on The Rachael Ray Show in 2010. “He goes through brushes and briers and comes out on the other side scratched and smiling,” Brendan detailed. “It’s all good!” Leland was also present at the screening of The Whale at Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln center.
The actor told OK! in 2009 that being a father has helped him become more loving, and he hopes to show his children his films as they grow.
“I know a satisfying experience at the movies with your family is a positive experience,” he said. “There are other films that I’ve made, and when those kids grow a little bit older, then I’ll show them that work or they’ll find it themselves.”