Leslie Mann and Judd Apatow Rave About Their ‘Capable’ Daughter Maude Apatow: ‘We Just Follow Her Lead’ (Exclusive)

Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann are proud parents as they watch their daughter Maude Apatow‘s career continue to take off.

At the 2025 WIF (Women in Film) Honors on Thursday, Nov. 6, Maude, 27, received the Max Mara Face of the Future Award, which “recognizes a rising star who embodies style and grace.” Reflecting on their daughter’s latest accolade in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE at the Los Angeles event, Leslie, 53, said she and her director/producer husband, 57, are “thrilled.”

“It’s so exciting,” Judd adds. “I’m speechless.”

When asked about Maude being tipped as a rising star and following in her parents’ footsteps by making her mark on the industry, Leslie says the 27-year-old should “take the baton.”

“She’s capable,” the This Is 40 star raves, prompting Judd to chime in: “Yeah, we’re dropping the baton.”

“Handing it over,” Leslie adds.

The couple — who also share daughter Iris Apatow, 23 — also spoke to PEOPLE about how Maude pivoted away from the family tradition of comedy projects with her role as Lexi Howard in the teen drama series Euphoria.

“We just follow her lead. We trust her instincts,” Leslie says of her reaction to Maude’s decision to take on the role. “She’s a smart person, and honestly, we just follow her dreams.”

Maude first appeared on-screen in her dad’s 2007 movie Knocked Up, and has since starred in The King of Staten Island, One of Them Days and Hollywood. Her latest project found her stepping behind the camera to make her directorial debut with the coming-of-age film Poetic License.

Leslie stars in the movie as Liz, a married mom and soon-to-be empty nester who audits a college poetry class and becomes a point of tension between seniors — and longtime best friends — Sam (Andrew Barth Feldman) and Ari (Cooper Hoffman), who both vie for her affections.

Recalling her experience shooting the film last year with her daughter in the director’s chair, Leslie tells PEOPLE she wishes they “could go back and relive the whole thing.”

“It was such a great experience. And to be able to spend every day with my daughter, being forced to talk to me all day long was so great,” she says.

“She’s one of my favorite people, if not my favorite person,” Leslie adds of Maude, before joking, “Sorry, Judd and Iris.”

Judd says he’s “very impressed” by Maude’s work on the movie, which had its world premiere at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival in September and is scheduled for a May 2026 theatrical release.

“It’s really interesting to just see what her point of view is and what her style is because she really had a vision for what she wanted to do with Poetic License, and it’s really sweet and funny and emotional,” he explains.

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Leslie previously told PEOPLE she “felt so safe” in Maude’s hands while shooting Poetic License. “We can read each other’s minds, so it just felt like no noise, just pure creative space,” she said. “That was really fun for me as an actor.”

For her part, Maude admitted the pair “weren’t sure how it was going to be” when they started working together. However, she said, “It was seamless. It really was.”