Hollywood Nepotism: The Good, the Bad, and The Ugly

[Bruinsfan]

Honestly that rumor lowered my opinion of Denzel more than of Will Smith.

[raezen]

I was going to say I wondered why there was a backlash to Smith but not Denzel. However the version I heard also didn't have Denzel using derogatory words so I wasn't as bothered by it in the past.

[Craphole Island]

I've been following the news of the new Richard Linklater movie Everybody Wants Some because he describes it as a spiritual sequel to Dazed and Confused which I love and it stars Blake Jenner who I enjoyed in Glee, and I just recently watched the trailer for it. I thought the girl in it was super cute so I looked her up and turns out it's Zoey Deutsch who happens to be Lea Thompson's daughter! Looks like she has a few films in the pipeline so hopefully she's good! She was appealing in the trailer (which is admittedly a brief part).

I'm personally not too familiar with Lea Thompson outside of Back to the Future (I was born in 89 so I think her prime was a little before my time??)

[methodwriter85]

I mean, this sounds bitchy, but I think she's a prettier version of her mother, who was pretty but also had this "motherly" vibe to her even when she was a young woman. (Which is probably why she was able to convincingly play a middle-aged mother with some age make-up in her 20's.) I think her features are a tad more delicate than Lea's are.

Edited January 19, 2016 by methodwriter85

[Ms Blue Jay]

Zoey seems very cool; I know her from Ringer and she was a spoilt daughter in that but she's very good-looking and a talented actor.  I've always been a fan of Lea Thompson's -- she was not only in the Back to the Futures but the star of Caroline in the City.  She was kind of a big thing in the 1990s.  I think she's very classically pretty.

Edited January 19, 2016 by Ms Blue Jay

[Athena]

Zoey seems very cool; I know her from Ringer and she was a spoilt daughter in that but she's very good-looking and a talented actor.  I've always been a fan of Lea Thompson's -- she was not only in the Back to the Futures but the star of Caroline in the City.  She was kind of a big thing in the 1990s.  I think she's very classically pretty.

 

Agree. I think Zoey can act, at least she can in her angry teen range. She does have a certain screen presence that's not the same as her mother. She's a little more raw and less inhibited than some female actors of her generation. I also adore Lea Thompson and have for awhile. I watched "Switched a Birth" and she still looks fantastic. If she has gotten a little work done, it's by some good professionals.

[harrie]

What, no love for Howard the Duck?  Count me in as another who didn't realize Zoey Deutsch was the daughter of Ms. Thompson.

[methodwriter85]

I'm getting a kick out of the Peggy Lipton/Rashida Jones commercials. Rashida Jones really is a stunning example of biracial beauty. I think she's kind of limited acting-wise, but I did love her on the Office, The Social Network, and in Celeste and Jesse.

Edited January 23, 2016 by methodwriter85

[VCRTracking]

I just binge watched her new show Angie Tribeca on Monday and thought she was great doing that Airplane!/Naked Gun type humor.

[methodwriter85]

I do think that Rashida is great at doing the "straight man" humor stuff.

[JBC344]

Just another reason to love Rashida!!!!!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4T-P63_E-Ss

 

I have added this song to my rotation.  Can't stop listening to it.

[methodwriter85]

I love the beauty difference between Alexander and Bill Skarsgard. Alexander is hot in this perfect tall blond jock way, while Bill has this more sensitive, artsy kind of quirky beauty to him. Like you could easily see Bill playing some Bryonic figure in some English period movie.

 

Of the many kids that Stellan has had, Bill and Eija look the most alike, I think.

[VCRTracking]

Jeff and Beau Bridges both looked like their dad Lloyd in different ways.

 

[methodwriter85]

For the people who wonder why Jesse Eisenberg has a career...well, he's the 90's Pepsi Girl's older brother. His career basically started right after those commercials. It's pretty funny- he played his cards incredibly well, and used a pretty small opening (Hallie's 15 minutes went pretty fast) and parlayed it into a career that's veering close to solid B, if not A status. Hell, he had an Oscar nomination under his belt before the age of 30. It's pretty easy to say that his career eclipsed Hallie's by a lot.

 

I'm a big fan of what I called the Jessie Eisenberg trifecta:- Zombieland, Adventureland, and The Social Network. I do think he's in a transition phase now that he's in his 30's and needs to move on from the kind of roles that made him famous, but I really did love those movies.

 

Still, this comment made me laugh:

 

 

I feel sorry for any actress who had to play a character in a love relationship with Jesse Eisenberg.  How did that guy ever get in so many movies to begin with?

