Oliver Hudson Says ‘Nepotism Is Real’ as Son Makes Acting Debut (Exclusive)

Oliver Hudson may know that his son had a leg up to get into the industry, but says that he’ll have to prove himself every step of the way.

The actor, who spoke with PEOPLE about the new Netflix movie A Merry Little Ex-Mas, shared that his 18-year-old son, Wilder Hudson, is making his feature-film debut as the son of Oliver’s character. As he talked about Wilder getting the part, Oliver admits that nepotism may have played a role.

“So look, nepotism is real. I’ve talked about it before on my podcast. I literally was just doing someone else’s podcast talking about nepotism and the whole nepo baby thing,” he says. “And unfortunately, it’s gotten boiled down to the entertainment industry when nepotism exists across every industry.”

“Of course, we’re all trying to give our children a leg up,” Oliver continues. “We’re all wanting them to succeed. I would argue that nepotism in our business can only go so far because yes, you can get your foot in the door, but you have to prove yourself.”

The actor, whose parents are Goldie Hawn and Bill Hudson, goes on to say that “no one’s going to hire you” because you’re Goldie’s son or his own son.

“You’re going to get the opportunity to perform or to show your stuff, but there’s too much money relying on these projects to say, ‘Oh, he sucks, but we’re just going to hire him because,’ ” Oliver says. “Which leads me into the Wilder hiring. He had never done anything before.”

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Oliver shares that his son had just finished an acting class outside of school, but really wanted to get more involved in the industry. When the job came up, he suggested that his son go out for a part.

“Wilder, why don’t you audition just to get the experience of reading for the first time,” Oliver recalls telling his son. “It’s not about getting the job right now, it’s just [to] have this experience, see what it’s like.”

“And he did well, then we get a call, they want to see him again,” he remembers. “I’m like, ‘Oh, oh s—. Okay, cool.’ And then he did five auditions, because Netflix of course was concerned that he’s never done anything, so they just wanted to see him and make sure that this was right, because this isn’t a small part.”

When Wilde ended up getting the part, Oliver says it was a “really special moment.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Oliver spoke about traveling to Toronto with Wilder and living together during filming, which the father of three — who also shares son Bodhi, 15, and daughter Rio, 12, with wife Erinn — was looking forward to. He made things more special by upgrading the house they were staying in.

“I was like, ‘F— it, I’m just going to pay extra. I want this to be an experience,’ ” he tells PEOPLE. “I got this cool little spot, and I had this musical-montage idea of us running lines and having dinner together and watching movies and falling in love, essentially, again with my son.”

However once they got to their new abode, things were the same as they ever were. “[Wilder] stomps up the stairs and I’m like, ‘Dude, you want to get some food?’ He’s like, ‘Nah’ — goes into his room and closes the door,” jokes the proud dad. “I’m like, ‘Oh s—, here we go. We’re just back in L.A.’ ”

“But at the same time, living together for six weeks, being in each other’s space … was incredible,” the Happy Gilmore 2 actor adds.