Reese Witherspoon is about to have two adult children in the house, now that her oldest son, Deacon Reese Phillippe, is turning 18 on Oct. 23. And that makes mom “want to cry,” not because they are causing her problems, but because she’s “grateful that these little humans are in [her] life,” per Interview Magazine. She added, “I never expected the kind of relationship that I have with them, but it’s so rewarding to be able to have kids that you can process life with a little bit, and they help me understand the complexities of what it means to be a human now.”
And Deacon, who is also the son of actor Ryan Phillippe, feels the same way about his mom. He lovingly honored his Oscar-winning mom on Mother’s Day, writing, “Every day is Mother’s Day when u got a mom this good 😌I love u mama.” Her roots in Tennessee have helped shape his creative interests and his dad’s supportive guidance, when it came to pursuing a new hobby (and now, career), is what makes Deacon an atypical Hollywood kid. He’s pretty darn nice to his parents, his siblings and his girlfriend of two years.
Now that he’s 18 and graduating from high school in 2022, we can’t wait to see where his career takes him. Find out everything you need to know about Deacon right now — and we think you’ll be surprised about the biggest debate in the Phillippe-Witherspoon households.
A Mini-Me of Dad Ryan Phillippe
Fans have always chimed in about Deacon looking like a dead-ringer for dad Ryan Phillippe, but this public claim is up for debate in the Phillippe-Witherspoon households.
Ryan thinks his oldest daughter Ava Phillippe is his doppelgänger. What? Record scratch! “Obviously, there is a father-son resemblance,” Ryan told E! News, “but he actually looks a lot more like Reese’s side of the family. Ava looks more like mine.”
Even though we don’t know their extended family personally, we find this news rather shocking. “Quite often, the interpretation in the media is that she looks exactly like her mom and he looks exactly like me, but I think we both feel differently about it,” he said. Mind blown!
Music Moves Him
Deacon occasionally joins his mom on the red carpet, but acting is not his top interest. He prefers a smaller spotlight since has memories of the “paparazzi being around” his parents constantly. He sings, but claims he has “a teenage voice,” so he prefers “writing and producing.”
“I realized there’s more to making music than just being a vocalist, and that a lot of times it’s the production that makes me feel something,” he told Interview Magazine. “I asked my dad about how it works, and he taught me all the stuff he knew, and then I started watching YouTube videos.”
Those online tutorials must have worked wonders, his first single, “Long Run,” made it to iTunes’ Top 20 charts in 2020.
Supportive Family
Deacon appreciates that his family — including stepdad Jim Toth and nine-year-old half-brother, Tennessee James Toth — supports his creative endeavors. He turns to them every time he writes new music. “I couldn’t have a more supportive family. I’m just really lucky that they also inspire me creatively and help me with whatever they can,” he shared with Billboard. “When I make songs, the first people I show them to are my mom, my dad, my brother and my sister.”
And yes, Reese gives him feedback on his music because she has “good taste.” He added, “My studio is in my mom’s house, and a lot of the time it can get really loud. I’m sure they can hear it from upstairs, but they bear the sound annoyances, and they’ll still come down and tell me what they think of each song.”
He’s In Love
Deacon has always been a little heartbreaker, but at 18, he’s in a serious relationship with YouTube personality Marine DeGryse. She’s a beauty influencer known for her channel, Sweet ness, with over 580,000 subscribers. He first appeared on her Instagram page in October 2019, so this relationship is going strong two years later.
Deacon posted a photo dump for her birthday earlier this year with a sweet caption, “Happy Birthday to my girl!! Love u more than anything.”
Ties to Mom’s Oscar-Winning Role
Reese won an Oscar in 2006 for playing June Carter Cash in the movie, Walk the Line, about Johnny Cash’s life. Well, one of Deacon’s favorite artists happens to be the “Man In Black” himself. “Two of my favorite artists are Johnny Cash and Kanye West, because Johnny Cash is a storyteller, and Kanye West is also a storyteller obviously, but I’m also really inspired by the way he thinks outside the box,” he explained to Billboard.
That country music influence is also something he gets to explore when his family spends time in their Nashville, Tennessee home, where they spent a majority of quarantine. “I listen to country and pop,” he said. “What I’ve tried to do in my production and brand is to incorporate the type of music that I listen to and the type of music that inspires me all into one.” That Johnny Cash legacy must make mom proud!
Not a Hollywood Brat
Let’s get real — Deacon has had a very privileged upbringing with two famous parents and a pretty fabulous life. Yet this isn’t something he takes for granted, he often speaks highly of his family and happily shares photos of them on his Instagram page.
In July, he posted several images of his siblings (yes, even Tennessee was in there), his girlfriend and Ava’s boyfriend, Owen Mahoney, while on a beach vacation. He captioned the photos in a way that felt purely heartfelt, “I’m so lucky man.” His mom and dad raised him well.
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