this post was submitted on 01 Jan 2026
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At what point do we stop saying 'nepo baby' and start calling it a 'dynasty'? Because let's talk about a few.
Francis Ford Coppola is a great director. Sofia Coppola is gorgeous, a midrange actress, and a very good director. Nicholas Cage is a great actor, a great producer, and not half-bad at direction either. Sofia got her start because her father wanted to give her a shot in Godfather Part 3. Nick tried to distance himself (hence the name change).
George Clooney is a fine actor (I'd argue the worst live-action Batman but the best live-action Bruce Wayne). Would he have gotten his start if it wasn't for Rosemary Clooney?
Would Mariska Hargitay have gotten the shot at SVU (one of the most-watched TV shows of the 21st century) if she wasn't the daughter of Jayne Mansfield?
How about Sean Astin? Son of Patty Duke, and adopted by John Astin. Could you imagine a better Sam Gamgee, though? Is he a nepo baby?
That's where I have issues. Talent can pass in families. Why should we be hateful toward it?
I think there is a point to be made here - talent is the easiest part of success. You can drop by bars in any major city and hear musicians who have the talent to be a top 40 star. What is difficult is to get your "break" and toehold in the industry. I think that's what the core issue is. Their parents are right in that their kids have the talent to be mid-tier in the industry. What's infuriating is that they are not more talented than anyone else. They have an escalator into the industry whe everyone else has to fight their way up the back stairs.
Others have responded to you with part of what I wanted to bring up, but I also have another aspect to add to the rationale. These nepo babies aren't just inheriting access and opportunities, but also a wealthy and comfortable upbringing. The child of a multimillionaire actor/musician/athlete not only has the inroads of their parents' network and reputation, but also access to premium diets, exercise, doctors, schools, coaches, etc AND didn't have to worry about getting a job at Chipotle or whatever while in high school or right after, and definitely didn't have to balance that in order to help their family with bills.
It's a lot easier to get into Hollywood when your parents are already famous, but that really only gets you the auditions. Being able to work on honing your craft for 40+ hours per week without becoming homeless, going hungry, or losing sleep is a motherfucking luxury. I rarely get to practice guitar anymore because my job is so taxing both mentally and physically, so I'll probably never get better, so access to a producer still wouldn't really help me to win out over a nepo baby. They could truly be the greatest of their generation because they were able to and encouraged to perfect their skills for their craft without having to spend their time on literally anything else.
A great example here is Taylor swift, one of the first billionare performers. Her parents were both insanely wealthy stockbrokers, who moved to Nashville from a 15 acre farm in Pennsylvania to support her music carrear. She started door knocking at 11 years old in Nashville until she got her first contract at 14. Her family could afford to uproot and move a 1000 miles to spend 3 years directly supporting their preteen daughter attempting to break into country music.
Taylor clearly has a lot of talent and is a hell of a performer, but even without all the direct contacts like a Winslet, intense wealth gives you amazing tools to win at life.
With a record company that her father invested in.
It doesn't mean these people aren't talented. But getting into the entertainment industry is notoriously difficult. Having a name that opens doors will definitely make it easier.
Also having the financial support to attend every casting and networking opportunity. Not having to worry about food, clothes and housing now or in the future is a big advantage (related to nepotism).
I don't think we should shit on legitimately talented people because of their relationships with other talented people. Less talented people that only got chances because of their families? Well, we have a duty to make fun of them as much as possible. I also think that we need to acknowledge when talented people get roles in large part because of their families.
I think a lot of people who trumpet the "but they're so talented!" line, don't realize just how much genuine talent is actually out there washing dishes in between doing plays in 300-seaters.
Nicholas Cage certainly got benefits from his family name. Helping him get in the door at interviews.
But he chose not to use his family name so the movie going public didn't associate him with his Uncle.
And he started his career with small supporting parts before working his way up to leading man.
He didn't have his famous mother write and direct a movie explicitly for him to star in.