Sean Hepburn Ferrer remembers mum Audrey Hepburn: “She belongs to the people”

‘Funny Face’

Their mother-and-son relationship was built on empathy, respect, and laughter. Sean prides himself on his ability to make the late actress laugh even on days when it seemed impossible to dispel sadness.

“We have this ‘comedy gene’ in the family,” he says. “As a little boy, I used to make her laugh until her stomach hurts. I do imitations, and she loved that. That [memory] is one of the greatest joys of my life, something I will treasure to my grave.”

Because of her superstar status, Audrey feared that Sean and his brother Luca Dotti would experience a childhood far from the ordinary. 

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“That was the only thing she felt bad about her fame, that somehow it would make our childhood different from other kids,” he discloses. “We tried to fix it as a family and said, ‘We understand, if you had a restaurant, the place would smell like food all day long, right?’ So when you’re a celebrity, it smells like a celebrity all the time.” 

Despite Audrey’s busy schedule and the pool of paparazzi who follow them constantly, Sean said that his mum strived to establish a sense of normalcy within their family.

“She would make breakfast and get me off to school, then come and pick me up too. There were paparazzi [all around], but we used to live with it somehow.” 

Sean always felt that his needs as a son were well attended to. In 1967, after appearing in Terence Young’s psychological thriller Wait Until Dark, Audrey opted for semi-retirement to spend more time with her family. “She chose to stop [acting] at the height of her career to be a full-time mum,” he recalls. 

Audrey was able to find a friend in Sean. “What my mother and I had was a great friendship,” he says. “We spoke about everything. Some psychologists would say, ‘Children need to learn their place,’ but she trusted me like an adult. We talked about very emotional things—she would ask me questions one would ask an elderly. I didn’t know the answers, but I gave what I felt in my heart most of the time.” 

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Audrey Lives

Audrey’s world demanded that she bask in the limelight. And yet, the actress resisted and instead used her prominence to embrace and empower underprivileged communities in Africa, South America, and Asia. Her deep empathy must have stemmed from the adversities she endured in the past.

During World War II, she performed ballet to raise money to support the Dutch resistance. And in 1944, at the height of the Dutch famine, the actress struggled with malnutrition, acute anaemia, oedema, and respiratory conditions.

“When she was sick, we received so many bags full of letters. The mailwoman would normally come with a bulk and we read some of them. But there was no way for us to answer everyone. The letters had origami and books about how to get over cancer,” he says. 

“When she passed away, our little ‘hamlet,’ our village of 600 inhabitants was suddenly invaded by more than 25,000 people from all around the world. Cars and people filled the streets,” Sean describes. “They grieved with us not because she was an icon or this big beautiful star, but because she had done some work and gave back. She belongs to the people.” 

Audrey lived a life full of grace and compassion. Although she was humble about herself, the world will forever see her in a different light. 

“The people who worked with her said that she treated everybody nicely,” Sean reveals. “She never made a scene, always showed up on time, and always thought about the little guy in the corner.”

When Sean was of age, Audrey taught him the importance of treating everybody with the same level of respect. “‘Do you know the person mopping the floor?’ she asked me. ‘If you want to learn from this business, you have to start from the bottom, and one day if you make it, you should always know what that guy in the corner feels because if you can’t have him on your side, you’re finished’.”

See also: Empathy and Humility in Hollywood: How Jung Ho-Yeon Stays Grounded

As of writing, Sean is busy putting up the Intimate Audrey exhibit in different parts of the world. Initially launched in his mother’s hometown of Brussels on May 4, 2019, the exhibition features hundreds of Audrey’s original and re-printed photographs, a limited amount of memorabilia, dresses and accessories, and never before seen fashion drawings and humanitarian writings. The display is also in the at The Museum at S Maison, Pasay City, Philippines from August 1 to October 29, 2023, all thanks to Filipina organiser Carmina Jacob.

“My mother passed away when she was in the middle of these wonderful humanitarian efforts; So, I decided to catch the baton in the air and continue her work because people needed her story to go on,” Sean says.

Today, Sean is 63, mirroring the age at which his mother passed away. He jests that he is “a fruit that fell very far from the tree,” but the ideals he holds close to his heart say otherwise—like Audrey, Sean hopes for a more responsible world fuelled by empathy. 

“If Audrey were alive, [I bet] she would be furious that 30 years have passed and we’re just inching our way there and that the society is not taking responsibility,” Sean asserts. “If a child is born in Africa, his life has to be worth as much as if he was born in a more developed country.” 

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