 

See, I actually think he and Kristen Stewart have had pretty good chemistry in the two movies they did together- Adventureland and American Ultra. But I honestly think that may be more on KStew- she really does seem good at generating chemistry with whoever they pair her with- Jesse, Dakota Fanning, RPatz, Eddie Redmayne, etc etc.

[BW Manilowe]

I think it works if the second generation is similar to the first but still very unique. Case in point father and son, Donald and Keifer Sutherland. Don't look anything alike really, but they're great at character roles and both have distinct voices. Donald has that dulcet, deep relaxing tone and Keifer has that intense, sandpaper rough voice that served him well as Jack Bauer in 24 . Both are great for voiceover work in commercials. As one person on twitter said:

Adding to the discussion of Laura Dern a page ago, I thought she was one of the best parts of October Sky, playing a truly inspiring teacher.

Andrew Robinson son of Edward G. Robinson had that iconic role as the psycho Scorpio killer in Dirty Harry and he was one of my favorite characters on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as the Cardassian spy/tailor Garak.

Apologies for such a late response; I only started reading this thread tonight.

According to both their Wikipedia pages, Andrew Robinson from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine *isn't* Edward G. Robinson's son, as you said. Edward G.'s son was also named Edward G. Robinson; Andrew Robinson had a different father.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_G._Robinson

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Robinson_(actor)

On another note... I'm a fan of Scott Caan, who plays Danny Williams on the current version of Hawaii Five-0 & is the eldest son of the legendary actor James Caan, & the late actress/model/former girlfriend of Elvis Presley, Sheila Ryan (Scott was her & James' only child together, but James has an older daughter & 3 younger sons from marriages before & after the 1 to Scott's mom), & I was sort of surprised to see he hadn't been mentioned here yet. Scott isn't just an actor/screenwriter/director; he's also an accomplished playwright & photographer, & an author since books of some of his photographs & plays have been published.

In their case, at least in recent years, the nepotism has been more like the father getting work in the son's projects (James has appeared in some movies Scott has written, directed, or both; he also appeared in an S2 Hawaii Five-0 ep where he played a character who *wasn't* related to Scott's character, despite the fact they bear some physical/facial resemblance to each other & share many of the same mannerisms) than the usual "famous parent gets their child a Hollywood job" thing.

And while we're at it the late James MacArthur, the actor who played Danny Williams in the original version of Hawaii Five-O, was also a "second generation" actor, being the (adopted) son of the late legendary actress Helen Hayes & the late playwright Charles MacArthur. I think that's an interesting coincidence: the actor sons of 2 acting legends playing the same role in different versions of the same TV series 42 years apart.

Edited March 24, 2016 by BW Manilowe

[xaxat]

Is this the most nepotistic project ever?

Written and directed by Kevin Smith, starring his daughter Harley Quinn Smith.  And co-starring Lily Rose Depp, daughter of Johnny Depp, who plays a supporting role in the movie.

[methodwriter85]

No, I still say that Will Smith putting his son in 130 million dollar vehicle film tops that.

Rumer Willis slammed a magazine for what appeared to be photo shopping her chin. I gotta say, she really does impress the hell out of me. She's probably gotten just as much shit over her looks over the years as Tori Spelling has, but whereas Tori Spelling tries desperately to turn  into the pretty little blonde princess she'll never be with bleach and plastic surgery spackle, Rumer refuses to apologize for the way she looks.

Maybe she's wrong and it was a wide lens, but I don't blame her reaction. And maybe using the "bullying" term is going too far, but I imagine that as a result of years and years of people ragging on her looks, Rumer's gotten pretty defiant. I don't think she's being a crybaby here- when you're photo-shopping someone and focusing on a certain detail, you ARE saying that it's flaw that needs to be fixed. Real or not, Rumer has the right to call them out on that.

Edited May 11, 2016 by methodwriter85

[Athena]

On 2014-10-28 at 5:25 PM, methodwriter85 said:

After watching Very Good Girls, I am again reminded of my utter shock that Elizabeth Olsen actually came from the Olsen family, because her sisters had very little actual acting talent. Meanwhile, Elizabeth Olsen just has "It"- this ability to make things seem real and grounded and like she's not acting in a part. She's been able to play tortured young women, ditzy teenage girls in love, and she's getting a shot at the action flicks. If you had told me four years ago that there would be an Olsen sister with a legitimate shot at eventually making the A-list movie star list, I would have laughed my ass off.

