Sasha and Malia Obama are prime examples of nepotism done right. Their dad, Barack Obama, may have once been the most powerful man in the world, giving them access to any opportunity their heart desires but unlike, say, Brooklyn Beckham or Hailey Bieber, these two sisters opted for a more humble route to success.
The eldest of the two, Malia, followed in her father’s footsteps and headed to Harvard University. From there, she went on to intern at The Weinstein Company—this was all, of course, prior to the #MeToo movement. But what really sets her aside from other nepo babies is that she didn’t once shove the internship down our throats on socials.
Neither of the sisters has social media for that matter. Oh, and if you weren’t already at least mildly impressed, Malia was also a part of the executive team behind Amazon Prime’s Swarm.
Meanwhile, younger sister Sasha nabbed a summer job in a restaurant while studying at the University of Southern California. Aside from being an ex-President’s daughter and therefore realistically having a ton more cash in hand, she’s just like us!
Now, onto the fashion. In the early days of their time at the White House, the pair wore matching dresses and ballet pumps—it was all very prim and proper. Fast forward to the present, and their style, like their careers, has become much more laid back. If there was one way to describe it, it’s giving a gen Z take on Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen‘s street style.
Whether you knew the Olsen twins as toddlers in Full House or as teenage sweethearts in Holiday in the Sun, it’s safe to say that the identical duo have always known how to dress—often papped in oversized wool coats, a battered Birkin and cigarette in hand. We’re not saying the twins are an ad for smoking but we may use one as a prop if it makes us look that cool.
View this post on Instagram
Malia seems to be the sister that’s taken up the bad habit, having been papped smoking in 2017. Her outfits appear as if they were quickly thrown on in a last-minute rush for work, she is a busy corporate girlie after all.
View this post on Instagram
Sasha, arguably the more experimental of the two, layers clashing prints and always falls back on a trusty pair of dungarees. Her acrylic nails are also a head-turner, it’s a wonder she can get anything done they’re that long. We’d give anything to scroll through her saves on Pinterest.
View this post on Instagram
Now, it would be rude to compliment the style of these political royals, without giving credit to their mother, Michelle Obama. Like her daughters, Michelle’s style transformed as soon as she stepped out of the White House.
As First Lady, her wardrobe was definitely limited, from the colour palette she had to choose from to the shoes she was permitted to wear. That’s all over now, the former Mrs President is free to test boundaries with her style. She jumped on the double denim revival, arguably before anyone else did, sporting an iconic Ganni suit. Michelle has even played with patterns more than her younger daughter.
View this post on Instagram
Michelle also kept her hair straight during her husband’s presidency, most likely to avoid racist comments. When asked about the decision to keep her hair straight and flat, she famously said: “It would have been, ‘Remember when she wore braids? Those are terrorist braids. Those are revolutionary braids.’ So let me keep my hair straight, let’s get health care passed.”
The Obamas are one famous family. And for years now they’ve been making statements in politics, history, and culture—it seems only right that fashion is next. The Olsens made it to the Met Gala so let’s give Malia and Sasha the invite already, am I right?
There is a lot of discourse surrounding what people are calling ‘nepotism babies’ online with various arguments on both ends. The term is shrouded with many meanings. For starters, a nepotism baby could be someone with extremely famous (and therefore wealthy) parents, the obvious kind—take the Smith kids, Jaden and Willow, or Lily Rose Depp for example. It could also be used to describe someone who was born to parents with connections or even those with a legacy of entertainers in their family line. That being said, many point out that those with familial ‘connections’ (who aren’t famous themselves) should not be considered nepotism babies. Either way, there have also been cases made as to those nepotism babies who actually have some talent and are ‘worthy’ of their roles in the industry, and those who just aren’t.
Regardless of the angle you find yourself leaning towards, we have compiled a list of celebrities who may fit the bill.
Maude Apatow, who plays our favourite Lexi in Euphoria, is the daughter of Judd Apatow—a well established director, producer, writer and comedian—and actress Leslie Mann, who has starred in movies like The 40-Year-Old Virgin, 17 Again, The Other Woman and This is 40.
The creator of Euphoria is also a nepotism baby. His father Barry Levinson is a film director, producer, actor and writer.
Angelina Jolie is the daughter of actor parents Jon Voight (Oscar winner) and Marcheline Bertrand.
Jake Gyllenhaal’s father, Stephen Gyllenhaal, is a successful film director and his mother, Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal, is a screenwriter. His also-famous older sister is Maggie Gyllenhaal.
Emma Roberts’ connection to Hollywood is well-known, most notably by her relation to one of the most famous actresses in the business: Julia Roberts. The younger Roberts is her niece but her father, Eric Roberts, who starred in Suits, is also a notable actor.
While his father Marc Chalamet is an editor for the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund, his entertainment roots can be traced back to his mother’s side of the family. Nicole Flender, who is now a real estate agent, was a Broadway dancer, actor and daughter of writer and filmmaker Harold Flender. Chalamet’s maternal uncle was also a filmmaker while his maternal aunt was a writer and television producer.
Kate Hudson is the daughter of uber-famous celebrity parents. While her mother is Academy Award-winning actress Goldie Hawn, her father is the renowned actor and musician Bill Hudson. Her stepfather is another well-known name in the industry: Kurt Russell.
Dakota Johnson’s family has some history in the entertainment industry. Born to actor parents Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith, the actress is third-generation famous with her maternal grandmother—Tippi Hedren—being one of Alfred Hitchcock’s muses. Her former stepfather was also the famous Spanish actor Antonia Banderas.
Star of Emily in Paris—which has previously come under fire for ‘rigging’ its Golden Globes nominations—Lily Collins is the daughter of iconic and legendary drummer, writer and music producer Phil Collins.
Though not uber-famous, Kristen Stewart’s parents were also in the entertainment business. Her mother is a script supervisor and her father a stage manager who worked on a large number of projects including the 2014 Oscar Red Carpet Live.
Blake Lively’s family was also neck-deep in the entertainment industry. Her mother is a talent scout and her father was an actor. They starred alongside each other in The Sisterhood of The Travelling Pants.
Kiera Knightley was also born to actor parents: Will Knightley and Sharman Macdonald.
Another actor with a film legacy in his family, Pine’s maternal grandmother Anne Gwynne was—according to the Los Angeles Times—“a horror [movie] icon at Universal in the 1940s.” His maternal grandfather, on the other hand, Max M. Gilford was president of the Hollywood Bar Association. His parents were also very successful actors.
Stranger Things star Maya Hawke is the daughter of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman.
Jennifer Anniston was also born to actor parents and guess what Friends fans? Her father John Anniston was actually an actor on the real-life Days of Our Lives and has also appeared in numerous other projects. Her godfather, a very close friend of her dad, was Telly Savalas, a legendary actor whose career lasted over 40 years from 1950 to the 1990s.