Sibling Revelry with Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson

Episode: "Clutch Your Pearls with Katie Lowes from 'The Hunting Wives'!"
Date: September 22, 2025
Guest: Katie Lowes (Actress, The Hunting Wives, Scandal)
Host: Oliver Hudson

Overview

This episode explores family, parenting philosophies, sibling relationships, the transition into middle age, and the joys and challenges of artistic careers. Oliver and Katie Lowes, known for her roles in "Scandal" and the Netflix series "The Hunting Wives," have a wide-ranging, energetic, and humorous conversation about their upbringing, family dynamics, parenting, acting craft, and rediscovering joy—from dance parties to theater.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Parenting Styles and Family Habits

• Open Parenting Approaches:
  • Oliver describes his open approach—cursing, drinking, and transparency with his kids, believing that "the more you hold them back from the vices, the more they're going to want to do them." (13:10)
  • Katie shares her perspective of controlled exposure: "If you're over 18, you can curse… that's just not today. Now my kids are 4 and 7..." (06:32)
• Blended Parenting Dynamics:
  • Katie discusses navigating conflicting upbringing styles with her husband, who was raised in a “very strict household”:
    “My husband was like a total goody two-shoes...So I, I'm curious how this is gonna look when my kids are teenagers...” (14:06)
• Multi-generational Approaches:
  • Both discuss having parents who partook in cannabis and alcohol, noting the normalization of these habits in their upbringing—culminating in a memorable family trip to Amsterdam for Katie’s mother’s 60th birthday:
    “I think we're ready to take our relationship with our parents to the next level and get fucking stoned.” (12:09) - Katie
• Setting Boundaries:
  • Oliver gives his kids independence but stresses values:
    “There are certain things I'm strict about. It's mostly personality shit, but all the other stuff, the more you hold them back...the more they're going to want to do them.” (13:39)

2. Sibling Bonds & Family Closeness

• Physical Proximity & Support:
  • Katie and her brother live minutes apart, raising their kids together—mirroring Oliver’s family’s tradition of living close:
    “My brother lives around the corner for me in L.A... His two kids are my kids' age.” (10:11)
• Sibling Dynamics and Perspectives:
  • Oliver observes, "Everyone's stories are so different and we all have a different perspective on how we were raised, even though we were raised by the same people." (23:26)
  • Both stress instilling sibling loyalty:
    “You're all you got. I just—you gotta love each other.” (25:31) – Oliver
    “Do you see this person? This is the person…” (25:38) – Katie
• Gift of Siblings:
  • Katie: “I just feel bad that I'm gonna be adding a person to the family that's taking away attention from the other one. I was like, are you kidding? I'm doing this as a gift.” (25:38)

3. Navigating Birth Order & Family Psychology

• Birth Order Theories:
  • Both share stories and discuss a previous podcast episode with a birth order expert.
  • Katie observes:
    “I'm the oldest, but I married a youngest. Like, a lot of people end up recreating order in some relation to the birth order they grew up in…” (27:47)
• Marriage Dynamics:
  • Oliver and his wife are both eldest siblings, Katie suspects that creates certain “responsible” and “type A” patterns. (28:25)

4. Adult Friendships, Mom Culture, and Rediscovering Joy

• Mom-Only Dance Parties:
  • Katie raves about a secretive, mom-only dance event:
    “It's a complete wrap by 9:30. It's like mostly moms… nobody tried. I've never been at a line at a bar at 6:30 with just like all tired moms.” (34:18, 34:55)
  • Oliver jokes about the gender differences if men attempted a similar event:
    “Imagine if I had a middle-aged 300 person dance party for only dudes...I don't know if anyone would even dance.” (36:40)
• Reviving Dance as an Adult:
  • Katie shares how group dance classes and line dancing on the set of "The Hunting Wives" reawakened her joy for dance:
    “I've reintroduced dance as a 40 year old woman...I fucking hate working out and that's fun…” (37:56)

