Nepotism: Celebrity Kids Speak Up

A leg up. Not everyone starts at the bottom in Hollywood — especially if their parents are already famous. These celebrity kids have spoken out about being “nepo babies.”

Some Euphoria fans were shocked to learn Maude Apatow had famous parents, The Other Woman star Leslie Mann and writer/director Judd Apatow (The 40-Year-Old Virgin). Her family even gave Maude her first onscreen roles as a child in Knocked Up and Funny People. She wasn’t thrilled when she saw the internet calling her a “nepotism baby,” but she understands the label.

“At first I was sad,” she told Net-A-Porter in September 2022, adding that she’d rather be judged on her talent. “I try not to let it get to me because I obviously understand that I’m in such a lucky position. A lot of people [in a similar position] have proven themselves over the years, so I’ve got to keep going and make good work. It’s so early in my career, I don’t have much to show yet, but hopefully one day I’ll be really proud of the stuff I’ve done by myself.”

Lily-Rose Depp, meanwhile, said having model Vanessa Paradis as her mother and Edward Scissorhands star Johnny Depp as her dad may have scored her an audition — but she claimed nepotism never got her a job.

“The internet seems to care a lot about that kind of stuff. People are going to have preconceived ideas about you or how you got there, and I can definitely say that nothing is going to get you the part except for being right for the part,” she told Elle in December 2022.

She alleged, “The internet cares a lot more about who your family is than the people who are casting you in things. Maybe you get your foot in the door, but you still just have your foot in the door. There’s a lot of work that comes after that.”

Though the term “nepo baby” is new, nepotism in Tinseltown has been around for decades. Jamie Lee Curtis acknowledged how favoritism has helped her career. Her parents were stars in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Mom Janet Leigh was in Psycho and Bye Bye Birdie while dad Tony Curtis was in Spartacus and Some Like It Hot.

“It’s important for me, given that I’m this bougie princess from Los Angeles — even if I claim I worked hard, I’ve never really worked hard a day in my life,” she told The New Yorker in December 2019.

Scroll down to hear from more celebrities with famous parents who have spoken out about nepotism in Hollywood.

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