NEW YORK, April 29 (UPI) -- Everybody Loves Raymond and The Middle alum Patricia Heaton says she looked to her own experience as a mother and her fond memories of working with the late Linda Lavin to craft her matriarch character in the new family drama The Unbreakable Boy.
"I have four sons. You go through all kinds of trials and tribulations and you're never quite sure if you're doing it right," the 67-year-old Emmy winner told UPI in a recent Zoom interview. "You're insecure. You feel the weight of the responsibility of the development of this little human being that's been put into your hands."
Released Tuesday on DVD and Blu-ray, the film is based on a true story and follows Austin (Jacob Laval), a young boy who exhibits an unbridled zest for life as he tackles the autism and brittle bone disease that leave his loving parents Scott (Zachary Levi) and Teresa (Meghann Fahy) feeling anxious and exhausted.
Heaton plays Scott's mother Marcia, the pragmatic and supportive LeRette family matriarch, while Amy Acker plays Lori, Teresa's sister, in the movie, which was written and directed by Jon Gunn.
Heaton thinks most parents will relate to the film's family on some level.
"Just raising kids is tough. If you have a child that maybe has some differences in learning or personality, differences can be scary," she said. "This movie is a story of hope and resilience, of faith, of humor and of overcoming the obstacles that can get in the way."
For instance, Marcia is seen helping Scott after he develops a drinking problem as a means of coping with his frustrations over his son's challenges.
"Sometimes we don't choose the best way to deal with our stress and situations, so whether it's alcohol, whether it's a shopping addiction, we choose ways to escape that aren't necessarily healthy and the movie covers all those things," Heaton said.
"It's not sugar-coating anything and, yet, it's very hopeful. It's about resilience. It's about redemption and, so, I think it's going to be a great movie. I think audiences are going to love it."
The film also emphasizes through the Scott-Marcia relationship how parents don't stop worrying about or nurturing their children just because they are adults with kids of their own.
"When I came to Hollywood, my first job was with this wonderful actress who recently passed -- Linda Lavin -- and she was a really wonderful mentor to me, through my whole career in Hollywood," Heaton said, referring to Room For Two, the short-lived sitcom she and Lavin co-starred in 1992-93.
"I now am at the point where I can be 'Linda Lavin' to younger actors and actresses and I feel, in the movie, Marcia is also that for her own children."
After decades as a working mother in show business, Heaton said she knows what's important and is happy to pass that on to whomever needs to hear it.
"Hopefully, you gain wisdom as you get older and you see the things that you thought were going to be so difficult or so devastating and you get through them and you're still there at the end," she added.
"As long as you have your faith in your family and your friendships, you're going to be OK. You always need somebody in your life who could be firm about these things, but assure you that you're going to be OK."
Heaton pointed out that the love between Marcia and Scott is so strong, she felt comfortable being bluntly honest with him about how he needs to improve himself to be strong for his family.
"That's not too much of a stretch from who I am," she laughed. "I have four sons and they're very good boys, so I don't have to do that too much."
Another reason Heaton wanted to star in the film was because she has known and liked Levi for many years.
"That's one of the attractions of doing a project like this -- somebody calls you up and says, 'Hey, all your friends are doing the movie. You want to come and play? And we'll pay you for it.' That's really great."
