Hugh Hefner Meets the Actor Who's Playing Him in His New Docu-Series

Amazon premiers new show about the Playboy founder will

By Kendall Fisher Apr 07, 2017 8:19 PMTags
Watch: Cooper Hefner Talks Hef's "American Playboy" Show & More

Ahead of his 91st birthday on Sunday, Amazon released a docu-series based on Hugh Hefner today.

The ten-episode series, American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story, chronicles the Playboy founder's life, the rise of the magazine and unveils never-before-seen footage from his private archives. 

Hefner is played by Matt Whelan, who he got to meet and take a photo with while filming the show. 

"He was a gentleman, very charming and friendly," Whelan said of meeting Hefner. "I remember mentioning how much I enjoyed stepping into his shoes for the 5 and a half weeks we shot American Playboy, and he said, with a big smile on his face, 'Yeah I bet, I've enjoyed the last 90 years living it.'"

Elayne Lodge

As we mentioned before, Hefner is headed toward his 91st birthday this weekend, and his son Cooper, recently gave E! News an update on his father's health

"He's doing fine," Cooper assured us. "I think because he has stepped back from the day to day operations of the business, people have thought that his health was not very good."

However, Cooper said, "The reality is he has a really bad back—that happens when you're 90—and he is enjoying life at the mansion."

Cooper continued, "His friends still come over and watch movies. Everyone gets together for meals." 

In fact, they used the mansion for the premiere screening of the first episode of American Playboy. "He's excited," Cooper said of his father and the show. "It's a 'warts and all' story."