Top 10 Nepo Babies Who Would've Been Famous Anyway

If you’ve seen “Schitt’s Creek,” you can’t deny Levy’s comedic brilliance. The series was far from his first role, but it put him on the map. Some have argued that it would never have been made without his father Eugene’s connections. However, considering how talented Dan is, we know he would have eventually found another path to stardom. Although his dad is also best known for comedy, the two have totally different styles. While Eugene often plays the straight man, Dan is more over-the-top and dramatic. The fact that he’s taken home Emmys for writing, directing, producing, and acting are proof that he’s much more than just a famous last name.

Plenty of “Law & Order: SVU” fans don’t even know that she’s a nepo baby. Her dad, Mickey Hargitay, was a world-famous bodybuilder, and her mom was blonde bombshell Jayne Mansfield. Tragically, Mansfield was killed in a car crash in 1967. Three-year-old Mariska was also in the vehicle, but sustained only minor injuries. Although her father was also an actor, he was mostly retired by the time Mariska landed her first role in 1985. That meant she had to make her way in Hollywood on her own merits. As far as modern audiences are concerned, Hargitay’s fame has outpaced her parents’, though her dad did make a cameo on “SVU” as his final acting role.

Like Hargitay, she’s become even more famous than her actor parents. Aniston’s mother, Nancy Dow, appeared in just a handful of television episodes in the 60s and a couple of movies. Her father, John Aniston, was a successful TV actor, best-known for a long-running part on “Days of Our Lives.” Of course, if you’ve seen Jennifer Aniston in literally anything, you know that she has more than enough talent to make it as an actor without the benefit of nepotism. She first made a name for herself playing Rachel Green on “Friends.” But since then, she’s proven herself as a dramatic actor too. For Aniston, having parents that could show her the ropes was just a bonus.

We can’t imagine a world where Nicolas Cage isn’t famous – or maybe we just don’t want to. Cage is actually the nephew of “Godfather” director Francis Ford Coppola. As an adult, he changed his last name from Coppola to Cage so that people wouldn’t think he was just another nepo baby. He also didn’t get much help from his famous uncle in making it big. When he asked Coppola for a screen test at the age of 15, he got the silent treatment. Cage is so talented, and such a force of nature, he was destined to be successful no matter what his last name is.

Did you know that her mom was the singer-songwriter Minnie Riperton? Her dad, composer and music producer Richard Rudolph, might be less famous, but he’s had an extremely successful career. He’s worked on a number of big movies, like “Flatliners” and “Weekend at Bernie's,” and even co-founded a record label with actor Michael Douglas. But Maya didn’t need her dad’s Hollywood connections to make a name for herself. After she joined a Los Angeles improv group in the late 90s, she met future “Saturday Night Live” co-stars and got recruited to appear on the show. Although it wasn’t her first TV role, it proved to be a pivotal point in her career. Now Rudolph is as much a household name as her mother was.

His first film role was a bit part in 1983’s “Max Dugan Returns,” which starred his famous dad Donald Sutherland. But Kiefer’s prolific film and television career prove that he has plenty of talent to make it on his own. He became a Hollywood heartthrob in the 80s and 90s. But Sutherland really rose to superstardom with the massive hit series “24.” The show won numerous awards, and Sutherland took home an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and two SAG Awards for his performance as Jack Bauer. In 2008, he even got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His dad might have helped him get his foot in the door, but the rest was all Kiefer.

You probably know her best as Ellie Sattler, but Dern had nearly twenty TV and film roles under her belt by the time “Jurassic Park” premiered in 1993. Her parents, actors Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd, divorced when she was just two. Laura’s earliest on-screen appearances were in her mother’s movies. She later graduated high school at age 16 and was emancipated from her parents’ custody, allowing her to pursue acting full-time. Since then, she’s starred in dozens of movies and shows and brought home just about every major acting award there is. If that’s not proof that Dern is driven to succeed on her own, we don’t know what is.

It can be hard to separate Curtis’s success from that of her parents. She’s well-known as the daughter of Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, and there’s no doubt her famous name has helped her in her career. In fact, she got her first film role as Laurie Strode in “Halloween” specifically because her mother was well-known for “Psycho.” However, that doesn’t mean that Curtis doesn’t deserve her success. If you’ve seen any of her films, you know that she’s an incredibly gifted actor, and she has a whole slew of awards to prove it. If Curtis’s parents had been lawyers or teachers instead of film stars, we’re sure she’d still have made it in Hollywood, one way or another.

Obviously you know her as Leia, but her career went way beyond “Star Wars.” Fisher actually appeared in more than 50 movies, not to mention dozens of TV shows. Her mother, Debbie Reynolds, was a massive star in the 50s and 60s. And her dad, Eddie Fisher, was a best-selling musician who even had his own variety show. “Star Wars” was only Carrie’s second film role, and it’s safe to say she slayed it. Whether she had famous parents or not, the producers would have been crazy to cast anyone else. In fact, George Lucas chose Fisher in part because she was relatively unknown at the time. It was absolutely the right decision.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

With Both Acting and Writing Talent, She Was Guaranteed to Become a Star

You Don’t Sell Over 50 Million Records Just Because You Have Famous Parents

Her Father Peter Encouraged Her, but She Built a Career on Her Own Merit

Many Fans Don’t Even Realize She’s the Daughter of Musician Phil Collins

The Talent Runs Strong in the Whole Bridges Family

She inherited her beauty, voice, and acting ability from her mother, Judy Garland. Having an award-winning director for a father also didn’t hurt. But no one ever got to EGOT status without being incredibly talented in their own right. The crazy thing is, compared to some of the names on our list, she hasn’t even been in that many movies or shows. She’s just so good, everything she touches turns to gold – Oscar gold, Emmy gold – you get the picture. In fact, Minnelli won her first Tony at just 19 years old. She was clearly meant for stardom.