In his latest film, Sketch, Emmy-winning actor Tony Hale leaves behind the familiar territory of comedy to explore something far more personal — faith, grief, and the emotional weight of fatherhood.

The Arrested Development and Veep star portrays Taylor, a father trying to hold his family together after his wife’s death. While the whimsical children’s film from Angel Studios includes fantasy elements like chalk-drawn monsters and magical ponds, Hale says the story’s emotional core reflects real-life parenting challenges — including his own.

“As a person of faith, I believe nothing grows on the mountaintop, but everything grows in the valley,” Hale told The Christian Post. “It’s the hard times where you’re refined. It’s not easy, but that tends to be where the growth is.”

Directed by Seth Worley, Sketch follows two siblings who cope with their mother’s death by diving into imaginative worlds — one by drawing haunting monsters, the other by clinging to hope that a pond can bring her back. Hale’s character struggles to support them while packing up their home and pushing through his own pain.

“Honestly, I related to Taylor,” Hale said. “He compartmentalizes grief and wants to move forward. But he learns that real healing comes when you allow your kids — and yourself — to feel the feelings. That’s how you get through it.”

Hale, the father of a 19-year-old daughter, said that message hit close to home. He referenced “snowplow parenting” — the instinct to remove all obstacles from a child’s path — and admitted he shares that temptation.

“It’s painful to watch your kid struggle,” he said. “But they have to walk through challenges. That’s how they grow.”

Though the film is PG and family-friendly, it doesn’t shy away from the hard stuff: shame, guilt, grief. In one scene, Taylor tells his son, “It’s not your responsibility,” after watching the boy try to shoulder the family’s pain. Hale said he wishes someone had told him that as a child.

“I remember taking on other people’s feelings. If someone had just said, ‘Give yourself a break,’ that would have changed everything.”

Faith plays a central role in the film’s emotional journey. Hale reflected on the importance of embracing all emotions — even the messy ones — as part of God’s design.

“God gave us these emotions to help us process challenges,” he said. “Even Jesus wept. It’s not about avoiding grief. It’s about walking through it.”

Sketch, which Hale describes as “Inside Out meets Jurassic Park,” strikes a unique balance of adventure, imagination, and emotional truth. Hale hopes it becomes a shared experience for families.

“I love when families can watch something together — parents and kids both enjoying it, learning from it,” he said. “I want parents to give themselves a break. We all make mistakes. And I want kids to know there are many ways to process feelings.”

Hale also offered a faith-based reminder: “We pour ourselves out for our kids, but we’ve got to keep our tanks full. Christ said, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ That means taking care of yourself, too.”