Actress Heather Graham revealed on the "Dinner's on Me with Jesse Tyler Ferguson" podcast that her "controlling" and "really religious" father, James Graham, a retired FBI agent, actively opposed her pursuit of an acting career. Growing up in Agoura Hills, California, Graham felt stifled by her father's strict rules and his wariness of the entertainment industry, which he believed was evil and would "claim her soul." This opposition, coupled with her mother's more artistic but mixed support, fueled Graham's desire for independence, leading her to move to West Hollywood at 18 after her first film, "License to Drive," premiered in 1988. She has been estranged from her parents since she was 25, finding her chosen family in her friends, a theme reflected in her 2024 film "Chosen Family."