Austin Butler Says He Has 'Mother Figures' in His Life After His Mom's Death in 2014

Austin Butler's mother Lori died of cancer in 2014, when the 'Elvis' star was 23 years old

Austin Butler is sending love to the maternal figures in his life.

As Butler, 32, spoke with his Dune: Part Two costar Josh Brolin for a conversation with Interview magazine, the actors noted they have both found easier friendships with women rather than men. Brolin, 55, wondered aloud whether that had to do with the fact that both men lost their mothers at a young age: Brolin's mother Jane died on his 27th birthday, per The Week, while Butler's mother Lori died of cancer in 2014.

"I noticed that since losing my mom, I end up finding these mother figures in my life," Butler said, referencing his "London mom" Ruthie Rogers, whom Butler said owns a restaurant called The River Cafe in England's capital.

"We played cards every Sunday night for about a year," Butler explained. When Brolin asked how the pair met, Butler said he and a friend first met Ruthie and wound up "playing this gambling game" with a pair of dice.

"And she and I were on the same team, and we kept winning. So to this day, every time she calls me, she goes, 'My dice partner!' And she calls me every other day," Butler said. "And she’ll say, 'I just want to say I love you, and I’m thinking about you, and do you need anything?' And then I’ll say, 'Do you need anything?' That love is so needed."

Related: Austin Butler Supports Girlfriend Kaia Gerber at the Valentino Show During Paris Fashion Week

Butler said at the top of the conversation with Brolin that he "grew up very close to my mom and my sister," after the elder actor asked if Butler "[finds himself] surrounded more by women or men."

"I found myself able to open up to women quicker, and once I started hanging out with men who were more like you, who could open up to me quicker, I started to realize it’s not about gender at all," Butler told Brolin. "It’s about human connection. That’s what I’m craving."

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Butler was 23 years old at the time of his mother's death. Back in January, the actor credited Lori with helping him through the earliest parts of his acting career during an Actor's Roundtable discussion hosted by The Hollywood Reporter.

"After my mom passed away, I went straight to New Zealand to start shooting a young-adult TV show [The Shannara Chronicles]," he said at the time. "A lot of people enjoyed the show, and I had fun doing horseback riding and that sort of thing, but I'd go home and cry every night."

Related: Tom Hardy and Austin Butler Form a Violent Biker Gang in ‘The Bikeriders’ Trailer

Both Butler and Brolin will appear among a star-studded cast in Dune: Part Two, which is currently scheduled to release March 15, 2024. In August, Warner Bros. Pictures rescheduled the film's release from Nov. 3 due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, which leaves the film's cast unable to promote the movie.

Butler's other upcoming film, The Bikeriders, has also been delayed indefinitely for the same reasons. New Regency still hopes to release the movie in time to compete for the upcoming awards season, per The Hollywood Reporter.

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