Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Gwyneth Paltrow Claims Children Of Celebs Have To Work 'Twice As Hard' To Prove They Belong

Gwyneth Paltrow Claims Children Of Celebs Have To Work 'Twice As Hard' To Prove They Belong
Hailey Rhode Bieber/YouTube

Academy Award-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow recently gave insight on the topic of nepotism in Hollywood in an interview with American model Hailey Rhode Bieber on Wednesday's episode of Who's In My Bathroom?

Nepotism is when a person is granted access to a particular field solely by being related to someone famous or powerful within that industry.


Examples of nepotism in the entertainment industry have become more pronounced.

People are questioning an actor having an advantage and the fairness to actors who are not related to celebrities and trying to pursue a career in Tinseltown.

The phrase "Nepotism Baby"–or the diminutive, "Nepo Baby"–came to prominence after a recent article in the New York Times mentioned how viewers of Euphoria had their "ah-ha" moment when they realized the previously thought "self-made girl" Maude Apatow–despite her surname being a giveaway–was the child of actress Leslie Mann and director Judd Apatow.

Other nepotism-based discoveries became more widely known–including Stranger Things' Maya Hawke, whose birth parents are Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke; and the Fifty Shades of Grey star, Dakota Johnson, the daughter of Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson.

Gwyneth Paltrow, the daughter of filmmaker Bruce Paltrow and actress Blythe Danner, sat down with fellow Nepo Baby, Hailey Rhode Bieber, who is the child of Stephen Baldwin, niece of Alec, Daniel, and William Baldwin, to discuss the touchy subject matter while making smoothies.

You can watch the full interview of Who's In My Bathroom? With Hailey Rhode Bieber, here.

youtu.be

When Bieber asked to hear the Goop founder's perspective on nepotism, Paltrow offered:

"I think it's fair [to say] that as the child of somebody, you get access that other people don't have, so the playing field is not level enough in that way."
"However, I really do feel that once your foot is in the door, which you unfairly got in, then you have to work almost twice as hard and be twice as good."
"Because people are ready to pull you down and say, 'you don't belong there' or 'you're only there because of your dad or your mom or whatever the case may be.'"

Giphy

The internet had thoughts.








However, Paltrow said aspiring actors shouldn't be discouraged because she believes nobody, "especially anybody that doesn't know you, " should have a "negative impact on your path or the decision that you make."

Bieber–who is a successful model having worked on ads for Guess, Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger–agreed with Paltrow's sentiment and replied:

"I needed to hear this today."

Paltrow wasn't the only high-profile celebrity to discuss the downsides of having a family connection to success.

Kendall Jenner, the daughter of daughter Kris Jenner and Caitlyn Jenner, rose to fame on the reality TV show, Keeping Up With the Kardashians.

As Paltrow mentioned, Jenner said she had to work harder to prove herself in the fashion industry as a model.

Speaking to Andy Cohen during the Keeping Up With the Kardashians reunion special last June, Jenner shared the privilege she enjoyed when starting her modeling career.

“It was like — I know it's kind of corny to say — but [it’s] almost like destiny."
"I presented the cutest little modeling book to my mom when I was, like, 14. And then she did her Kris Jenner thing and made it all come to life.”

When Cohen asked her if she had a response for those who've accused her of not "paying her dues," Jenner replied:

“Everyone around me, whether it's friends or family, knows how hard I worked and still work."
"I did everything that I was supposed to do and had to do to get to the position that I'm at now as a model.”

She added:

“Of course I had a platform, and I never took that for granted. I always knew that that was there, but that almost made my job a little bit harder."
"Only because people probably didn't want to hire me because I was on a reality TV show.”

More from Entertainment/tv-and-movies

Martin Scorsese at the “Kundun” screening for the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival.
Dominik Bindl/Getty Images

Scorsese sparks debate on theaters

Martin Scorsese won’t be watching the latest summer blockbuster in a movie theater anymore.

Film critic Peter Travers interviewed the 82-year-old famed director of Goodfellas and The Irishman for his blog, The Travers Take. The website is the latest project from Travers, a film critic for Rolling Stone and Good Morning America, as well as a longtime friend of Scorsese.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dakota Johnson and Chris Evans on TODAY
TODAY/YouTube

Dakota Johnson Stuns 'Today' Viewers With Her Hilariously Blunt Dating 'Non-Negotiable'

Dakota Johnson, Pedro Pascal, and Chris Evans are excited about their upcoming film Materialists and have been actively touring to discuss the movie and its central themes of dating and dating expectations, often to hilarious effect.

Some highlights have been Pascal calling out Johnson for not remembering the first time they met, and Evans epically winning a round of identifying romance films based on one, sometimes incredibly obscure, line.

Keep ReadingShow less
Bernadette Peters; Cole Escola
Rob Kim/Getty Images; TheStewartofNY/FilmMagic

Bernadette Peters Offers Hilarious Reaction To Cole Escola's Tribute To Her Iconic Gown At The Tony Awards

Awards shows always have two competitions: the actual awards, and the red carpet outside.

Cole Escola, star and playwright of the hit show Oh, Mary!, did both at the Tony Awards this year. Escola, who won the Best Leading Actor in a Play for their performance, first showed up prior to the event to show off their intricate and stunning look, an homage to actor Bernadette Peters' iconic look from the 1999 Tony Awards.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pam Bondi
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

AG Pam Bondi's Brother Blames 'Rabid Partisans' After Getting Absolutely Walloped In DC Election

MAGA Republican President Donald Trump has often bragged about his overwhelming victory over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, claiming he won by a landslide. But while he did manage to finally win a popular vote in 2024, something he lost in 2016 and 2020, it was hardly a landslide.

About 90 million eligible, registered voters didn't bother to vote at all in 2024, while Trump garnered only ~77 million votes, VP Harris received about ~75 million—a difference of only ~2 million which is less than the population of Trump's hometown of Queens, New York City.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kristi Noem
Alex Brandon - Pool/Getty Images

Kristi Noem's Past Views On National Guard Come Back To Bite Her After She Backs Trump Amid LA Protests

California Governor Gavin Newsom called out the hypocrisy of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem after sharing a clip from last year showing she'd once criticized the Biden administration for considering deploying the National Guard when Democrats suggested it as a response to Texas' immigration crackdown at the time.

That's noteworthy because Noem has made an about-face, defending President Donald Trump's decision to deploy the National Guard to Los Angeles amid ongoing protests in response to his administration's immigration raids by claiming he'd taken this drastic step "for the safety of this community ... to keep peace."

Keep ReadingShow less