I'm really excited to see what she does.

I've been watching more of E. Olsen's works and her press junket for CA: CW. She is delightful. She does have acting ability. I think she comes off as very down to earth as well. She seems to be able to generate chemistry, platonic or otherwise with most of her costars. She's a classic ingenue that way though because most of the men she's starring opposite are at least 5-10 years older than her. In the case of Josh Brolin and her in Oldboy, that was 20 year age difference.

In any case, I'm like you, I really look forward to see what else she does.

[VCRTracking]

Speaking of Elizabeth Olsen and older leading men, even though Paul Bettany(The Vision) is 17 years older than her and playing a robot(!), Captain America Civil War makes me want to see more of the romance between Scarlet Witch and Vision from the comics onscreen. Their scenes early in the movie are so sweet and then later become very intense.

[methodwriter85]

The thing about Elizabeth Olsen is that I can kind of buy her with older men, because she seems like such an Earthy, sensual woman.

Anyway, this feels bitchy, but when I saw Celine Dion's son at the Billboard Awards, I thought to myself, "Wow, her facial bone structure works better on a guy than a woman." I think he's going to grow up into a seriously good-looking guy by his mid-20's.

Not that Celine isn't pretty, but I honestly think that her son will be a pretty good-looking guy in a few years.

Edited May 28, 2016 by methodwriter85

[methodwriter85]

Not that she was a movie star, but man, Belinda Carlisle's son seems pretty awesome:

What a very well-spoken and intelligent young man. Belinda and her husband decided to raise him in France instead of Hollywood, so that he'd have more of a normal perspective. Who knows? Maybe he could wind up mayor of Los Angeles in twenty years or something!

[methodwriter85]

Not that I would advocate for this to be an actual thing, but this is just awesome:

[JessePinkman]

I know the Internet collectively hates them but Will and Jada made some seriously beautiful kids.

[Trini]

2 hours ago, JessePinkman said:

I know the Internet collectively hates them but Will and Jada made some seriously beautiful kids.

 

Yeah, I saw that photoshoot earlier this week, and thought that if Jaden had even half the charisma and talent of his parents he'd be unstoppable. But I don't think he does. I think he's mostly coasting on nepotism, right now. Willow I feel slightly better about, but I haven't seen enough of her to judge.

Edited September 2, 2016 by Trini

[methodwriter85]

Willow doesn't bother me as much. "Whip My Hair" was fun, and she's not forcing Daddy to buy her movies like her brother is. (Whether it was her decision or not, not doing Annie was a good decision.) I fully endorse her going the Mini-Rihanna route, but she seems to have lost interest in that.

[BatmanBeatles]

Really? I hated "Whip My Hair".

[JBC344]

I find the kids to be pretentious but harmless overall.  I think they do sometimes get unfairly labeled.  In fairness to Jaden two of his four movies (The Pursuit of Happyness, The Karate Kid) were really good and successful so I never understood the "he only gets work because of his father".  The Karate Kid remake made a s**t ton of money that he could of spent the next ten years doing sequels but didn't.  After Earth was not a good movie but it not exactly unheard of that he would get such a part after the success of The Karate Kid. 

I always look at it this way.  Does Jaden benefit by being the son of two celebrities?  Sure.  Does that advantage counterbalance the huge disadvantage he would face being a minority actor with no famous parents? Absolutely.  Which is worse?

My point is the industry in and of itself is not fair to begin with so using "fair values" as a benchmark doesn't really work.  There are people who are successful because they are better looking and therefore are pushed to the front of the line.  How is that anymore fair?

[Ohwell]

18 hours ago, JessePinkman said:

I know the Internet collectively hates them but Will and Jada made some seriously beautiful kids.

Well, I think that's definitely in the eye of the beholder.

[JessePinkman]

5 hours ago, Ohwell said:

Well, I think that's definitely in the eye of the beholder.

Huh? Opinions about the attractiveness of people usually are, yes.

[VCRTracking]

The hair ain't helping.

Seeing Bridge of Spies I found it funny that Bono's daughter Eve Hewson is in it since it's about the U2 spy plane). It's such a small part Idon't think that's the reason she was cast though. It was probably because she can do an American accent without sounding a little like a Valley Girl(which would be inappropriate for a teenager living on the East Coast in the late 50s).

