Lydia And James Paxton: Bill Paxton’s Children Followed In His Footsteps


James Paxton and his sister, Lydia Paxton, each took an important part from their father, the late actor Bill Paxton, even if they have gone in different directions in life.

The death of the beloved actor on Sunday has led to an outpouring of support from across the world of entertainment and shined a spotlight on his family as well. While he worked as a leading man on Twister and played roles in other movies, including Titanic, Bill Paxton was not one for the spotlight and instead made a reputation as a family man.

That is seen in both of Bill Paxton’s children, who followed in his legacy whether directly or indirectly.

The 23-year-old James Paxton followed directly in his dad’s footsteps, making a name for himself as an actor and even sharing the screen with his dad in the past.

James will actually take on his biggest role the very day his father died. Sunday marks the premiere of his USA Network series, Eyewitness, in which he plays a teenager who witnessed a murder but cannot come forward because he doesn’t want to be outed as gay.

While James Paxton was following his dad in staking out an acting career, Bill Paxton wasn’t too hard in pushing his son. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, James said his father gave plenty of leeway in the one project they worked on together.

“Well, we didn’t really get to work together on Texas Rising. He was in [it], but our storylines didn’t coincide at all. He wouldn’t show up on set when I was shooting [because] he was like, ‘That’s your thing. You don’t need my added pressure.’ He was really cool. I was there shooting a behind-the-scenes video for a making-of, so I was around him on set a lot. I was just picking up all I could from him, because he was such a leader on set.”

While Lydia Paxton didn’t pick an acting career — the 19-year-old is a student at Duke University and expected to graduate in 2020 — she did pick up his flair for dramatics. In a 2010 interview, Bill Paxton said this trait came from his side of the family, his mom in specific.

“When Paxton directed the golf film The Greatest Game Ever Played, James had a cameo but would hand notes to his dad telling him how nervous he was,” the report noted. “Lydia is more flamboyant and dramatic, like Paxton’s mom, he says, but he doesn’t plan to steer her into the business.”

Lydia Paxton and her brother, James Paxton, appear to have quite a close relationship, even though Lydia is in North Carolina for school and James has been in Hollywood working. Lydia has shared pictures of the two together, including on Instagram post in which they share a hug.

And just a few weeks ago, James Paxton shared a picture for Lydia’s birthday showing the two sharing another embrace.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my beautiful lil sis Lydia! Another trip around the ??!” he wrote. “Congrats on being someone so awesome I actually get excited about the thought of being related to. Love you”

Neither James Paxton nor Lydia Paxton has issued individual statements after the death of their father, but the family released a joint statement remembering him as a dedicated husband and father.

[Featured Image by Jason Merritt/Getty Images]

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