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Katie Holmes Is an ‘Inspiring’ Mom, Says ‘The Secret’ Costar Jerry O’Connell (Exclusive)

Making it work! Jerry O’Connell learned about more than just acting from costar Katie Holmes after the duo worked together on The Secret: Dare to Dream.

Related: Katie Holmes’ Best Quotes About Raising Her Daughter

“Katie Holmes is really maybe the loveliest [person],” O’Connell, 46, told Us Weekly exclusively on Friday, July 31, while promoting his partnership with Bob Evans Farms. The duo star together in the film adaptation of Rhonda Byrne‘s 2006 self-help book, The Secret, directed by Andy Tennet. “Just a few takeaways I got from working with Katie Holmes — obviously [she’s] a great actress, obviously beautiful. But a great mom, a really great mom. Actually, like, an inspiring parent.”

The Dawson’s Creek alum, 41, shares a 14-year-old daughter with ex-husband Tom Cruise, to whom she was married from 2006 to 2012. Despite her busy career, Holmes still makes her daughter her No. 1 priority.

Katie Holmes Is a Great Mom Says Secret Costar Jerry O'Connell
Katie Holmes and Jerry O’Connell Charles Sykes/Invision/AP/Shutterstock; Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock

“Watching the time Katie took with her daughter when we were at work, you know, it was really inspiring,” O’Connell added. “It made me realize, like, I don’t stay in contact enough with my children [when at] work, you know? … Katie is a great person, a great mom. I really enjoyed working with her. We had a fun time.”

Related: TV Couples Who Dated in Real Life

Earlier this year, the Batman Begins actress opened up about the “intense” experience of being a single mother of a teenager in the public eye following her divorce from Cruise, 58.

“It was a lot of attention and I had a little child on top of it,” she told InStyle in March. “[I want] to make sure she is 100 percent herself and strong, confident, and able. And to know it. She came out very strong — she’s always been a strong personality. … She’s very focused and a hard worker.”

O’Connell, for his part, shares 11-year-old twin daughters Charlie and Dolly with wife Rebecca Romijn, whom he wed in 2007. After 13 years of marriage, the pair faced their biggest test while quarantining together during the coronavirus pandemic.

Related: How Celeb Parents Are Keeping Kids Busy in Quarantine

“I have to say — I’m going to get in trouble for this — when quarantine [began] … I was like, ‘I’m not sure how, not only is our family going to make it, but can my marriage handle this?'” the Kangaroo Jack actor teased. “And dare I say it’s been kind of fun. We might just make it.”

O’Connell and Alfonso Ribeiro are teaming up with Bob Evans Farms for the Love at First Bite campaign, creating fun recipes using the brand’s dinner sides to help save time and make lasting family memories.

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