Lily Collins is honoring her father, music icon Phil Collins.
On Sunday, the actress took to Instagram and penned a touching tribute to the Genesis frontman for his 71st birthday. To commemorate the special occasion, the “Emily in Paris” star shared a sweet throwback snap of herself as a baby atop the patriarch’s shoulders.
“Happy birthday, Dad,” captioned the 32-year-old. “I may no longer fit in your arms or sit comfortably on your shoulders but you continue to hug me tightly when I need it most.”
“We may not get to spend time together that often but when we are face to face, you really do see me,” she continued. “You may not always believe it but please trust me when I say, no matter how old I get or what life may bring, I will always need you.”
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Lily Collins wrote a touching tribute for her father Phil Collins.
(Todd Williamson/Getty Images For Relativity Media)
“Whether I’m proudly watching you up on stage, laughing at home together playing trivial pursuit, I’m forever grateful for the moments and memories we share,” wrote Collins. “Especially the ones I now cherish as an adult myself.”
“Thank you for inspiring me and supporting the woman I am today,” Collins concluded in her post. “I love you to the moon and back again…”
Collins’ husband Charlie McDowell, the son of Mary Steenburgen and Malcolm McDowell, took to the comments section and sent his famous father-in-law birthday wishes.
“Love you both!” wrote the 38-year-old. “HBD Phil.”
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Lily Collins’s husband, Charlie McDowell, wished his famous father-in-law a happy birthday.
(JOCE/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
While Collins has a loving relationship with the artist today, it wasn’t always so easy for the pair. In 2017, Billboard reported that Collins wrote an open letter forgiving her father, which was published in a book of essays titled “Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me.”
“Because my dad was often gone, I never wanted to do anything that would make him stay away even longer,” she wrote in the chapter titled “A Letter to All Dads.” “I became extra careful about what I said and how I said it, afraid he’d think I was angry or didn’t love him. And the truth is, I was angry. I missed him and wanted him there.”
Collins’ parents divorced when she was 5 years old. Phil then moved from England to Switzerland, which created an estrangement that impacted her over the years.
“I’ve realized that many of my deepest insecurities stem from these issues with my dad,” she wrote, as quoted by the outlet. “It’s taken me over a decade to resolve some of them (others I’m still resolving) and to finally build up the courage to speak my mind to him.”
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Musician Phil Collins with daughter Lily Collins, while on tour in Japan, circa 1988.
(Dave Hogan/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Collins shared that she opened up about their relationship in hopes that other girls would reach out to their fathers.
“Even if they’re listening, sometimes our dads still don’t truly hear what we’re saying,” wrote Collins. “So feel free to read this letter to your dad or use it as a guide to write your own … All you can do is stay true and tell him how you feel.”
