In the first season of Odd Mom Out, Andy Weber (Andy Buckley) tells his brother Lex (Sean Kleier) that it's not babysitting if it's your own children. The scene is meant to be farcical — to show that Lex is so out of touch with reality, he believes men really don't care for their kids. The joke is on him — and now, apparently, it's on Matt Damon, too.
Damon told Entertainment Tonight that his friend Ben Affleck is doing well after his stay in a rehab facility, where he was being treated for alcohol addiction. It's great that Affleck is getting better and spending time with his children — but the way Damon worded things is giving us pause.
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"He's with the kids now, couldn't be happier," Damon said to Entertainment Tonight. "Jen's working for a couple weeks in Atlanta, so he's Mr. Mom-ing it right now. And that's what he wants to be doing."
Moms are always their kids' primary caretakers, right? So a man spending time with his children means he's taking on a woman's role. Hilarious!
Aside from the latent sexism with the term "Mr. Mom," it also suggests that traditional husband-wife families are the standard — you can't make the same joke about single parents or a same-sex couple.
Damon, of course, was referring to Jennifer Garner. The estranged couple has reportedly called off their divorce. Garner is currently filming Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda.
And lest you think Damon's statements are being taken out of context, he made some odd remarks about pal George Clooney, too. "He'll be a mess, but [Amal] will take care of everything," Damon said, referring to the Clooneys' future parenthood to the twins they're expecting.
Maybe Damon should let his friends give their own interviews about parenthood — it would probably benefit everyone involved.