Freddie Prinze Jr. Family Life Revealed: Kids Find Their Parents’ Movies “Pretty Cringe” Except One Classic

Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr., a well-known Hollywood couple, have built a family centered on raising their two children, Charlotte Grace and Rocky James. Since welcoming their daughter in 2009, the couple has prioritized their family life while carefully managing their careers, with Freddie Prinze Jr. recently sharing insights into their children’s views on their old movies.

The couple met nearly three decades ago on the set of the 1997 horror film I Know What You Did Last Summer, where Prinze Jr. starred. They got engaged in 2001 and were married in a private ceremony near Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, in 2002. Since then, they have focused much of their time on parenting their two children, Charlotte, 15, and Rocky, 12, placing family ahead of their acting commitments.

Choosing Parenthood Over Career for a Present Family Life

Both Gellar and Prinze Jr. have openly discussed putting their careers on hold to concentrate on raising their children. Prinze Jr. explained in 2020 that being an available father was especially important to him, influenced by his own childhood experience after losing his father when he was an infant. He shared,

“I had kids and not having a dad, it was always more important to me to be a present father,”

—Freddie Prinze Jr., Actor.

Similarly, Gellar emphasized balancing work and home life, explaining that when she is at home with her family, she dedicates herself fully to them.

“Wherever I am, I know I need to give 100 percent of myself. When I am at home, I need to put the phone down and be focused, and when I am at work, that deserves my undivided attention,”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

The pair also maintain strict family rules, such as restricting social media for their children, and prioritize teaching kindness and empathy over accomplishments. Gellar told People,

“I just always say to my children, ‘I don’t care if you’re the star quarterback and I don’t care if you get the best grades, I care that you’re a kind and empathetic human and that’s what’s most important to me. And the rest will follow,’”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

Charlotte Grace Prinze: Growing Up Away from the Spotlight

Charlotte Grace Prinze, born on September 19, 2009, is the eldest child of the couple. Gellar and Prinze Jr. have expressed gratitude for having their children in their 30s, reflecting on the maturity it brought to their parenting. Gellar remarked about becoming a parent,

“Becoming a parent is the most selfless act, and you need to be at a point in your life where you can give up anything and everything for a child. I don’t know if you know how to do that when you’re in your 20s,”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

Prinze Jr. agreed, noting that patience and appreciation for parenthood grow with age. He shared,

“I’m so happy we didn’t have kids in our 20s—I just didn’t know a thing. You have so much more patience in your 30s, and I feel like I appreciate this so much more,”

—Freddie Prinze Jr., Actor.

Charlotte has been described by her mother as a loving and nurturing presence from the moment she was born. Gellar reflected on her daughter’s birthday, saying,

“In that first moment when they put [Charlotte] on my chest, I felt the most powerful love I had ever known,”

adding Charlotte was

“the kindest, most loving, nurturing little girl”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

During Charlotte’s elementary school years, Gellar joked that her husband had more popularity among their daughter’s peers due to his voice work on Star Wars Rebels. She recalled,

“Freddie is on [Star Wars Rebels] and so all the kids at school are like, ‘That’s Charlotte’s daddy. He’s a Jedi. And that’s her mom, she drives carpool.’ I was like, ‘I’ve got to get come cred with these kids!’”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

Now in her mid-teens, Charlotte has gained more respect from her peers through beauty tips she shares, with Gellar noting,

“Sometimes [Charlotte] tells me, ‘Oh mom, no one does that anymore,’ and then her friends will be like, ‘Well, actually, that’s really good,’”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

Mother-Daughter Bonding and Dreams Beyond Acting

Outside of family life, Charlotte often bonds with her mother through activities such as attending Taylor Swift concerts and traveling on family vacations to places like Italy. She also experienced the Hollywood scene when attending a screening of Gellar’s Netflix movie Do Revenge in 2022. While Charlotte has expressed interest in acting, her parents have enforced rules delaying her entry into the industry.

Gellar explained their stance, saying,

“[W]e have rules in place. [Charlotte] can’t be in front of a camera until she graduates high school. She says to me, ‘That’s unfair. You were a child actor.’ Yes, I was. But I was not the child of two famous parents.”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

In the meantime, Charlotte has been developing other skills like stunts, demonstrated when she performed a backflip in a birthday Instagram video shared by her mother. Prinze Jr. also remarked on Charlotte’s personality, commenting,

“Charlotte’s more me emotionally. She’s kind of reserved and quiet at first, until she gets a sense of the room. And then depending on the vibe in that room, is going to depend on how much she opens up. That’s me,”

—Freddie Prinze Jr., Actor.

Rocky James Prinze: The Younger Son’s Life and Interests

Three years after Charlotte’s birth, the couple welcomed their son, Rocky James Prinze, on September 20, 2012. At the time, their representative revealed that Charlotte was thrilled to become a big sister. Despite being only 12 years old, Rocky has already glimpsed some of his parents’ film work, though the siblings often find their parents’ movies “pretty cringe.” Gellar lightly noted their children’s preferences:

“I think they think they have better things to do than watch me on something, but they’ll watch my friends on stuff. Although my kids love I Know What You Did Last Summer,”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

Freddie Prinze Jr. has described summers with teenagers as both challenging and necessary, saying,

“You’re definitely more necessary [to your kids], and you might feel like a chauffeur, and that’s a normal feeling for a parent to go through, but you’re definitely more necessary in the summer,”

—Freddie Prinze Jr., Actor.

The family strengthens their bond through vacations and outings. In 2024, Gellar took Rocky to Las Vegas, where they explored Meow Wolf’s interactive art installation inside AREA15. The exhibit included a phone booth, which Gellar humorously had to explain to her son, revealing generational gaps. Rocky also participated in a Los Angeles Chargers game that year, making a memorable appearance on the stadium jumbotron with some dance moves.

Supporting Rocky with Health and School Challenges

During remote school sessions in 2020, Gellar noticed Rocky struggling to focus on screens and took him to see an eye specialist, who diagnosed him with myopia. She shared,

“He’s also left-handed and it makes you realize the world is not set up for left-handed people,”

adding,

“I really feel for these kids.”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

Rocky was eager to try contact lenses to avoid glasses interfering with his sports activities. In 2024, Gellar marked a milestone in the family’s life when Charlotte began high school and Rocky started middle school, writing,

“Parents …. Who gets me today?!? But also…. How do I have a high schooler and a middle schooler?!?”

—Sarah Michelle Gellar, Actress.

The Ongoing Significance of Parenting Choices for the Prinze Family

Freddie Prinze Jr. family life demonstrates a careful and deliberate approach to balancing fame and normalcy. Both Gellar and Prinze Jr. emphasize presence, support, and kindness as core values guiding their parenting. By nurturing their children away from the pressures of early celebrity while encouraging their interests and individuality, the family is building a foundation hoped to prepare Charlotte and Rocky for adulthood with strong character and resilience.

With the children gradually growing toward their own identities, the Prinzes continue to maintain boundaries around public exposure and social media use, underscoring their commitment to protect their kids‘ well-being. As fans await Freddie Prinze Jr.’s return to the screen in the 2025 reboot of I Know What You Did Last Summer, the priority remains firmly on family, creating a lasting impact rooted in careful parenting and deep love.