Bill Paxton's Son James Explains How His 'Twisters' Cameo 'Honors' His Late Father

James Paxton, the son of late actor Bill Paxton, honored his father with a special cameo in the upcoming film Twisters.

Bill Paxton was known for his work on numerous Hollywood productions, including 1997's Titanic and the HBO TV series Big Love.

The Texas native was also famous for playing ex-storm chaser and TV weatherman Bill Harding in the 1996 natural disaster film Twister about a rag-tag group of storm chasers aiming to launch a revolutionary tornado research device into an active tornado during an Oklahoma storm outbreak.

The new standalone sequel Twisters features a brief appearance from Paxton's son, James, a series regular on the USA Network drama series Eyewitness.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Paxton plays a "disgruntled motel guest."

He explained to the media outlet:

"It's really a cameo, so it's an Easter egg for the fans of Dad and the original."

"I did this one for Dad."

The 30-year-old Hollywood scion told the entertainment outlet he had initially read for a role in Twisters.

"Some time went by and I didn't really hear anything," said Paxton, and continued: 

"So I had made peace with, 'Oh, I guess maybe it's not going to work out.' "

"And then, I heard from my team that they were offering a role."

The affirming news was an emotional experience for the actor, who also guest-starred on ABC's Marvel's Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. as an "alternate version" of the character John Garrett, previously played by his famous dad.

"It took me a little bit of time to process it, just given the context of my dad and his significance in the original and him not being here," said Paxton, adding:

"It's an emotional thing. It wasn't something that I could really decide immediately, It took a little time just to process it, just the magnitude of it."

When asked what ultimately led to his decision to move ahead with the movie, Paxton said:

"I wanted to be a conduit for his spirit there and cheer everyone in this production on to success because I know he would be."

"I wanted to do something that really honors his presence in this new chapter and really do something for him."

Here's an example of the positivity, light, and humor his father brought with him on the set of the 1996 film.

He added:

"It ended up feeling like the right thing to do, to be representative of Dad there."

Bill Paxton died on February 25, 2017, of a stroke, 10 days after his health deteriorated after an aortic aneurysm surgery followed by an emergency second surgery to repair a damaged coronary artery.

He was 61.

During a premiere event for Twisters, which opened in London on July 8, James Paxton was pleasantly surprised on the red carpet with a printed snap of him as a one-year-old with his dad on the set of Twister.

"I'm so glad we took the photo to commemorate that," he said

The new Twisters film was directed by Lee Isaac Chung with a screenplay by Mark L. Smith from a story by Joseph Kosinski.

It stars Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, and Anthony Ramos.

Twisters will be released by Universal Pictures in the U.S. where it will blow through theaters on July 19, 2024.

You can watch a trailer here.