Edited September 3, 2016 by VCRTracking

[AimingforYoko]

21 hours ago, VCRTracking said:

Seeing Bridge of Spies I found it funny that Bono's daughter Eve Hewson is in it since it's about the U2 spy plane). It's such a small part Idon't think that's the reason she was cast though. It was probably because she can do an American accent without sounding a little like a Valley Girl(which would be inappropriate for a teenager living on the East Coast in the late 50s).

If you want to see Eve strut her stuff, catch the Cinemax series The Knick.

[methodwriter85]

Damien Hurley, Liz Hurley's son, is throwing his hat in the ring. The kid looks like his mother's male mini-me, it's adorable.

That feels like nepotism done smartly. Give the kid a small, fun, shallow role, on a show that he had time to observe the inner-workings of.

That kid is 14. Pretty crazy. He's definitely got that super-posh, fashionable vibe to him. No awkward teenage kid here.

[VCRTracking]

Having seen an old episode of Young Indiana Jones Chronicles from the early 90s that a pre-fame Elizabeth Hurley was in, his son's got her eyebrows. Although he doesn't need to trim them like she does!

Edited January 2, 2017 by VCRTracking

[methodwriter85]

On 1/2/2017 at 0:41 PM, VCRTracking said:

Having seen an old episode of Young Indiana Jones Chronicles from the early 90s that a pre-fame Elizabeth Hurley was in, his son's got her eyebrows. Although he doesn't need to trim them like she does!

He's definitely going to have her striking beauty, although the problem is that he's going to be very limited in the kind of roles he can play because of it. I mean, you can't put this kid as the everyday, average teenager everyone can relate to. Still, provided he doesn't piss people off and he acts professional, he'll definitely get some decent offers.

Edited January 4, 2017 by methodwriter85

[methodwriter85]

I watched Table 19 and thought again about how smartly Wyatt Russell is building his career. His performance didn't blow me away, and there was some cringey crying scene that he might have needed a little more coaching on, but it was a good role for him to take. Small-ish, indie, but at the same time, he was pretty close to the leading man role. And he got to work opposite Anna Kendrick, who's usually always good at generating chemistry with her co-stars. I thought they were pretty believable as a former couple who weren't quite over each other. The guy is definitely taking his time and building slowly and I think it's the right call. (Scott Eastwood might wind up a case of too much, too soon.)

The lank long hair isn't the best look for him, but I'm starting to think it's actually a good choice. It sets him apart from a lot of the young guys right now who are doing the whole immaculate buzzcut or undercut right now.

Oliver Hudson is basically doing Hallmark t.v. movies now, and that feels about right where he should be. I did like his character on The Rules of Engagement- he plays loveable dumb dude pretty well. I do find it kind of annoying that he's basically been allowed to put on weight and go all "dad bod", but his sister basically has to maintain the shape of a young college co-ed in order to keep getting cast in roles such as Mark Wahlberg's wife.

Kate Hudson seems like she's completed her transition into "not ingenue" roles. She's not really A-list or almost A-list anymore but she seems fine.

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 1/2/2017 at 1:46 AM, methodwriter85 said:

Damien Hurley, Liz Hurley's son, is throwing his hat in the ring. The kid looks like his mother's male mini-me, it's adorable.

That feels like nepotism done smartly. Give the kid a small, fun, shallow role, on a show that he had time to observe the inner-workings of.

That kid is 14. Pretty crazy. He's definitely got that super-posh, fashionable vibe to him. No awkward teenage kid here.

Oh my god.  This story.

First of all, I'm in total shock that this boy is 14.  I remember when he was born so clearly.
Second of all, I'm so charmed by this.  When the kid was born, he (unfortunately) looked very much like Steve Bing's baby, the poor thing.  And if you guys remember, Steve Bing was a complete asshole to Liz about this.  But Liz Hurley's wonderful physical genes have taken over.  Good for Damien. I'm really just so charmed by this story.  He kind of reminds me of Ruby Rose!   Haha!

Quote

Although Bing initially denied paternity, a DNA test subsequently confirmed him as the father.[5][6] - Wikipedia

Asshole.

And man, Liz Hurley looks fucking great.  I idolized her in the 90s. I honestly think she doesn't look that much different.

Edited March 18, 2017 by Ms Blue Jay

[methodwriter85]

Damien Hurley could legitimately model. Not just "Oh, they're off-spring of famous people so we'll let them model", but he really is honest model material.  It's rare that a 14-year old guy can be that because most guys that age are awkward, but that is one photogenic kid. Abercrombie? No, but I could definitely see Burberry or Tom Ford.

I think with Liz, it helps that we met her when she was 30-ish instead of a 15-year old girl like her contemporary Brooke Shields. She was a fully-formed woman when she became the face of Estee Lauder and as a result we haven't seen her features change as much.

