An Arrested Development alum is getting candid about ditching Hollywood for Alabama, calling it “an incredibly hospitable place.”
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Indeed, Tony Hale, beloved for his role as the perpetually anxious Buster Bluth on Arrested Development, left the glitz of Los Angeles. Hale, who grew up in Tallahassee, Florida, relocated to Birmingham, Alabama, with his family two years ago… but he insists he still loves L.A.
“I love being in L.A., but it’s very easy to be thinking about ‘What’s next?’ Down here, I’m not thinking about that as much,” Hale recently told PEOPLE. “And Birmingham is a fantastic town. The restaurant scene, the art scene, there’s so many things, but it’s a slower, simpler pace.”
The 55-year-old actor lived in L.A. for 22 years with his wife Martel, a Hollywood makeup artist, where they raised their 20-year-old daughter, Loy. The couple, who both have Southern roots, moved to be closer to their daughter after she started college in the Southeast.
“We love being close to her,” Hale, who joined the Toy Story franchise in 2019 as Forky, told the outlet. That said, his daughter wasn’t totally on board for the big move down South.
“I think she wasn’t thrilled about us leaving LA. And I get it. She’s an L.A. girl. She grew up in LA, so that’s her home,” Hale admitted.
Tony Hale Reveals One Unexpected Thing He Misses About Hollywood…
Hale also confessed that he still holds allegiance to both parts of the country…
“I can find myself being in the South defending California, and then I can find myself in California defending the South,” he told PEOPLE. “It’s very easy to point the finger. It’s easy to put things in boxes.”
That said, Hale found himself defending the South to PEOPLE.
“As a whole, it’s an incredibly hospitable place,” Hale insisted. “There’s really, really good people down here who are striving for truth and healing and just loving people. And there’s people everywhere like that. And then there’s others that…are a little close-minded.”
Hale, who will reprise his role as Forky in Toy Story 5 this summer, admitted there’s one odd thing he misses about Hollywood.
“You spend so much time in your car in L.A., it kind of becomes this sacred space,” he explained. “I would call people, listen to podcasts, I’d listen to music. You just kind of checked out.”
“Here, everything’s like 10 minutes away, so you’re rarely in your car. And I never thought I’d say that, but I kind of miss that time!”
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