There is simply no denying that Kyle Chandler is a DILF. When the term was created, surely Chandler’s brooding eyes, tousled coif and rugged voice came to mind. When he opens his mouth to speak, you hope it’s for a lecture about something you need to be punished for — or at least a motivational pick-me-up.
“I think out of all the awards and accolades that I have received out of my 22 to 24 years of work on screen and stage, that no greater thing has touched the cockles of my heart than to be called one of the biggest DILFs in America,” he tells The Post, grinning. “Thank you.”
That knowing charm has launched Chandler, 48, from University of Georgia drama major to “Friday Night Lights” leading man to bona fide movie star. For his latest role, as an FBI agent in “The Wolf of Wall Street” (in theaters Christmas Day), Chandler attempts to nail down crooked stockbroker Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio).
To play the part, Chandler worked with Greg Coleman, the real-life 20-year FBI veteran who spent six years chasing Belfort.
“The biggest key for me into this role was [when Coleman] said to me, ‘Listen, I’ve got no animosity, no ill will toward any of these people that I arrest,’ ” says Chandler. “ ‘Speaking of Belfort, I don’t hate him. I’m not angry with him. In that sense, I’m just doing my job.’ ”
That nuance shows in Chandler’s performance, but it’s nothing new for him. He’s been covertly stealing the spotlight with rounded characters for more than two decades.
Born in Buffalo and raised primarily in rural Georgia, Chandler first started appearing in TV movies in 1988. After a number of shows, including leading roles in “Homefront” and “Early Edition” and a splashy guest gig on “Grey’s Anatomy,” Chandler finally became a household name as coach Eric Taylor on “Friday Night Lights” in 2006.
The show, which also starred Connie Britton and Taylor Kitsch, was a cult hit with a rabid fan base. When NBC considered canceling the show, fans started a campaign to save it. One fan site claimed to have raised enough money to send 13,700 footballs to the network to get its attention.
“I’ve turned down quite a bit because ‘Friday Night Lights’ was a curse,” says Chandler, “because that show allowed the actors and everyone to have such ownership of their work. You don’t want to step backward.”
But Chandler’s kept it moving forward, carving out a new niche with scene-stealing supporting roles in critical film hits such as “Argo,” “Zero Dark Thirty” and “The Spectacular Now.”
“The roles you’re talking about are roles that are smaller, so there’s not much meat to them,” he says. “You’re asked to create a lot that goes into them. So like ‘Spectacular Now’ [in which Chandler plays a neglectful father], I was horrified of that part because there’s nothing there. But at the same time, it’s the linchpin of the whole film. That’ll cause you to stay up late at night.”
After years in LA, Chandler, like “FNL” co-star Kitsch, now calls the Austin area home with his wife, Kathryn, and their daughters, Sydney, 18, and Sawyer, 12.
So what does the successful father have planned for his family this Christmas?
“Going to Disneyland,” he says.
Oh neat, for real?
“No,” he says, laughing. “I’m not going to tell you what I’m doing for Christmas. This is my life. I already gave you the DILF line.”