Transformers: Age of Extinction
The Transformers are back, and they’ve brought a brand spanking new live action cast with them! Mark Wahlberg stars as Cade Yeager, single dad to teenage daughter Tessa (Nicola Peltz) and all-round hero.
To celebrate the release of Transformers: Age of Extinction on July 5th, we take a look at the 10 coolest dads in cinema (other than Marky Mark of course).
- Bryan Mills - Taken
Forget the pipe and slippers - Bryan Mills is not your average dad. Oh no, he is a kidnapper-hunting, bad-ass dad.
Don’t get us wrong, if we were ever kidnapped we’re sure our lovely dads would be pretty concerned, but when Bryan Mills’s (Liam Neeson) daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) is taken by a gang of sex traffickers, the former CIA operative travels to France to personally track down and kill the kidnappers and find his daughter. Now, that’s what you call parenting.
Ultimate dad moment - Bryan on the phone to the kidnappers: "If you let my daughter go now, that'll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don't, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you."
- Daniel - Love Actually
More parent points for Liam Neeson, this time for his role as Daniel in Richard Curtis’s 2003 hit Love Actually. Following the tragic death of his wife, Daniel finds himself solely responsible for his young stepson Sam and is tasked with juggling his own grief as well as Sam’s.
While their new dynamic is initially awkward, the pair soon bond as Daniel helps Sam navigate the tricky path that is young love, and even accompanies his pre-teen stepson on an airport dash to catch the girl of his dreams. Aw, Liam Neeson - why can’t you be our dad?
Ultimate dad moment - Daniel: "Sam, you've got nothing to lose, and you'll always regret it if you don't! I never told your mum enough. I should have told her every day because she was perfect every day. You've seen the films, kiddo. It ain't over 'til it’s over.’’
Sam: ‘’Okay, Dad. Let's do it. Let's go get the s**t kicked out of us by love.’’
- Mufasa - The Lion King
He’s a lion, guys - do we really have to give you any more reason than that to include Mufasa on our coolest movie dads list? We do? Ok - he’s the King of the Pride Lands, he’s wise, courageous and he died protecting Simba.
Oh, and as if that wasn’t enough, no one pulls off a cloud apparition quite like Mufasa. Many a childhood was traumatised by Mufasa’s untimely death, but even as we bawled into our popcorn, we were confident that Simba would step up to fill his father’s shoes and become a great leader (and not just because we’d already seen the film 500 times).
Ultimate dad moment - Mufasa: "Simba, let me tell you something my father told me. Look at the stars. The great kings of the past look down on us from those stars. So whenever you feel alone, just remember that those kings will always be there to guide you. And so will I."
- Mac MacGuff - Juno
Finding out your high-school-age daughter is pregnant is probably not a moment most dad’s would relish, but Mac MacGuff (J.K Simmons) manages not to totally flip his lid when 16-year-old Juno tells him she’s expecting a child, instead hilariously commenting that he didn’t realise Juno’s baby-daddy Paulie Bleeker "had it in him".
Ever the supportive father, Mac sticks with Juno throughout her pregnancy and accompanies her to meet potential adoptive parents for her baby to make sure they’re not ‘’a couple of baby-starved wing-nuts’’.
Ultimate dad moment - Mac MacGuff (upon finding out Juno is pregnant with Paulie Bleeker’s child): "I'm gonna punch that Bleeker kid in the wiener next time I see him."
- Daniel - Mrs Doubtfire
Once you get over the initial creepiness of your dad disguising himself as an old lady to gain entry into your home, you can see that Daniel Hillard’s (Robin Williams) strange actions are actually a loving father’s desperate attempt to spend more time with his kids.
Sure, dressing in a fat suit and prosthetics and accidentally setting your fake boobs on fire is a weird way to go about things, but the thought was there. Plus, what kind of dad hires a whole petting zoo to come to the house for his son’s birthday? An awesome one, that’s who.
