Owen Wilson recently recalled a childhood adventure that ended unexpectedly. The actor shared a story about taking his mother’s car for a joyride before he had a driver’s license. However, the outing came to an abrupt end when he encountered a police officer.
Owen Wilson recalls police stopping him at age 14
Wilson, now 57, shared the memory during an exclusive interview with PEOPLE. He was promoting his new partnership with pre-owned vehicle retailer EchoPark Automotive, which recently named him its national spokesperson.
“Before I had my license, in Dallas, my parents were out of town,” Wilson recalled. Someone from his father’s office was staying at their house. However, Wilson decided to take his mother’s car out without permission.
“I think I was maybe 14,” he said about the incident. The vehicle had a manual transmission, which made driving difficult. “Because it was a stick shift, I wasn’t that comfortable with it,” he explained.
Wilson remembered avoiding a particular road because of its steep hill. He did not want to stop at a traffic light there. However, the teenager soon encountered a police officer.
“Unfortunately for us at the time—but maybe fortunately for getting us off the road—we ran into a police officer,” Wilson said. The officer brought him and his companions home, and his father eventually discovered what had happened.
Wilson said the incident stopped him from driving until he earned his license. “I got my license after that, and I was able to sort of redeem myself in my parents’ eyes,” he recalled. He also insisted that his reckless teenage moment did not reflect his usual driving habits.
“I’m a fairly responsible driver,” Wilson said. “I was never somebody who was just kind of racing around,” he added.
The actor also recalled an uncomfortable car-buying experience after moving to Los Angeles in the 1990s. He accompanied a friend to a Nissan dealership but unexpectedly ended up purchasing another Nissan Maxima.
“I didn’t even set out to buy a car that day,” Wilson admitted. He later questioned the salesman about whether he had overpaid. The response only confirmed his suspicions.
“I sure didn’t get a good deal,” he recalled. His experience helped motivate his partnership with EchoPark Automotive, as Wilson hopes to make buying and selling vehicles less stressful for customers.
The post Owen Wilson’s Teenage Joyride Took a Very Wrong Turn appeared first on Mandatory.
