Hollywood was built on dynasties — from the Warner Brothers and the Barrymores to the Fondas and the Coppolas.
So it shouldn’t be a surprise when you watch a movie or TV show that you often see familiar last names in the credits or ask yourself, “Where have I seen that face before?
But for some reason, the idea that the children of famous people work in the same industry as their parents has become an obsession for us citizens more than ever. Blame it on the Internet.
Earlier this month, New York Magazine piqued our collective curiosity with what they called it, “An almost definitive guide to the Hollywood nepoverse.”
On its cover, the biweekly magazine declared 2022 the year of the “nepotism baby” (short for nepotism baby) and publishes an extremely thorough insight into the world of celebrity children.
The series of articles and infographics revealed that your Hollywood favorites are most likely the product of nepotism.
These “Nepo babies” star in movies, make music, and sell everything from shampoo to candles to candy. And sometimes, as in the case of Brooklyn Beckham, they try everything out at once — David and Victoria Beckham’s son was a photographer, bartender, model, and chef.
(Let’s take this opportunity to revisit his photo book about elephants in Kenya, which has been the main material for memes for years.)
European Nepo babies include French entertainment queen Charlotte Gainsbourg, daughter of singer Serge Gainsbourg and actor/singer Jane Birkin, Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgård, son of actors Stellan and My Skarsgård, and Italian model/actress Deva Cassel, daughter of actors Vincent Cassel and Monica Bellucci.
Nepo babies react
The idea of Nepo babies may not be new, but the New York series has set fire to the Internet with memes and hot takes. The response was so great that some of the Nepo babies mentioned felt the need to come forward and defend themselves.
Jamie Lee Curtis, the daughter of actors Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, who described herself as an “OG nepobaby,” said the latest discourse was “just meant to belittle, denigrate and hurt.”
Kate Hudson, daughter of actors Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, told The Independent that she thinks nepotism is more common in other industries and that talent surpasses pedigree.
“I don’t care where you’re from or what your relationship with the company is — if you work hard and break it, it doesn’t matter,” she said.
Musician and actress Lily Allen, the daughter of trainspotting actor Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen, ironically described herself as a “chief nepo baby defender” after tweeting that people should really worry about nepotism in law firms, banks, and politics “when we talk about the consequences for the real world and rob people of their opportunities.”
Eve Hewson, Bono’s child, pointed out that even the CEO of New York Magazine is a Nepo baby.
Lack of diversity in the arts
The discourse sometimes went deeper when people discussed that it was more than just your own parents, how much money they earn or what socio-economic class you grew up in that determines your success in every industry, but in art in particular.
New research from the UK has shown that the percentage of artists (including musicians, actors and writers) who come from the working class has fallen by half since the 1970s.
Only 7.9 percent of the youngest creatives come from working families.
The study published by the British Sociological Association says that while it appears that it is becoming more difficult for working class people to gain a foothold in art, the figures reflect the shrinking British working class on a societal level.
“The opportunities to work creatively are profoundly unequal when it comes to teaching, but they are neither more nor less unequal than ever before. As in the rest of the economy, there was no “golden age” of classless access to creative employment.”
Initiatives to attract more working class people to art have become more important on both sides of the Atlantic in recent years.
In a bold and widely criticised move, the British government announced earlier this year that it would use cultural funding for the next three years to support organizations in regional centers and not in the capital.
And in November, voters in the US state of California, home to Hollywood, voted overwhelmingly to invest an additional $1 billion (€941,050,000) in public art education across the state, particularly in poor neighborhoods.
Hollywood was built on dynasties — from the Warner Brothers and the Barrymores to the Fondas and the Coppolas.
So it shouldn’t be a surprise when you watch a movie or TV show that you often see familiar last names in the credits or ask yourself, “Where have I seen that face before?
But for some reason, the idea that the children of famous people work in the same industry as their parents has become an obsession for us citizens more than ever. Blame it on the Internet.
Earlier this month, New York Magazine piqued our collective curiosity with what they called it, “An almost definitive guide to the Hollywood nepoverse.”
On its cover, the biweekly magazine declared 2022 the year of the “nepotism baby” (short for nepotism baby) and publishes an extremely thorough insight into the world of celebrity children.
The series of articles and infographics revealed that your Hollywood favorites are most likely the product of nepotism.
These “Nepo babies” star in movies, make music, and sell everything from shampoo to candles to candy. And sometimes, as in the case of Brooklyn Beckham, they try everything out at once — David and Victoria Beckham’s son was a photographer, bartender, model, and chef.
(Let’s take this opportunity to revisit his photo book about elephants in Kenya, which has been the main material for memes for years.)
European Nepo babies include French entertainment queen Charlotte Gainsbourg, daughter of singer Serge Gainsbourg and actor/singer Jane Birkin, Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgård, son of actors Stellan and My Skarsgård, and Italian model/actress Deva Cassel, daughter of actors Vincent Cassel and Monica Bellucci.
Nepo babies react
The idea of Nepo babies may not be new, but the New York series has set fire to the Internet with memes and hot takes. The response was so great that some of the Nepo babies mentioned felt the need to come forward and defend themselves.
Jamie Lee Curtis, the daughter of actors Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, who described herself as an “OG nepobaby,” said the latest discourse was “just meant to belittle, denigrate and hurt.”
Kate Hudson, daughter of actors Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, told The Independent that she thinks nepotism is more common in other industries and that talent surpasses pedigree.
“I don’t care where you’re from or what your relationship with the company is — if you work hard and break it, it doesn’t matter,” she said.
Musician and actress Lily Allen, the daughter of trainspotting actor Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen, ironically described herself as a “chief nepo baby defender” after tweeting that people should really worry about nepotism in law firms, banks, and politics “when we talk about the consequences for the real world and rob people of their opportunities.”
Eve Hewson, Bono’s child, pointed out that even the CEO of New York Magazine is a Nepo baby.
Lack of diversity in the arts
The discourse sometimes went deeper when people discussed that it was more than just your own parents, how much money they earn or what socio-economic class you grew up in that determines your success in every industry, but in art in particular.
New research from the UK has shown that the percentage of artists (including musicians, actors and writers) who come from the working class has fallen by half since the 1970s.
Only 7.9 percent of the youngest creatives come from working families.
The study published by the British Sociological Association says that while it appears that it is becoming more difficult for working class people to gain a foothold in art, the figures reflect the shrinking British working class on a societal level.
“The opportunities to work creatively are profoundly unequal when it comes to teaching, but they are neither more nor less unequal than ever before. As in the rest of the economy, there was no “golden age” of classless access to creative employment.”
Initiatives to attract more working class people to art have become more important on both sides of the Atlantic in recent years.
In a bold and widely criticised move, the British government announced earlier this year that it would use cultural funding for the next three years to support organizations in regional centers and not in the capital.
And in November, voters in the US state of California, home to Hollywood, voted overwhelmingly to invest an additional $1 billion (€941,050,000) in public art education across the state, particularly in poor neighborhoods.