Ultimate dad moment - Daniel to the judge at custody hearing: "In regards to my behaviour, I can only plead insanity. Because, ever since my children were born, the moment I looked at them, I was crazy about them. Once I held them, I was hooked. I'm addicted to my children, sir.
"I love them with all my heart. And the idea of someone telling me I can't be with them, I can't see them every day...It's like someone saying I can't have air. I can't live without air, and I can't live without them."
- Big Daddy - Kick-Ass
We thought our dad was pretty cool when he taught us how to do keepy-ups in the garden, but imagine if you had a dad who could train you to become a fully-fledged superhero.
Kick-Ass’s superhero father Big Daddy (Nicholas Cage) did just that and equipped his daughter Mindy (aka Hit-Girl) with all the skills she needs to take on bad guys, including how to take a bullet and hand-to-hand combat. Sure, he’s an unconventional dad, but there’s no denying he’s a cool one.
Ultimate dad moment - Big Daddy (after shooting Mindy): "How was that? Not so bad. Kinda fun, huh? Now you know how it feels. You won't be scared when some junkie asshole pulls a glock."
Mindy: "I wouldn't have been scared anyways!"
Big Daddy: "That's my girl."
- Dill Penderghast - Easy A
The Penderghast’s are an awesome family; it’s as simple as that. They award ‘’family member of the week’’, they spell out swearwords with their peas and they are headed up by wacky patriarch Dill (Stanley Tucci).
Dad to daughter Olive (Emma Stone) and adopted son Chip, Dill has a laid-back approach to parenting but will always fiercely protect his brood when he needs to.
Dill may not have much screen time in Easy A, but we only need seconds to realise that we’d love a dad as hilarious as him.
Ultimate dad moment - Dill: "I'd take a bullet for you, you know that. Right between the eyes. I would slit my throat rather than say something to someone that you didn't want me to say!"
Olive: ‘’That's not necessary, Dad, but that is comforting.’’
- Christopher Gardner - The Pursuit of Happyness
Will Smith stars as a hard-working and dedicated father in this 2006 drama, based on the true story of Christopher Gardner.
Faced with the devastating prospect of homelessness, desperate Gardner does everything in his power to keep himself and his five-year-old son off the streets.
Even when his wife leaves, Gardner insists that his son stays with him and constantly battles to build a better life for both of them. The fact that Will Smith’s real-life son Jaden appeared as opposite his dad makes their heartwarming father-son scenes all the more authentic.
Ultimate dad moment - Chris: "Hey. Don't ever let somebody tell you, you can't do something. Not even me, all right? You got a dream, you gotta protect it. People can't do something themselves, they wanna tell you you can't do it. If you want something, go get it. Period."
- Marlin - Finding Nemo
Marlin the clownfish is an anxious, worrying, wimp of a father - but damn, is he a good one. When Nemo is captured by a diver, Marlin faces his worst fears and leaves his safe haven anemone to travel across the perilous ocean in search of his son.
Marlin encounters sharks, jellyfish and turtles along the way, but the determined father refuses to give up on his quest, and - accompanied by the hilariously forgetful Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) - doesn’t rest until he’s reunited with Nemo.
Ultimate dad moment - Marlin: "Alright, we're excited. First day of school, here we go! We're ready to learn and get some knowledge!"
- Jack Byrnes - Meet the Parents
He might be the father-in-law from hell, but if you think about it Jack Byrnes (Robert DeNiro) is a pretty cool dad.
I mean, he used to be in the CIA! He might come down hard - and downright terrifying - on his potential son-in-law Greg (Ben Stiller) but he does it all out of love for his daughter Pam (Teri Polo).
With Jack as the head of the house, you can guarantee that no one will mess with the Byrnes family!
Ultimate dad moment - Jack: "I'm a realist. I understand it's the 21st century and you've probably had premarital relations with my daughter. But under our roof, it's my way or the Long Island Expressway. Is that understood?"
Greg Focker: "Of course, yeah."
Jack Byrnes: "Good. Keep your snake in its cage for 72 hours."
Transformers: Age of Extinction hits cinemas on July 5th.
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