Mark Wahlberg was crowned Hollywood’s highest-paid leading man after earning $68 million in 2017. But to his four kids, the Mile 22 actor is just a regular dad.
“It’s a nonissue for them. They only pull the ‘Dad’s famous’ card when they want to go to a concert or meet someone famous,” the 47-year-old told Us Weekly. “They see me as dad and that’s all I want. They see it as more of a pain when we are being followed on the street, but they deal with it really well and I’m proud of them.”
The action star and his wife, Rhea Durham, who celebrated their nine-year wedding anniversary earlier this month are parents of Ella, 14, Michael, 12, Brandon, 9, and Grace, 8. And though the family resides in an 11-bedroom Beverly Hills mansion complete with a movie theater and spa — the couple are raising down-to-earth children. All are required do “pick up after themselves and keep their rooms in shape,” Durham told Us.
Durham, a handbag designer, noted that her foursome are “normal” kids who play sports and do homework after school. “They see how hard their dad and I work and how busy we both are running the day-to-day life we lead,” Durham, 40, explained to Us. “Mark travels a lot, so with four kids it’s a daily fight to keep everyone on track. The kids see both of us always working harder than anyone else they know. Instilling a strong work ethic is so important to us.”
The couple have absolutely no plans to add another Wahlberg into the mix. “We are done! We are very blessed to have four healthy and special children and lucky to have two boys and two girls, so it’s even,” Durham declared. “No ganging up.” The Oscar nominated actor agreeing, adding: “It worked out great for us!”
