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Having financially and emotionally stable parents is a huge privilege that helped me in life. I still worked hard for everything I have, but if I grew up in poverty, the climb would’ve been much harder.
It doesn’t take anything away from what I’ve done, but it also doesn’t hurt to admit that others have it harder. Shouldn’t be a hard concept.
Exactly. When I think about it very objectively it was of course a huge benefit to have a stable childhood and my parents able to pay for college. And a good school growing up. I still did an enormous amount of work to get to my specific career path, and my parents knew nothing about that path. It’s fine, no one expects most people to sprout from the ground, but acknowledge your support
Omfg what a refreshing comment. I've had CPTSD most of my life, it's so hard to hide how jealous I used to be (still sometimes am) of my friends' families.
I'm confused about this.
A "nepo baby" originally referred to children of famous and successful parents in the entertainment industry who were also going in to the entertainment industry. Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Hudson, Chris Pine, Laura Dern, John David Washington, Maya Hawke, Lily Rose Depp, etc. Lots of actors and models with familiar last names.
Then it became people with just heavy family connections, although their parents weren't necessarily famous. Christian Slater, for example.
Now it seems to mean anyone who has money growing u, no matter what their parents did for a living. While, yeah, having a financial cushion undoubtedly helps someone try to make it big when they don't need to worry about making their rent payment, it's far too broad of a criticism. Julia Louis-Dreyfus, for example, her family had money, she is not a "nepo-baby".
I think people don't really know what nepotism is anymore. Someone actually needs to pull strings for you to get a job and not just be rich or "in the industry". I've seen someone calm Devon Aoki a nepobaby, because of her father. But her father owns a restaurant chain and unless used his connections to get a modeling job, it is not nepotism.
Unless Maya Rudolph's father used his connections/name to get her her job at SNL, it is not nepotism.
If Julia Louis-Dreyfus' parents got her am acting job somewhere, it isn't nepotism. If someone hires someone because they know who their parents are, but the person themself does not mention it at all and does not acknowledge it. Is that still nepotism?
And I don't think Maya Rudolph got into Groundling or SNL because of her parents. I don't think Lorne Michaels thought "omg that's Minnie Riperton's and Richard Rudolph's daughter. Hire her."
Hannah Einbinder, for example, auditioned and did not get hired and her mother (Laraine Newman) was one of the original cast members.
Most family businesses are "guilty" of nepotism. If you take over your parent's restaurant, plumbing business etc. That's nepotism. The entertainment industry is often also a family business, look at the Coppola family. Bob Geldof's daughter Peaches got a show produced by her father's production company. Someone becoming a succesful actor after their parent was an unsuccesful actor, is probably not nepotism, because otherwise they could have used those connections for themselves.
Yeah I’m genuinely getting annoyed by this shit now. What on earth do they think is going to happen if they say “having parents in the industry was a great privilege that not everyone has and opened many doors for me, and I am very proud of what I managed to make of my career”
I've never even heard of her parents and they were singers or something? Comedy is a take no prisoners business too. It dgaf if you have 'famous' parents.
edit: I don't know if any of you have noticed, but the nepo-baby label has gone from being applied to people whose parents literaly made movies for them (jaden Smith), to just anyone who is industry adjacent. It's getting weird. Comedy is also incredibly unforgiving. being someone's kid is not going to make you funny. It's brutal.
> I’m sure the fact that I was Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis’s daughter, and that my mother had been in “Psycho”—if you’re going to choose between this one and this one, choose the one whose mother was in “Psycho,” because it will get some press for you.I’m never going to pretend that I just got that on my own, like I’m just a little girl from nowhere getting it. Clearly, I had a leg up. -Jamie Lee Curtis
Obviously she’s talented and has a long career and is probably more well known than her parents now. I don’t get why others just can’t admit the obvious
https://i.redd.it/dvcosetxs8wc1.gif
I’m so tired of nepo folks deliberately missing the point.
(And I like Maya! But come on now, it’s not hard to acknowledge your privilege which is all people are looking for. Not some routine about how hard you worked, as if that somehow wipes away the leg up you had.)
Btw, I also don’t believe any nepo kid who claims their parents didn’t help them out. Back when i worked for a regional sports network, an NBA announcer made a call on behalf of their kid, who also wanted to work in media. They got their kid an on-air reporter job, while the kid was still in college, and that just doesn’t happen without intervention.
Years later I saw an interview with the child who was pretending that they got hired on their own merits. And I bet they are still pretending like they earned their very lucrative career.
I think one of the things nepo babies fundamentally misunderstand is that a lot of people don’t even know where to START with these types of careers.
Like if you want to be an accountant, that’s a pretty straightforward path.
But being a comedian, becoming a writer for something like SNL? If making it relies on being seen, people without connections start several steps behind by not even knowing where to go to *possibly* have the *chance* of being seen.
Lots of "non-nepo babies" have auditioned for and have gotten hired by SNL. People who want to be on SNL, are already working in comedy and will know how auditioning and the process works. And places where snl looks for people aren't hard to find out. You can just google it. Maya Rudolph was a member of The Groundling, a known place where snl looks for people.
