Jack Nicholson’s daughter Tessa Gourin is speaking out about her estranged father, saying he simply isn’t “interested” in having a relationship with her.
Gourin, 28, was born in 1994 following her waitress mother Janine’s fling with the “One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest” star, now 85 and said to be a recluse.
Nicholson has never publicly acknowledged that Gourin is his daughter, but his paternity is considered “an open secret” in Hollywood, according to The Daily Beast.
“From a very young age, my mother told me not to tell anyone that I have this famous dad,” Gourin told that publication during an interview on Wednesday.
“I knew he was powerful and Daddy Warbucks-level rich, so I kind of equated my life to being like Orphan Annie’s,” she added.
Gourin — who has long been described as Nicholson’s “illegitimate” daughter — was raised by her mom on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. She attended private schools purportedly paid for by her superstar dad.
‘My mom wanted me to have a relationship with him, but he said he wasn’t interested.’
Tessa Gourin
But despite reportedly providing financial assistance to Gourin, Nicholson has not been in contact with her for many years.
“I was raised by a single mother in a really intense, nuanced situation,” Gourin declared. “I was dealt a really shitty random card, but I’m not gonna let that destroy me. In fact, I’m gonna use it to fuel me.”
Gourin didn’t disclose when she last spoke to Nicholson and admitted that she “doesn’t know him” well at all.
“My mom wanted me to have a relationship with him, but he said he wasn’t interested,” she stated.
When asked by The Daily Beast why that was the case, Gourin responded: “I don’t think anyone’s ever given me a concrete answer.”
‘He’s a complicated person…I was simply collateral damage.’
Tessa Gourin
However, she added: “I formed my own opinion. He’s a complicated person, and I think my mom fights her own demons, and with the combination of the two, I was simply collateral damage.”
Despite being estranged from Nicholson, Gourin says she has inherited some of her father’s traits.
“I’m f–king crazy,” the daughter declared. “I’m not the poster child for sanity, and I do think that’s a little similar to my dad, from what I’ve read.”
She also shares her dad’s love of acting, and is now seriously pursuing a career in the film industry — despite previously shying away from the idea.
“I was afraid people would think I was tacky or that I was riding off his coattails,” she stated. “But this person doesn’t want me in his life, so how would you use that to your benefit?”
Now, the aspiring actress has had a change of heart, and recently penned an essay for Newsweek, titled: “I’m Jack Nicholson’s Daughter — I Wish People Could Call Me a Nepo Baby.”
‘I’m f–king crazy. I’m not the poster child for sanity, and I do think that’s a little similar to my dad, from what I’ve read.’
Tessa Gourin
“Having grown up without my father, I’ve sat on the sidelines and watched in frustration as other celebrity children have seamlessly secured roles or been signed to huge agencies,” Gourin wrote in the piece.
“More recently, I have grown even more frustrated at what I think is a missed opportunity for these so-called ‘nepo babies’ to own their position and embrace it instead of complaining about it.”
Nicholson, who is now a Hollywood recluse and has not appeared in a movie since the 2010 romcom “How Do You Know,” has at least five other children to four different women. A number of his other offspring have also followed him into the acting biz.
Nicholson shares actress daughter Jennifer Nicholson, 59, with ex-wife Sandra Knight.
He is also father to Lorraine Nicholson, 32, and Ray Nicholson, 30, with ex-girlfriend Rebecca Broussard. Both Lorraine and Ray are aspiring actors who have regularly been seen sitting courtside with their dad at LA Lakers basketball games.
Meanwhile, Nicholson is also noted to have two other children from previous flings.
He shares son, Caleb Goddard, 53, with his “Five Easy Pieces” co-star Susan Anspach. However, Nicholson did not publicly acknowledge that Caleb was his son until he was 28 years old.
The actor also fathered Honey Hollman, 41, during a brief romance with Danish model Winnie Hollman. As in the case of Gourin, Nicholson has not publicly acknowledged that he is her dad.