Ryan Phillippe 'Offended' by 'Nepo Baby' Debate, Lots of Kids Follow Parents' Career Path

The topic -- perhaps inevitably -- came up during a chat with Extra about his upcoming film Prey, co-starring Mena Suvari.

While discussing the industry, Phillippe was asked if his daughter Eva, 24, was looking into acting. "She is. She’s sort of getting her feet wet, you know?" he said. "She's taking time to kind of figure out exactly what it is she wants to do."

It was at this point that Phillippe himself brought up the ongoing "nepo baby" debate, arguing that there's perhaps a bit of nepotism in how many celebrity children seem to have little trouble sliding right into an industry others spend their whole lives sitting outside of, never quite breaking through.

For Phillippe, though, he finds the "whole nepotism talk with the industry" annoying. His argument? "So many people grow up and end up doing what their parents do, you know, to some degree or another." He cited his blue collar family with generational electricians as an example.

The difference for many, though, might have to do with the fact that following your parents' footsteps into teaching or welding or automotive repair or the legal and medical professions, aren't necessarily the same as stepping into multi-million dollar careers. It's the seeming leg up to that level of financial success and security that irks some people.

"To me, I always get offended for the children of actors and entertainers when people bring that up because yeah, of course, that's what they've grown up around," Phillippe argued.

He further pushed that this familiarity they get through exposure "makes them handle what is hard about this industry. You've gotta have a thick skin. There's so much rejection and nasty things that can be said about you. It's not all celebration."

He said that his kids have grown up watching him and Witherspoon on sets, so "it seems natural, I think."

As for their son Deacon, 20, Phillippe said he's "insanely" proud of the aspiring musician. "He makes me proud every single day of his life just in regards to the young man he's become, to how he operates in the world."

The proud father says his son is "really evolving as a musician," and that he's "excited to see what the future holds for him."

"He's just such a source of light and love, and he's very solid and spiritual. He's got an incredible work ethic," Phillippe emphasized.

Phillippe also noted that Deacon might be joining him on an unspecified upcoming project, "playing my character's brother in the flashbacks, so I'm kind of excited about that possibility happening."

That project could be Amazon Prime Video's upcoming Motorheads, which was picked up this past November. In it, Phillippe portrays a body shop owner in his rust belt hometown who lives in the shadow of his infamous brother, per Deadline. Could that brother be Deacon -- in flashbacks, at least?

Just don't call it nepotism.

As for Phillipe himself, he's stretching his creative muscles, too, with the actor saying he's been expanding "into the restaurant thing." He explained, "I'm working on opening a hotel in the next year. I will always be open to working as an actor, but it's becoming less and less a solitary focus."

Phillippe and Suvari's Prey is in theaters and on demand now.