Ben Stiller is opening up about a parenting decision he wishes he could take back.

In his new documentary, "Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Lost," the actor and filmmaker reflects on a moment he says was the "worst decision" of his life: cutting his daughter, Ella Olivia Stiller, from his 2013 film "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty."

The film, which Stiller directed and starred in, originally featured Ella in a small role as the younger sister of his character, Walter Mitty.

During a conversation with Ella, now 23, Stiller admitted the choice still haunts him. "It's probably the worst decision I ever made in my life," he told her, according to Entertainment Weekly.

Ella, who shares a close bond with her father, responded with understanding.

According to People, she said she was "really scared" to appear on camera at the time and admitted the scene "didn't make sense in the movie." But for Stiller, the regret runs deeper.

"For me, it kind of goes deeper," he explained. "What it relates to is my own issues with my own obsession with my work, or perfectionism."

Ben Stiller Learns Parenting Lessons from Kids

That drive for perfection, he shared, is something he inherited from his parents, Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara.

The documentary explores their careers and marriage—and how their intense work ethic impacted him as a child and later as a father.

Ben and his wife, actress Christine Taylor, share two children: Ella and 20-year-old Quinlin Dempsey Stiller, PageSix reported.

In the documentary, Quinlin also reflected on how his father's dedication to his work sometimes affected their family time.

"You have all these hats that you're trying to balance," Quinlin told his dad. "Being a director, an actor, a producer, a writer—but also just, like, a father, right? And sometimes I felt that that would come last to these other things."

Stiller said he once believed he was doing better than his own parents, flying home on weekends and making sets fun for his kids. But hearing from Ella and Quinlin made him realize he had missed the mark.

"They were very clear with me about what I got wrong," he shared at the New York Film Festival. "And I really appreciated that."

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