Damian Lewis Says His Kids Cringed Over His ‘Sexy’ Vampire Roles

Damian Lewis’ children were not impressed with him transforming into a vampire for his new movie, The Radleys.

“They thought it was weird,” Lewis, 53, exclusively told Us Weekly ahead of the film’s release on Friday, October 4. “They’re used to me being all kinds of stupid people. They’re over it.”

Lewis, who shares daughter Manon, 18, and son Gulliver, 16, with wife Helen McCrory, added that his sultry nature was just too much for his kids.

“I think me being the vampire and [for them] watching dad try to be sexy on-screen … that’s, ‘Ew,’” he teased. “Oh God, you’re trying to do that kissing thing again and it’s not good!”

In The Radleys, Lewis plays a pair of twin vampire brothers named Peter and Will Radley. The black comedy follows Peter and his wife, Helen (Kelly McDonald), as they choose to live a life where they abstain from drinking blood. However, things take a turn for the worst when they’re tasked with handling the bloodlust of their two teens, played by Harry Baxendale and Bo Bragason, and are forced into contacting their Uncle Will — who is a practicing vampire.

Lewis shared that despite portraying two polar opposite characters, the brotherly bond helped him play around with their dynamics — and he drew from his close connection to his real-life sibling.

“Just the discipline of keeping them tied together. I have a brother, we’re not twins, but he’s less than two years younger than me, he explained to Us. “We are very different, but we have so many similarities.”

While Peter and Helen keep their family secret hidden from their children, Lewis joked that’s not the way he likes to tackle tough parenting situations.

“It would be good as a parenting manual, let’s send out The Radleys as a parenting manual,” he quipped. “So this is why, all you young parents out there, remember not to hide things from your kids.”

However, there might be an exception if Lewis was a vampire in real-life. The Emmy-winning actor admitted a pair of fangs might be one secret he kept from his family.

The Radleys is based on the 2010 novel of the same name by Matt Haig. While the movie is not like other traditional vampire flicks, Lewis believes the film has a great message for audiences beyond all that bloodlust.

“It’s not the most frightening vampire movie you’ll ever see. It’s maybe not the funniest you’ll ever see. It’s maybe not the most, I don’t know, profound, or whatever. It’s sort of existential,” he told Us. “Because vampire movies can get pretty weird. We know that. But it’s got all these really lovely elements in it. I think that you come out of it really having had a good time.”

The Radleys is in theaters and available on digital now.

With reporting by Kat Pettibone