Hi everyone,
yes, I’m back. And when I do my roundup next week I’ll explain more about my absence but before then I just wanted to jump onto the ‘nepo baby’ trend.
Let me explain. So New York Magazine published an article this week called ‘The Year of the Nepo Baby’ with the brilliant cover headline ‘She Has Her Mother’s Eyes…And Agent.’ It is copywriting gold. I am obsessed.
So this article is in response to the trend on social media (especially TikTok) of pointing out that a lot of the young and famous celebs have actually had a little help in one of the most competitive industries by being born to some famous parents. But this (as the article points out) has been happening since the dawn of the industry and what is new is just more and more pointing it out. But in an industry that is trying to be diverse, many talented unknowns are not being given chances because children of celebrities/powerful and rich folk already are six steps ahead.
That is not to say that we should not support these stars. Talent like looks is many times inherited, some have worked incredibly hard at their craft, and others have roughed it out. BUT their privilege should be noted. Just like white people don’t choose to be born into white privilege, these kids don’t choose to be born to famous parents, however, they cannot deny that they have a privilege that others do not. If every industry is about who you know, here it really benefits you.
Jamie Lee Curtis (the daughter of Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh) explains it well here:
The NY Mag article is really good though. A lot of the chatter online seems to be focused on the large graph they did about all the nepo babies, but the actual article is incredibly in-depth. It tracks the history of nepo babies from Douglas Fairbanks Jr to Liza Minnelli to Laura Dern, it explains why we excuse some and ridicule others. They also interview various casting directors and talk to them about what goes into choosing an actor for a particular project and if who their parents are plays into it. Which is what we truly want to know.
Like any loyal E! True Hollywood Story watcher, and film history fanatic I have always been interested in celebrity dynasties from the Barrymores to the Fondas to the Hustons so this conversation interested me. Earlier this year I was watching the series The Offer about the production of The Godfather and I saw this dude that looked kind of familiar. It was Jake Cannavale. And obv his surname was recognisable and I realised he was the son of Bobby Cannavale (Boardwalk Empire, Will & Grace etc) and stepson of Rose Byrne (QUEEN). But further investigation had me realising that his mother is Jenny Lumet, the screenwriter of Rachel Gets Married, who just so happens to be the daughter of legendary director Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men) and Gail Jones, the daughter of screen icon and civil rights activist Lena Horne. Sidney was also married to heiress Gloria Vanderbilt who was Anderson Cooper’s mother. Imagine all of that in your corner.
So before I get into my list of favourite nepo babies I just want to say that I’m not a fan of this backlash by celebrities to the article. Yes, there are talented nepo babies. Yes, they didn’t choose this life. However, I think that the more people are aware of the privilege that these children have over other actors, producers, writers, musicians etc, the more we will actually see diverse castings and equal opportunity. If someone is able to make the introduction to get you into the room you are already halfway there. If someone deserves to be in that room by all means give them the platform, however casting directors, managers, agents and producers should be aware of this so that giving someone a job based solely on who their parents are should not be okay.
Okay here’s the list (of the new school, under 50s only):
Elizabeth Olsen - a nepo sister? She’s the sister of Full House stars and fashion icons Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.
Dan Levy - The Schitt’s Creek creator is the son of comedian and SC co-star Eugene Levy. I love them both so much.
Miley Cyrus - She is so damn talented and deserves better. Of course, she is the daughter of Achy Breaky Heart’s Billy Ray Cyrus and the goddaughter of Dolly Parton.
Rashida Jones - The Parks and Rec actor is actually hilarious in her own right. She is the daughter of super music producer Quincy Jones and Twin Peaks actress Peggy Lipton.
BILLIE LOURD - My favourite! Lourd’s deadpan delivery automatically makes her my favourite in everything that she is in. She is the daughter of Carrie Fisher, who is a nepo baby herself, and the daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher.
Zosia Mamet - The best part of Girls, Zosia’s parents are writer David Mamet (Glengarry Glen Ross, The Untouchables) and actress Lindsay Crouse (Places in the Heart).
Hannah Einbinder - She’s sensational in Hacks (if you haven’t watched it, you should) and she’s the daughter of original Saturday Night Live cast member Laraine Newman.
Maude Apatow - I love my girl Maude. She’s been in almost all of her father, filmmaker Judd Apatow’s films, and currently playing the terribly relatable character of Lexi in Euphoria. Her mother is, of course, actress Leslie Mann.
Riley Keough - She’s the granddaughter of Elvis Presley and she has this effortlessly cool thing about her. I’ve been impressed by her in every film that she’s starred in and am excited to see her in Daisy Jones and the Six.
Kate Hudson - Of course, the queen. She seems to have inherited her mother, Goldie Hawn’s comedic chops as well as her looks. She is such a vision. Also, watch Glass Onion (on Netflix from tomorrow).
Zoey Deutch - As someone who grew up with Caroline in the City on television, I loved Zoey’s mom Lea Thompson, and Zoey is so dynamic and adorable onscreen she seems to be following in her mom’s footsteps. Her dad is director Howard Deutch (Pretty in Pink).
But let me know, who are your favourite nepo babies?
Festive blessings to you all,
Love
Caryn