Back in 2007, a voicemail from Alec Baldwin to his daughter Ireland shocked fans and Hollywood alike due to its harsh and aggressive language. In the middle of a bitter custody battle between Baldwin and ex-wife Kim Basinger, he accused his then 11-year-old daughter of being a "rude, thoughtless little pig" after she missed one of their scheduled phone calls. It was scandalous and explosive — but now he'd really like people to stop talking about it.
"It’s thrown in your face everyday," he says in an interview with George Stephanopoulos about his upcoming memoir Nevertheless. "As I mention in the book, there are people who admonish me and attack me and use that as a constant spearhead to do that."
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Baldwin says that the voicemail has caused a "permanent" break in his relationship with his daughter, but only because people keep bringing it up.
"It’s a scab that never heals 'cause it’s being picked at all the time by other people," he continued. "My daughter, that’s hurt her in a permanent way."
He says that he and his daughter have since moved on from that incident and are now in a better place. The actor went on to marry Hilaria Baldwin in 2012, and they have three children of their own.
"You talk about in the business, you’ve got to be lucky, and I’ve been lucky to some degree," he said. "I’m luckier in my personal life, and I’m glad that I’m luckier in my personal life. And if I had to choose, I’d pick that."
That being said, they still have struggles as parents. Baldwin told Refinery29 just last month that social media is always a hot topic in their household.
"I want eventually for schools to teach about [social media]," he said, especially when it comes to bullying. "What it is, what it isn't. What the pitfalls are, what the benefits are. All these things have benefits."
He also admit he gets obsessed with apps and all that too, but he's learned it's always better to just put the phone down.