Dennis Quaid's 3 Kids: All About Jack, Thomas and Zoe

Dennis Quaid may be best known as an on-screen dad A trap for parentsbut he is also a father of three in real life.

Actor welcomed his first child, son Jack, 32, with his second wife Meg Ryan in 1992. More than a decade later, he became a dad again with the birth of his twins Thomas and Zoe, 16, in 2007, whom he shares with his third wife, Kimberly Buffington.

The father of three told PEOPLE in March 2018 that he now defines happiness based on how his kids are doing. As his children grew up, the actor revealed what he loves most about fatherhood, revealing that his “favorite time” is taking his two youngest to school in the morning.

“During breakfast, when you wake them up, you really get to know them,” Quaid said. “They’re as fresh as they’re going to be. It’s not witching hour at night when it’s bedtime and all the excuses come out. A lot of bonding happens in the morning, talking about life.”

As for his eldest child, Jack has followed in his famous parents’ footsteps and is now an actor himself, with roles in hit franchises such as The The Hunger Games and Scream as well as starring on Amazon Boys.

“When he said he was ready to act, I told him I would help him, and of course he’s Meg Ryan’s son, but he said, ‘No, I want to do it myself,'” Quaid said of Jack. He joked, “Now I’m like, ‘Hey, how about a little help?’ I’m not too proud to ask.”

For Novice for the actor, fatherhood completely changed his outlook on life.

“It took the focus off of me, which is always good for an actor because actors are so engaged in themselves,” he explained to PEOPLE. “And I’ve learned more patience. I hope!”

In July 2023, Quaid spoke to PEOPLE about being a parent, calling himself a “crazy dad.”

“I love being a dad. I really do. I think I’m a good dad,” he said. “It’s worked out so well so far. Jack has really turned out well. I’m really proud of him and Thomas and Zoe.”

Keep reading to learn more about Dennis Quaid’s three children.

Jack Quaid, 32

Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty

Jack Henry Quaid was born on April 24, 1992 in Los Angeles, to parents Quaid and Ryan. The couple had been married for a year when they welcomed their first child together. However, they separated in 2000 before divorcing in 2001.

Looking back on that time, Jack — who was 8 when his parents split up — said it was “one of those weird years when your parents get divorced” on Reportedly with Theo Von and Matthew Cole Weiss podcast. He explained: “You’re old enough to know what’s going on, but young enough to be a bit naive about it. That’s the whole thing.”

While on the podcast, he reflected on his childhood and admitted that the way he grew up “wasn’t normal.”

He added: “But at the same time, it was normal in the sense that despite what my parents are doing, they’re still mum and dad. It’s not like their characters are at dinner or anything like that.”

Growing up, it was clear to Quaid that his son would become an actor. In conversation with Kelly Clarkson on The Kelly Clarkson Show in October 2020, the actor said that Jack expressed an interest in acting at a “very, very, very young age.”

“He had a video camera in his hand when he was about 4 years old, making little videos and stuff,” Quaid said. “It was a very natural thing for him to do, it wasn’t something we pushed him to do. Ever since he was a kid, it was kind of obvious that he was going to do it.”

Jack attended Crossroads High School in Santa Monica, California, where he was president of the Bad Movie Club, as he shared in an April 2022 video for Red Letter Media’s YouTube channel. After graduating, he went on to study at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts for three years. While attending NYU, he studied at the Experimental Theater Wing of Tisch and was also a member of the sketch comedy group Hammerkatz.

As Jack prepared to enter the industry, Quaid said he offered his son to hook up his agent, but the young actor wanted to do things on his own. Jack eventually found his representation and booked a role in The Hunger Games before continuing to act Vinyl and Boys.

Above all, Quaid said he’s proud of what his son has grown into, telling Clarkson, “Even more than an actor, he’s really turned out to be a really good man.”

Frazer Harrison/Getty

Jack told PEOPLE in January 2022 that he spent a lot of time on set with his parents growing up. He recalled one of his favorite sets to spend time on, which was his father’s 2002 film Novice.

“I love Austin, Texas — they filmed it there and I’ve been back so many times. I miss it, I didn’t get to go during the whole pandemic, so I’d love to go again.” he explained.

