Some are just born with it! Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the celebs’ kids who are talented enough to have their own careers – without their famous parents’ help.
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00:00Leia, do you remember your mother?
00:04Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the celebs' kids who
00:08are talented enough to have their own careers, without their famous parents' help.
00:13Obviously, I'm 61 years old now and I've done a few things, so I'm feeling pretty
00:18solid on my feet.
00:2010.
00:22Dan Levy
00:23If you've seen Schitt's Creek, you can't deny Levy's comedic brilliance.
00:27The series was far from his first role, but it put him on the map.
00:44Some have argued that it would never have been made without his father Eugene's connections.
00:48However, considering how talented Dan is, we know he would have eventually found another
00:53path to stardom.
01:06Although his dad is also best known for comedy, the two have totally different styles.
01:11While Eugene often plays the straight man, Dan is more over-the-top and dramatic.
01:16The fact that he's taken home Emmys for writing, directing, producing, and acting
01:21are proof he's much more than just a famous last name.
01:359.
01:36Mariska Hargitay
01:37Plenty of Law & Order SVU fans don't even know that she's an Epo baby.
01:48Her dad, Mickey Hargitay, was a world-famous bodybuilder, and her mom was blonde bombshell
01:53Jane Mansfield.
01:54Tragically, Mansfield was killed in a car crash in 1967.
01:58Three-year-old Mariska was also in the vehicle, but sustained only minor injuries.
02:13Although her father was also an actor, he was mostly retired by the time Mariska landed
02:18her first role in 1985.
02:19That meant she had to make her way in Hollywood on her own merits.
02:23As far as modern audiences are concerned, Hargitay's fame has outpaced her parents',
02:28though her dad did make a cameo on SVU as his final acting role.
02:398.
02:43Jennifer Aniston
02:59Like Hargitay, she's become even more famous than her actor parents.
03:03Aniston's mother, Nancy Dow, appeared in just a handful of television episodes in the
03:0860s and a couple of movies.
03:10Her father, John Aniston, was a successful TV actor, best known for a long-running part
03:15on Days of Our Lives.
03:25Of course, if you've seen Jennifer Aniston in literally anything, you know that she has
03:30more than enough talent to make it as an actor without the benefit of nepotism.
03:34She first made a name for herself playing Rachel Green on Friends, but since then, she's
03:39proven herself as a dramatic actor, too.
03:41For Aniston, having parents that could show her the ropes was just a bonus.
03:537.
03:56Nicolas Cage
03:57We can't imagine a world where Nicolas Cage isn't famous, or maybe we just don't want
04:03to.
04:11Cage is actually the nephew of Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola.
04:16As an adult, he changed his last name from Coppola to Cage so that people wouldn't think
04:21he was just another nepo baby.
04:32He also didn't get much help from his famous uncle in making it big.
04:36When he asked Coppola for a screen test at the age of 15, he got the silent treatment.
04:41Cage is so talented and such a force of nature, he was destined to be successful no matter
04:46what his last name is.
04:566.
04:59Maya Rudolph
05:00Did you know that her mom was the singer-songwriter Minnie Riperton?
05:12Her dad, composer and music producer Richard Rudolph, might be less famous, but he's had
05:17an extremely successful career.
05:19He's worked on a number of big movies, like Flatliners and Weekend at Bernie's, and even
05:24co-founded a record label with actor Michael Douglas.
05:27But Maya didn't need her dad's Hollywood connections to make a name for herself.
05:37After she joined a Los Angeles improv group in the late 90s, she met future Saturday Night
05:49Live co-stars and got recruited to appear on the show.
05:52Although it wasn't her first TV role, it proved to be a pivotal point in her career.
05:57Now Rudolph is as much of a household name as her mother was.
06:115.
06:12Kiefer Sutherland
06:14His first film role was a big part in 1983's Max Dugan Returns, which starred his famous
06:19dad Donald Sutherland.
06:21But Kiefer's prolific film and television career proved that he has plenty of talent
06:26to make it on his own.
06:37He became a Hollywood heartthrob in the 80s and 90s, but Sutherland really rose to superstardom
06:43with his massive hit series 24.
06:56The show won numerous awards, and Sutherland took home an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and now
07:01two SAG awards for his performance as Jack Bauer.
07:04In 2008, he even got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
07:08His dad might have helped him get his foot in the door, but the rest was all Kiefer.
07:204.
07:28Laura Dern
07:37You probably know her best as Ellie Sattler, but Dern had nearly 20 TV and film roles under
07:43her belt by the time Jurassic Park premiered in 1993.
07:47Her parents, actors Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd, divorced when she was just two.
07:51Laura's earliest on-screen appearances were in her mother's movies.
07:55She later graduated high school at age 16 and was emancipated from her parents' custody,
08:00allowing her to pursue acting full-time.
08:13Since then, she's starred in dozens of movies and shows and brought home just about
08:18every major acting award there is.
08:20If that's not proof that Dern is driven to succeed on her own, we don't know what
08:24is.
08:253.
08:26Jamie Lee Curtis
08:48It can be hard to separate Curtis' success from that of her parents.
08:52She's well-known as the daughter of Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, and there's no doubt
08:56her famous name has helped her in her career.
08:59In fact, she got her first film role as Laurie Strode in Halloween specifically because her
09:04mother was well-known for Psycho.
09:11However, that doesn't mean that Curtis doesn't deserve her success.
09:24If you've seen any of her films, you know that she's an incredibly gifted actor and
09:29she has a whole slew of awards to prove it.
09:32If Curtis' parents had been lawyers or teachers instead of film stars, we're sure she'd
09:36still have made it in Hollywood one way or another.
09:422.
09:44Carrie Fisher
09:45Obviously, you know her as Leia, but her career went way beyond Star Wars.
10:03Fisher actually appeared in more than 50 movies, not to mention dozens of TV shows.
10:08Her mother Debbie Reynolds was a massive star in the 50s and 60s, and her dad Eddie Fisher
10:14was a best-selling musician who even had his own variety show.
10:18Star Wars was only Carrie's second film role, and it's safe to say she slayed it.
10:31Whether she had famous parents or not, the producers would have been crazy to cast anyone
10:35else.
10:36In fact, George Lucas chose Fisher in part because she was relatively unknown at the
10:41time.
10:42It was absolutely the right decision.
10:49Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
10:52Rashida Jones With both acting and writing talent, she was
10:56guaranteed to become a star.
11:10Nora Jones
11:22Jane Fonda Her father Peter encouraged her, but she built
11:26a career on her own merit.
11:39Lily Collins Many fans don't even realize she's the daughter
11:42of musician Phil Collins.
11:53Jeff and Bo Bridges The talent runs strong in the whole Bridges
11:56family.
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12:23Liza Minnelli
12:33She inherited her beauty, voice, and acting ability from her mother Judy Garland.
12:38Having an award-winning director for a father also didn't hurt.
12:41But no one ever got to EGOT status without being incredibly talented in their own right.
13:00The crazy thing is, compared to some of the names on our list, she hasn't even been
13:04in that many movies or shows.
13:06She's just so good, everything she touches turns to gold.
13:09Oscar gold, Emmy gold, you get the picture.
13:12In fact, Minnelli won her first Tony at just 19 years old.
13:16She was clearly meant for stardom.
13:26Were you surprised to learn some of these celebs are nepo babies?
13:30Which ones do you think truly deserve their fame?
13:32Let us know in the comments!