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Bradley Cooper has played a lot of parts over the years, but he might take his role as a fan of the Philadelphia Eagles more seriously than most.
In a recent appearance on the Howard Stern Show, Cooper discussed his fandom of the Eagles. Cooper can frequently be spotted in the owner's box during games, and Stern compared the actor and director to another celebrity who shows up to a number of NFL games.
"You're becoming like the Taylor Swift of the Eagles, because when you're there, they are cutting to you in the owner's box the entire time," Stern said. "How does that happen? Does the owner get in touch with you?"
A Philadelphia native, Cooper outlined how he connected with the franchise when he was working on the movie "Silver Linings Playbook," in which he starred alongside Jennifer Lawrence.
In the film, Cooper's character's father bets heavily on the Eagles and asks Cooper to attend a game for good luck.
"The Eagles opened up their enterprise to us to a large degree," Cooper told Stern. "Then I became friends with [Eagles owner] Jeffrey Lurie, and then Andy Reid was the coach at the time, and he was so friendly to me, I remember. And then yeah, I was just lucky enough to get to go to a lot of games and been able to bring my daughter and my mom and friends."
Cooper added that his six-year-old daughter, whose mother is Cooper's former partner and supermodel Irina Shayk, is becoming indoctrinated as an Eagles fan as well.
"It's been amazing to watch my daughter, she now actually is able to tell when we're on defense and offense," Cooper said, smiling. "She's like, 'Go D! Go D!'"
Then Stern posed a question for Cooper that he thought would be a difficult one: Would you rather win an Oscar for best actor and director in 2024, or see the Eagles win a Super Bowl?
"Eagles Super Bowl victory," Cooper said instantly. "Eagles. I know. I'm sick."
Stern challenged Cooper, but the actor insisted he was telling the truth.
"I don't think so bro," Cooper said. "No. I'm not lying."
The NFL's TikTok account posted the clip, noting how much Cooper loves his hometown team, and he got a co-sign from another high-profile fan of the Eagles: Star center Jason Kelce's wife Kylie, who seemed to appreciate his support.
"Without hesitation," she posted in the comments.
Anything can happen in the postseason, but Cooper can rightfully keep his hopes up: The Eagles have the best record in the NFL at 10-1, and they beat the reigning champion Kansas City Chiefs in a Super Bowl rematch on the road earlier this month. Whether an Eagles Super Bowl costs him a shot at an Oscar this year remains to be seen.
About the writer
Tom Westerholm is a Life & Trends Reporter for Newsweek based in Michigan. His work is focused on reporting on trending ... Read more