I did love that her advice basically distilled down to "Be polite and take this as serious work." It's kind of amazing how far some stars have been able to go almost purely because people like working with them. (See: Keanu Reeves. Not the best actor but he's got one of the best reps in town for being easy to work with.)

[VCRTracking]

The late Bill Paxton's 23 year old son James has been in a few movies and TV shows appeared with his dad on an episode of his recent show Training Day.  I can unfortunately relate that losing dad at a young age sucks for a lot of reasons, least of which for James is that his father won't be able to pass down some advice from 40 years in the film industry, working his way up from building sets for Roger Corman, bit parts to being one of the most reliable character actors and even playing the lead. James's handsome but doesn't look like his father. He was handsome in an "everyman" sort of way and somehow looked as "American" as a person could look while James is as British as a person could look since his mom is from England.

Edited March 20, 2017 by VCRTracking

[methodwriter85]

He is good-looking in my opinion, but yeah, he's not really an All-American everyman type like his dad was.  I could see him playing a lot of musicians or hipster types with his look. Maybe the rebel outsider who the popular girl is drawn to after getting bored with her popular jock boyfriend. He should definitely try to an attempt an English accent. His mom should be able to coach him.

I checked the guy's Twitter- he hasn't posted since his Dad died. Poor kid. His 23rd birthday was only two days before his dad died. One of his most recent tweets were him thanking his fans for wishing him a happy birthday.

Edited March 19, 2017 by methodwriter85

[Ohwell]

He reminds me of a very young Hugh Grant.

[VCRTracking]

I had seen the upcoming Alien: Covenant's Katherine Waterston in things like Boardwalk Empire and Inherent Vice but it wasn't until she was promoting Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, that I found out she was Sam Waterston's daughter. And now thanks to this interview on Stephen Colbert from a few months ago I can never not see it!

BTW, that's not JK Rowling in the screencap but her dad ;-)

[UYI]

I have this theory that Sam Waterston will be hot forever. even when he's 100. And I am 28, for the record. #SorryNotSorry 

[methodwriter85]

 

Ethan Peck seems to be mostly stuck in low-profile straight-to-Netflix/Redbox movies right now, but I think he has potential. He did a pretty decent job holding his own in this indie character study he did with Bebe Neuwirth where she and her husband host a sailor for a special dinner. His deep bass voice is seriously sexy, in my opinion. (And the body ain't half bad, either.)

[JustaPerson]

I remember when he was the Heath Ledger character in that 10 Things I Hate About You tv series. He looks like his grandfather. 

[methodwriter85]

9 hours ago, JustaPerson said:

I remember when he was the Heath Ledger character in that 10 Things I Hate About You tv series. He looks like his grandfather. 

I never watched 10 Things because I loved the movie and I haven't been impressed by the sequels and reboots ABC Famly/Freeform has done. You can definitely see the resemblance, although his nose is different.

[methodwriter85]

Rob Lowe is apparently trying to make his kids famous, although more in the "let's put them in the reality" genre kind of way.

[UYI]

I can tell they're his sons by looking at their eyes, but for some reason they look sort of like country singer Hunter Hayes to me, too (especially the one on the right). 

[alihart41]

John Owen (the one on the right) played Zadak on The Grinder, so he's probably following in Rob's footsteps. Matthew is currently in law school and is probably less interested in showbiz. Rob has said the show is basically a ploy to hang out with his sons and they had to shoot the episodes on the weekends because his sons were in school. I watched the premiere and it's ridiculous and I loved every second of it.

[JBC344]

Yeah Rob has talked openly in the past about his issues with letting his sons go.  Apparently Rob was a close involved parent when they were growing up and had real issues with them getting older, moving out, going to college etc.  As soon as I heard about this show I thought this is concocted by Rob to keep his sons close. 

On one hand, very sweet, on the other he needs to get some friends his own age and let his kids live their lives.

[Scarlett45]

On 6/17/2017 at 10:50 PM, methodwriter85 said:

 

 

Ethan Peck seems to be mostly stuck in low-profile straight-to-Netflix/Redbox movies right now, but I think he has potential. He did a pretty decent job holding his own in this indie character study he did with Bebe Neuwirth where she and her husband host a sailor for a special dinner. His deep bass voice is seriously sexy, in my opinion. (And the body ain't half bad, either.)

He does look like his grandfather. Between the last name and his face I said to myself "Atticus Finch!"