5. Acting, Craft, and Career Trajectories

• Character Work and Audition Stories:
  • Katie describes her process landing “Jill” in "The Hunting Wives," auditioning for another role before identifying with Jill and going all-in on the “clutch your pearls” preacher’s wife characterization:
    “I teased my hair…I back teased the shit out of my hair. I put on the southern accent…I was like, I get this.” (43:12)
  • Improv and Group Scenes vs. Strict Scripts:
    • Katie explains the difference between improvisational freedom on "The Hunting Wives" and word-perfect delivery required on "Scandal" (Shondaland):
      “Shonda was like, what you say is up to me. How you say it is up to you, but like full stop, that's it.” (44:18)
    • On "The Hunting Wives," their group scenes:
      “We improv the shit out of those scenes. I'd never done that…and I thought it was the best.” (45:02)
• Theater Aspirations and Fears:
  • Oliver admits he’s never done theater because of his fear of forgetting lines, but now feels ready:
    “I love making people laugh...The thing that scared me the most was forgetting lines and completely looking like an [idiot].” (57:12)
  • Katie reassures:
    “Fucking forget your lines because you've never done something that had a four week rehearsal. By the time you get up there, you are good to go…it's the fucking best.” (57:52)
• Education & Experience at NYU Tisch:
  • Katie credits Tisch and theater for pushing her creatively and providing lifelong friendships, describing her time at school as:
    “Best four years of my life…Tisch is what you make of it. I sucked that school for every morsel I could.” (55:16)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Parenting Styles
  “Let's desensitize these fuckers before they get into the real world.” (13:10) – Oliver
  “I think we're ready to take our relationship with our parents to the next level and get fucking stoned.” (12:09) – Katie

• On Sibling Dynamics
  “Everyone's stories are so different and we all have a different perspective on how we were raised, even though we were raised by the same people.” (23:26) – Oliver
  “Do you see this person? This is the person. I'm doing this as a gift...” (25:38) – Katie

• On Artistic Growth & Theatrics
  “I teased my hair, … back teased the shit out of my hair. I put on the southern accent…I was like, I get this.” (43:12) – Katie
  “We improv the shit out of those scenes…a living, breathing thing…” (45:02) – Katie

• Actor’s Fears & New Beginnings
  “The thing that scared me the most was forgetting lines and completely looking like an [idiot].” (57:12) – Oliver
  “By the time you get up there, you are good to go your shit backwards and forwards…it's the fucking best.” (57:52) – Katie

• On Community & Middle Age Joy
  “It's a complete wrap by 9:30. I've never been at a line at a bar at 6:30 with just like all tired moms danced so hard.” (34:18) – Katie
  “Imagine if I had a middle-aged 300 person dance party for only dudes...I don't know if anyone would even dance.” (36:40) – Oliver

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 03:22 – Podcast proper begins, sibling banter
• 05:56 – 14:52 – Deep dive on parenting philosophies; cursing, drinking, weed, and household rules
• 16:34 – 18:48 – Family structures, how upbringing and sibling closeness manifest
• 22:16 – 23:26 – COVID pregnancy stories, sibling age differences, bonding
• 23:26 – 28:11 – Sibling bonds, birth order, marriage, recreating childhood dynamics
• 34:06 – 38:38 – Mom dance party rituals, rediscovering dance and joy in mid-life
• 39:19 – 46:04 – "The Hunting Wives," Southern roles, character creation, line dancing
• 46:13 – 48:29 – Craft talk: strict vs. improvised scripts, group scenes
• 49:41 – 56:58 – Balancing motherhood and acting; Katie’s journey from nanny to series regular
• 56:09 – 59:20 – NYU Tisch, value of artistic education, theater as creative laboratory
• 57:12 – 59:01 – Oliver's stage fright and ambitions; Katie encourages first steps into theater

Episode Takeaway

A candid, relatable exploration of the chaos and love of family—across generations, between siblings, and as parents. It’s a heartfelt, often hilarious, reflection on how family shapes us, why art and community matter, and why it’s never too late to try something new—whether that’s dancing at 40 or jumping onto the stage at 50.

Final Plug:

“Don’t forget, everybody, The Hunting Wives is streaming on Netflix. If you haven't heard of this or seen it yet, then you're way out of the loop…It’s fun, it’s dangerous, it’s salacious, it’s sexy, it's all of the things.” (59:22) – Oliver

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