Andrew Rannells Says Becoming a Stepdad Was 'Totally Unexpected': 'There's No Good Way to Prepare'
The actor has been linked to partner Tuc Watkins since 2019, who has two kids
Andrew Rannells is opening up about his relationship with his boyfriend's kids.
The actor, 46, who is currently starring in All In on Broadway, appeared on Today with Jenna & Friends and spoke about how he's transitioned to having his boyfriend's two kids in his life. "My boyfriend has two kids. They were 6 years old when we started dating and that was not on my radar, actually," Rannells explains.
The screen then flashes to show a picture of Rannells, his boyfriend Tuc Watkins, his two kids and friend Regina Hall. "And there’s Regina Hall. She’s not one of our children," he jokes.
"It’s been really unexpected. And there’s no good way to prepare for it. Which is really what this monologue that I do is about," Rannells says. "There’s no way to really prep for parenthood."
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In 2023, Rannells spoke with PEOPLE and shared how the advancement of LGBTQ+ equality left him uncertain about having kids.
"It's very tricky now that we have the option to have kids," he said. "It was the same thing with marriage. When that became possible, everyone was like, 'You gonna get married?' And I was like, 'Well, I don't know.'"
He admitted the interrogations left him reeling: "As my sister Natalie said to me very bluntly, 'Yeah. Welcome to my world.' "
When he hit his 30s, he found that his friends began having children. "I had the luxury to think about it, to ask myself if I wanted kids," he said. "And the answer was no. And it was scary. I felt like maybe I should have done something differently."
So he consulted his mom. "I asked her, 'Were you always happy having children?' And the answer was no," he recalled, with a laugh.
He said over the years he came to the conclusion that he doesn't want to have kids. "But I'm happy for you if you do!" he added.
However, when he met his boyfriend, Rannells said that things shifted.
"I met someone with two children," he said. referring to his partner, whom he met while they both starred in Boys in the Band on Broadway and later in the Netflix movie.
"And all of that clarity disappeared. Tuc is a wonderful father. I was confronted with the fact that I was in love with someone who did have two children. Could I make that work? And what is my role in that?" he continued.
Read the original article on People
