EXCLUSIVE'Ted Lasso' Star Brendan Hunt Says He's 'Soaking' Up 'This Short Amount of Time' of Being 'Cool' to His 4-Year-Old Son
'Ted Lasso' star Brendan Hunt exclusively tells OK! about being a 'cool' dad to his eldest son.
July 14 2025, Published 9:01 a.m. ET
Brendan Hunt is enjoying watching his two sons, Archie and Sean, whom he shares with fiancée Shannon Nelson, grow up.
"Sean is the sweet, delightful age of 4, where I will appear to be cool for him for a short amount of time. I really have to soak it up while I can — but I'm not as cool as bugs. He loves bugs more than anything," the Ted Lasso star, 53, exclusively tells OK! while talking about his new campaign, in which he plays Dr. Anton Hill, PhD, for pest control brand Raid®, where he helps first-time bug-battlers reclaim their space and face their insect-related fears head-on with the assistance of Raid® Ant & Roach Killer. "He loves bugs that aren't pests."
Brendan Hunt said his son loves bugs and Pixar.
Since the actor is a "city boy," they haven't experienced "The Great Outdoors" quite yet. "We have a yard, so that does count?" he quips. "I've gone camping exactly three times in my entire life, so I don't think I'm quite qualified to be the guy who shows him that part of life and the world. That bridge will have to be crossed at some point, but we're not there yet."
Hunt, who plays the lovable Coach Beard in the Apple TV+ series, admits his son "doesn't know anything" about the show yet. "I can't quite get him into soccer or any other sport whenever it's on! He now says, 'Who do you want to win?' I'll be like, 'The red team. Blue, no, red, yay.' He hasn't shown any particular affinity toward sports just yet, but it will come to him in time," he shares. "He loves dinosaurs and dancing."
However, Hunt recently got the chance to appear in Pixar's Elio, and he even brought his son see the flick. "I feel quite fortunate to be parenting in the age of Pixar," he says. "We spent a lot of time watching Pixar movies in our house, and to be a part of this one was a real thrill. I took my kid to the premiere to see if he would recognize dad's voice. When he sees the Raid® commercials, it's going to be his favorite thing ever, nothing else will come close. Every time I looked over to see if anything was clicking while watching Elio, nothing. He enjoyed the h--- out of i, though. It's a solid Pixar movie."
Brendan Hunt brought his son to the 'Elio' premiere.
In the meantime, the Illinois native is grateful to partner with leading pest control brand Raid® for a new campaign that seeks to help first-time bug battlers take their pest control problems head on.
Hunt plays Dr. Anton Hill, PhD (Pest Handling Degree), a bug doctor specializing in guiding people through their deepest fears of creepy crawlers, referring to notes in his yellow notepad. His approach is calm, clinical and just the right amount of comedy because let’s be real, it’s a bug, not the end of the world. He never downplays your fear, but he also won’t let you spiral. His goal? To help you reclaim your space —because bugs may visit, but they don’t pay rent.
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Brendan Hunt said his son didn't understand he was part of the 'Elio' movie.
"They came to me with it, and there were a few things about it that I was like, 'This seems pretty cool.' I've never played a bug doctor and dealing with roaches is something everyone's got to deal with at some point. I grew up in Chicago, and roaches were everywhere! On top of that, it's the way they set up a campaign around it. The roaches are an allegory for the fears within, and sometimes the fears are not just metaphorical reaches but actual roaches and ants!" he explains.
Brendan Hunt plays Dr. Anton Hill in the new commercial.
After playing Dr. Anton Hill, Hunt has some advice if someone finds themselves in a sticky situation. "Dr. Hill's going to help people sort things out! The whole creative team just had a real good vibe going and they were able to knock out a whole bunch of things in one day. It was such a fun time working with the Raid® team. It's a product I actually use — and I think people will need it, especially as they are getting their own homes ready," he shares, adding that he was thrilled when Dr. Anton Hill's name was created. "I threw in my suggestion and the team came back with gold!"
