Brittany Ishibashi is proudly basking in her “refusing to pick” era. The ultimate working mom, she plays alongside Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey (who play heightened versions of themselves) in the upcoming Apple TV+ comedy series Brothers. She also finds time to run carpool and cheer loudly at her children’s soccer games.
“Career and motherhood feel more like a juggling act. There’s a huge effort to keep all these balls in the air, and some are going to drop,” she says. “When I’m working, something at home may drop. When I’m fully in parenting mode, something professional may drop. I’m learning to be okay with that.”
Her role in Brothers — which premieres Sept. 23 and follows a family who is met with chaos and a decades-old secret when they retreat to Matthew’s Texas ranch — centers around parenting as well. Brittany said she instantly felt connected to Joy, who plays Harrelson’s wife, though Joy’s children are older than hers IRL. Still, bringing Joy to life on screen gave her a glimpse into a stage of motherhood she hasn’t reached yet, but the “mom looks” she gives her children in the show are spot on to the ones she gives her children at home.
As a mom of three children, Kai, Lilia and Makena, ranging from 5 to 12, Brittany runs a tight ship at home in Los Angeles. You could say a well-organized schedule is one of her love languages, but she’s learning to loosen her grip a little. “Joy has a lot of big emotions and ideas coming at her, and she just rolls with it. It’s wild and a lot to manage, but she keeps the family moving,” she says. “Joy reminded me that when you relax your grip a little, somehow things still work out — and often everyone is happier.”
Playing in the sandbox
Born and raised in a multi-generational showbusiness family, Brittany and her siblings practically grew up backstage at live shows. Cast in the show Felicity right after high school, Brittany has been hitting her marks on set for nearly three decades now. She’s best known for stealing the show in the Golden Globe-nominated miniseries Political Animals as Anne Ogami — an interior designer who quietly unravels after marrying into a former First Family. She also played iconic villains Tina Minoru in Marvel’s hit series Runaways, Tamiko Masuda on Hawaii Five-0, and Karai in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows.
Thanks to Brothers, Brittany is poised for a breakout year, though she’s hesitant to actually say that herself. No matter how much an actor prepares and shows up, the rest is up to timing, luck, and whether the work resonates with wider audiences — along with the fact that so much of a working actor’s reality is full of “crazy highs” and “slow lows.”
“I feel like with every job I need to remind myself that I was hired for a reason,” she says. “But the setup for [Brothers] made it incredibly easy to leave any apprehension behind and just play. It is so much fun to be a part of.”
The types of roles that feed her soul today as a storyteller and artist are different from the ones she vied for in her twenties, but the through line is the same: “If it makes even one person feel something, that matters to me.”
“I don’t have to do it all by myself.”
While there’s no cure for mom guilt, Brittany is learning to have grace with herself when priorities shift on a whim. Brittany spent much of 2025 in Austin, Texas, filming Brothers, which meant missing out on a lot of special moments with her husband and children. She admits that not being there for every pickup and every game weighed heavy on her heart sometimes. “When I was on set, I worried about being away. When I was home, there was a part of me that knew I wasn’t honoring the artist in me,” she says. “When I finally gave myself permission to make room for all the parts of me, imperfectly, I was so much happier.”
When I finally gave myself permission to make room for all the parts of me, imperfectly, I was so much happier.
“If I couldn’t be there physically, I tried my hardest to be there emotionally,” she adds. “It doesn’t beat being there in person, but I made every effort to be there in support of them and to listen the best I could.”
What makes it all worth it for Brittany is that her children get a front row seat at witnessing what chasing your dreams looks like in real time — the wins, the surprises, the disappointments, the sacrifices. “My youngest understands that mommy loves acting and creating,” she says. “The older kids see that but also understand more of what the work asks of all of us. I think when they see me excited about my work, it makes them excited.” Refusing to choose between career, marriage, and motherhood has also made her “so much more present and intentional” with her time.
It helps that she has a supportive husband, Jeff Horowitz, who’s “locked in” and swoops in like Superman on those absurdly busy days. One day in particular stands out to her. “It started at 6 am with a sports field setup, went through several practices and games for multiple sports (and multiple kids) all in different parts of the city, three birthday parties thrown in for good measure (all overlapping of course), a team celebration, play date, and at some point I had to put an audition on tape,” she says. “Did it all get done? Yes. Was it pretty? Absolutely not. But we did it! Together.”
Being joyful on purpose
A professional acting career padded with long shooting days on set, sudden next-day auditions, and last-minute meetings with agents and managers brings a level of unpredictability that few people, let alone families, can sustain. Surprisingly, bedtime affirmations have become a calming anchor for Brittany’s household, whether everyone is cuddled up in bed together or connecting over FaceTime.
“As they’re tucked into bed, we’ll say, ‘You are strong. You are healthy. You are loved. You are smart. You are kind…’ The affirmations change, but the routine stays the same,” she says. “No matter where the day goes or how we’re feeling, we know we’ll come back to this little ritual and remind each other that we’re safe and surrounded by love.”
Part of making it work is knowing when to take a step back. That means that a binder system no longer rules her house. And because art seems to have an uncanny way of imitating life, Brittany’s character Joy was constantly reminding her to release her grip at home. “When I came home for a weekend, I realized they had created an entirely new system that worked for them,” she says. “I couldn’t blow in for 36 hours and put everything back to ‘Mom’s way.’ My job was to fall into their rhythm.”
Finding beauty in the chaos
In case you’re wondering, the calendar’s still very much there for logistics (and it’s not going anywhere!), but Brittany, her husband, and her children are leaning more on communication with each other these days, rather than letting an itinerary dictate their every move. “Everyone knows they have a role in making the day successful,” she says. “It’s not falling on any one person.”
For Brittany, some days are long and spent in front of the camera. Other days are dedicated to cheering at her kids’ soccer games with her whole heart — even if she’s still learning what offsides means. That setup suits her just fine as long as her children see this chapter of life as beautifully chaotic.
“I hope they see the freedom. I hope they see the beauty in letting go a little and not being so mindful of what it’s all supposed to look like,” she says. “This chapter of my life feels connected to Joy in that way. When they watch Brothers and remember this time in our family, I hope they remember the joy we all shared in being present — and just being in the chaos of all of it, together.”
I hope they see the freedom. I hope they see the beauty in letting go a little and not being so mindful of what it’s all supposed to look like.
