Henry Winkler admitted he prevented his daughter, Zoe Winkler, from starring on reality TV for her own good.
“Do you remember when I was in the running to be ‘The Bachelorette?’” Zoe recalled to her father during Wednesday’s episode of her “What in the Winkler?!” podcast.
“Oh, my goodness. And we put a stop to that … and only for your protection,” the “Happy Days” actor replied.
Henry, 79, asked for a “thank you” from his daughter, which she half-heartedly gave before revealing he also stopped her from appearing in another reality show.
She claimed she was approached about appearing in a series called “Quarter Life Crisis” alongside Kim Kardashian and Sarah Howard.
Zoe, 44, said VH1 executive producer Matt Hanna created a sizzle reel with the trio without her dad’s knowledge.
“[Hanna] came to the house and you met him outside,” she recalled.
“I did,” Henry confirmed. “I said, ‘It is so lovely that you’re here, I can suggest some really good restaurants, [but] my daughter is not doing your show.’”
While Zoe’s chances of becoming a reality star were shot down by her father, she said it worked out for the best.
“I became a teacher, which was the best job and what I always truly wanted to do,” she explained.
Henry sweetly noted that she was “born” to be a teacher.
“If I were a young parent, at the time that I saw the way you parent and the way you taught, I would have stolen your technique and used it as my go-to,” he gushed.
Zoe married Robert Reinis in 2009. They share three sons.
During her candid chat with her father on Wednesday’s episode, she said she feels passionate about being a mother and is “obsessed” with her husband.
She also noted she is passionate about her nonprofit, This is About Humanity.
She founded the organization in 2018 to raise awareness for families and children who are separated at the United States-Mexico border.
