Ryan O'Neal's 'Jealous and Controlling' Influence Over Daughter Tatum Revealed — With Actress Telling How He Banned Her From Auditioning for Martin Scorsese Movie Role as it Was 'Too Naked'
Tatum O'Neal opened up about her 'jealous' father Ryan O'Neal two years after his death.
March 6 2025, Published 7:00 p.m. ET
Tatum O'Neal's harrowing road to addiction stemmed from a childhood full of abuse and neglect.
The actress spoke candidly about her tumultuous relationship with her violent father, actor Ryan O'Neal, shedding light on the deep-seated jealousy and resentment he harbored toward her until his 2023 death, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Tatum revealed her father punched her after she was nominated for an Oscar and he wasn't.
In age 10, Tatum made history by winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Paper Moon opposite her late father.
Her win marked the beginning of her highly publicized career, which included teen stardom and a reputation as a wild child in the gossip press before the internet era.
The actress opened up about her 'abusive' dad not wanting her to audition for a movie role because it was 'too naked.'
At home, however, Tatum's life was marked by mistreatment from her actor parents, who were also both addicts.
She was introduced to alcohol at the age of six and endured physical and verbal abuse from her father after he gained full custody of her in 1970.
Tatum said after moving in with her father, she found herself set up for exploitation and a lifetime of attempting – unsuccessfully – to win his approval.
Ryan openly did drugs in front of Tatum, kept a revolving door of women in their home, and even punched her after learning she was nominated for Paper Moon and he wasn't.
In her gripping 2004 memoir A Paper Life, Tatum shared how her father turned on her after her performance in the film was labeled as the "standout."
The praise she received drew envy from her father, as she recalled: "Things got ugly quick."
Not only did he physically lash out in jealousy after her Oscar nomination, but he also refused to attend the ceremony with her.
She still thanked him in her acceptance speech, however.
Tatum had a tumultuous relationship with Ryan, who did drugs in front of her and kept a revolving door of women in their home.
Tatum, now 61, dealt with her controlling father throughout her early career, especially when it came to what roles she was allowed to take on.
According to the actress, she was offered the chance to audition for the role of a child prostitute in Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver – which would later earn Jodie Foster her first Oscar nomination – but her father refused.
He thought the role was "a little too naked," but Tatum figured his sharp stance was solely driven by jealousy.
She further admitted she "never really recovered from that."
On how her dad would get to her head, Tatum added: "He was controlling, and telling me, 'No, you’re not good.' And so then I started to get not good, feeling scared all the time."
Despite this, Tatum went to star in a few successful films – including the classic The Bad News Bears (1976) and the hit Little Darlings (1980).
Though Tatum said she never received an apology from her father and learned posthumously he'd cut her out of his will, his death ultimately freed her from his shadow.
Ryan passed away on December 8, 2023, at the age of 82.
Despite the years of estrangement and bitter conflict, Tatum had visited him three times after his health crisis, including one visit to his Malibu home just before his death.
During their final meeting, he offered her drugs.
She recalled: "I know he was drinking, smoking a lot of pot, and he was like, 'Here, take a pill.' I was like, 'No, thank you.'"
The child star ultimately became notorious for her struggles with addiction to alcohol, cocaine, and heroin, which even led to a temporary loss of custody of her three children with John McEnroe.
In May 2020, Tatum overdosed in her Century City apartment, suffering a severe stroke.
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Isolated during the COVID lockdown and dealing with chronic pain from rheumatoid arthritis, she was prescribed morphine by a doctor unaware of her addiction history.
Further struggling with feelings of hopelessness, she admitted to not wanting to continue – despite her love for her children.
The film star declared she is done taking drugs after suffering a health crisis a few years back.
She later fell into a coma for six weeks after overdosing, and when she woke up, her prognosis was grim; she couldn’t talk, walk, or see.
But she has since steadily improved, relearning everything, with the greatest progress coming from within.
She said: "Now I don’t want to hurt myself. Now I don’t want to f------ take drugs again — I really don't."