Despite his two famous parents, Scream the actor said he ultimately didn’t get much advice from his parents about acting.

“I never asked them, ‘How do I do this scene?’ ” he said.

However, Quaid and Ryan remain very supportive of their son. Jack said he feels “lucky” that his parents understand his desire to be an actor.

“I didn’t grow up in a house that didn’t quite understand what that meant or a house that would tell me, ‘Oh, that’s probably not the wisest choice, you should have a backup plan,'” he said. “I had that privilege and I was lucky to have people who understood what it meant and supported me going into it.”

Jack is a big brother to his father’s twins, Thomas and Zoe, as well as his mother’s daughter, Daisy. During the interview with S. February 2008 USA Today, Quaid said Jack had already become “very attached” to Ryan’s younger child.

“It’s fantastic that Jack now has a little brother and sister,” Quaid said. “He really wanted a little brother and I really wanted a little girl, so we all got what we wanted.”

In July 2023, Jack talked about growing up on movie sets during an interview with PEOPLE.

“I grew up with friends whose parents were also in the industry, so I didn’t feel any different,” he explained. “But then you grow up and you realize that it’s a pretty unique thing, it’s not one but two your parents are actors. It’s only later that you realize things are a bit abnormal.”

Quaid talked about how proud he was of Jack in an interview with ET in August 2024, joking that given his son’s success, he should “turn on” his dad and give him a little help.

“I’m really so proud of him and he’s making great decisions. He is such a great person. Most importantly of all. And that’s number one, and everything flows from that,” Quaid said.

Thomas Boone Quaid and Zoe Grace Quaid, 16

Jeff Vespa/WireImage

Quaid welcomed his two youngest children with his third wife, Buffington, via surrogate on November 8, 2007 in Santa Monica. Thomas Boone Quaid was born first at 8:26 am weighing 6 lbs. 12 oz. Zoe Grace Quaid arrived two minutes later weighing 5 pounds. 9 oz.

Just weeks after the twins were born, they were hospitalized at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in LA for a staph infection. While in the hospital, the twins accidentally received 1,000 times the recommended dose of the blood thinner heparin, putting them in immediate danger. The parents didn’t find out about the overdose until 6:30 a.m. the next morning, Buffington said Los Angeles Times that by the time they arrived at the hospital, both babies “were in incubators with cords attached to them.”

By early December 2007, the twins had fully recovered and were released from the hospital. After the medical accident, Quaid started the Quaid Foundation to raise awareness about medical errors.

In the months that followed the near-fatal overdose, the actor told PEOPLE in March 2008 that he had a “greater appreciation for life in general.”

“It’s the best thing to hold those children and see their faces because we had a happy ending,” he said. “It’s great to be a normal dad with normal arm issues for both of us.”

He added: “If they hadn’t made it, it would have really changed my life. But they survived. So it changed my attitude.”

At the press event for his film in February 2008 ViewpointQuaid has been open about becoming a dad again, admitting that fatherhood was “a lot easier” the second time around.

The dad-of-three explained: “It’s easier in the sense that when the first one comes, you worry about everything. The others come, ‘Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, it’s good, I’ve seen that, done that’.”

“You’re a little more relaxed about it. But with two, you need another hand,” he added.

Quaid also joked about how people often struggle to tell his then three-month-old twins apart.

“One wears blue and the other wears pink,” he said, “but you’d still be surprised [with] people, because they don’t want to make a mistake, go. ‘Oh, it’s… a girl, isn’t it?’ ”

The actor remains rather closed about his family life, especially when it comes to his two youngest children, and he rarely talks about them publicly.

However, eight years after the twins’ near-fatal overdose, Quaid shared an update on how they were doing during a December 2015 guest appearance. Reportedly with Theo Von and Matthew Cole Weiss podcast.

“They’re as perfectly normal as they could be right now,” he said. “They’re like the head of their class.”

He continued, “But you know, it’s something that happens to you, you feel strongly about it and you stand up for it. The kids actually went through it and they were the ones who did it.”

“It was the scariest period in our lives. But they got through it,” he concluded.

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Source: HIS Education