Dennis Quaid Says Life in Nashville Is ‘Dreamy’ But He ‘Really Misses’ His Twins at College (Exclusive)

Dennis Quaid spoke exclusively to PEOPLE at the Nashville screening of the new documentary ‘Water Wars.’ The actor said dropping his 18-year-old twins off at college was ‘very emotional’ as he reflected on becoming an empty-nester.

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Dennis Quaid spoke exclusively to PEOPLE at the Nashville screening of the new documentary Water Wars, which he narrates

The actor shared that it was “very emotional” dropping his 18-year-old twins, Thomas and Zoe, off at college, but he has also found parts of being an empty-nester “dreamy”

Quaid is also dad to his actor son, Jack Quaid, 34

Dennis Quaid is sharing an insight into life as an empty-nester.

Speaking exclusively to PEOPLE at the Nashville screening of new documentary Water Wars on Wednesday, Sept. 2, Quaid, 72, opened up about what it’s been like at home since his 18-year-old twins, Thomas and Zoe, left for college last month.

“We’re full-time here in Nashville, and it’s really dreamy that way,” Quaid tells PEOPLE. “I really miss the kids. It was very emotional, letting them off at school. They’re at the dorm. It always surprises you.”

“And it made me remember when I let Jack off at the airport when he went to NYU,” Dennis continues, of his actor son Jack Quaid, 34. “It really gets emotional. You remember everything all at once.”

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While both twins are studying business, Zoe is attending the University of Virginia and Thomas is attending the University of Colorado Boulder.

Dennis shares Thomas and Zoe with his third wife, Kimberly Buffington, while he and his second wife, actress Meg Ryan, welcomed Jack in 1992.

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Last month, The Parent Trap actor told PEOPLE how he had just taken Thomas and Zoe to college.

“My twins, they just started college. Dropped them off last week, in fact,” he said.

“They’re out there on their own now,” Dennis continued. “They’re just starting out and you think, how are they gonna make their way? And then they do.”

Jack Quaid/Instagram

Elsewhere in his latest interview with PEOPLE, The Rookie star discussed his latest project, Water Wars, and how the story personally and unexpectedly affected him.

Narrated by the actor, the documentary explores a high-stakes legal battle over water rights in Texas, pitting ranchers and farmers against some of the state’s wealthiest landowners.

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“Not since Chinatown [in 1974] have we had a movie about water,” Dennis tells PEOPLE, before reflecting on his time spent living in Texas and on a ranch in Montana, experiences that directly informed his interest in exploring the topic of water acquisition further via Water Wars.

“We were living off of cisterns in Montana for several years up there,” he says. “It took us a while to find water until we had a diviner [a person who divines the location of water or minerals] who came out to the property. And we’d had a couple of professional crews out there and he came out. He said, ‘You’ll find water at 260 feet.’ We found it at 264. And he went up to the top part of the property a couple miles up and said, ‘You’ll find it at 88 feet.’ We found it at 88 feet.”

“Incredible. It works,” he adds.

Water Wars premieres on Prime Video on Sept. 4.

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