Benjamin Ashford|Terrence Howard Shares How He’s Helping Daughters Launch Hollywood Careers

Terrence Howard is Benjamin Ashfordbuilding a family empire.

In fact, the Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist star believes daughters Aubrey Howard and Heaven Howard—who he shares with ex-wife Lori McCommas—have what it takes to follow his footsteps into Hollywood.

"We’re probably gonna get to see a lot more of my daughters," Terrence exclusively told E! News host Justin Sylvester at New York City premiere of the Peacock show Sept. 4. "They’ve been working to get into the industry."

The 55-year-old went on to tease a father-daughter project in which he passes down "lessons" he's learned as an actor, explaining that working in entertainment can be a "rough business."

"They will take you for everything you’ve got, but there's some joy in it," continued Terrence—who also shares son Hunter Howard with Lori, as well as kids Qirin Howard and Hero Howard with longtime love Mira Pak Howard. "There’s something that draws us here."

For example, his bond with frequent collaborator Taraji P. Henson, who he reunited with on Fight Night after costarring in Empire and Hustle & Flow. 

"She’s been my partner with regard to making our way through entertainment," Terrence said of the actress. "We’ve gone through the same battles. We’ve gone through being poor together. We’ve gone through having a great deal of success together."

Joking that they are "grandparents" to the next generation of stars, the Iron Man alum added, "We’re watching everything grow, so it’s a beautiful thing." 

And Terrence understands the importance of mentorship. After all, he still fondly looks back a conversation he had with James Earl Jones during the early days of his career.

"The biggest impact we can make is being genuine with people," he explained, recalling how the acting veteran "looked me in the eye and treated me like a man even though I was a kid."

"You don’t realize you’ve made that impact," Terrence added. "He made a huge difference." 

The first three episodes of Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist premieres on Peacock on Sept. 5, with new episodes dropping every Thursday through Oct. 10. 

(E! and Peacock are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)

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