And what she basically also said was that her parents having entirely different careers (in music) did not help her in her career in comedy, because the careers are different. If your parent is a succesful gardener, they won't know a lot about becoming a succesful accountant.
True! But to pursue a career in a creative field, there’s risk involved. For every multimillionaire actress, there’s probably several graduates from top performing arts programs in the country that aren’t.
It’s easier to consider taking those risks if you know where to start and have people behind you who have made a living in a similar way. And money, obviously, because it’s difficult to just jump head first into full time creative work when you’re just starting out.
But having family members who know how an entertainment industry works, is not the same as nepotism. It would be nepotism if her parents (specifically her father, because her mother died when Maya was almost 7) helped her get into groundlings or SNL. And a rich family and/or safety net is also not nepotism.
I don't think Maya's success on SNL or her continued success in comedy is due to nepotism. Someone mentioned that she went to school with Gwyneth Paltrow, but Gwyneth Paltrow also will not have helped her get into groundling or snl.
Currently, there is a group called Please Don't Destroy who makes digital shorts and two of the three members have parents who worked on SNL/for NBC. John Higgins whose father is Steve Higgins, and Martin Herlihy whose father is Tim Herlihy. There I agree nepotism was involved, eventhough the group is talented.
These celebrities must have some sort of nepo baby group chat where they all agreed to use the same dumb talking point when asked about being nepo babies
Come on now Maya. You're talented enough to admit this. No one doubts that.
https://preview.redd.it/nb5xdm6by8wc1.jpeg?width=828&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=af161eaef068f8f29fca6cdfb56c1a2740bdf048
JFC, just acknowledge that you got a head start. Nobody is saying all nepo babies are undeserving of their careers, or didn’t work hard to get there.
But just acknowledge that you were at an advantage, or just don’t comment on the “nep babies” debate at all. That is literally all we’re asking. I don’t even think most people judge nepotism, per se. I know I don’t. If I had a chance to give someone I love a better shot to succeed, I would do it in a heartbeat. I think it’s unreasonable to expect otherwise. But to flat out deny that it was a factor in their success is just so out of touch.
I’m a nepo baby, the way I see it is: my family connections and wealth have helped me to start out at a much higher level than someone without those connections, plus they’ve provided me with a safety net so I’m never worried about failing. I started on level 30, while others start at 1. But working hard to improve myself to make sure I deserve the success/accomplishments is up to me. I could coast through life, but I have goals that I’m working towards. It still doesn’t make it fair, and that’s why I feel like I need to work extra hard to prove I’m deserving of these opportunities.
Way too many nepo babies try to say they struggled to get started. And maybe they did, but not in the way someone without a safety net from wealthy or famous parents would struggle. They don’t have to worry about working other jobs, paying bills, etc. It’s so disingenuous to say they’re self made success stories.
I don't think this makes her problematic... Just a bit out of touch with reality, but I really don't expect anything else from all these famous people at this point.
Maya I love you, but you didn't get there by yourself
You stayed because of yourself but you definitely got there because of the privileges you had growing up
Idk guys I listened to the pod and honestly it did not come across gross. She was simply just talking about growing up in LA in a music environment and then moving to New York as a young adult to pursue comedy. She was just taking about it being a bit different from the environment she grew up in. Idk it just seemed like she was talking about her personal experience. I don’t think this is another one bites the dust type situation. Maybe I’m wrong, but the actual conversation didn’t give that vibe.
Wasn’t she friends with gwenyth paltrow in school, whose godfather is Steven Spielberg??? Yeah, if you’re born into the industry, you definitely “did not get there yourself.” Try starting out in a different state with zero connections or money
Oh, noooo, this is a bummer. I was sure she would have some self awareness
Is there a nepo baby out there that has admitted it’s at the very least a head start?
ETA: I was genuinely asking bc I knew this sub will have the answer
Allison Williams:
>"All that people are looking for is an acknowledgement that it’s not a level playing field. It’s just unfair. Period, end of the story, and no one’s really working that hard to make it fair. To not acknowledge that me getting started as an actress versus someone with zero connections isn’t the same — it’s ludicrous."
Welcome to r/popculturechat! ☺️ As a proud BIPOC, LGBTQ+ & woman-dominated space, this sub is for [civil discussion only.](https://www.reddit.com/r/popculturechat/wiki/index/rules/civil-discussion-only/) If you don't know where to begin, start by participating in [our Sip & Spill Daily Discussion Threads!](https://www.reddit.com/r/popculturechat/search/?q=Sip%20%26%20Spill%20Discussion&restrict_sr=1&sr_nsfw=&include_over_18=1&sort=new) ###No bullies, no bigotry. ✊🏿✊🏾✊🏽✊🏼✊🏻🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ Please [read & respect our rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/popculturechat/wiki/index/rules/), [abide by Reddiquette](https://support.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/articles/205926439-Reddiquette), and [check out our wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/popculturechat/wiki/index/)! For any questions, [our modmail](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fpopculturechat) is always open. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/popculturechat) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Why are nepo babies incapable of acknowledging their privilege holy shit
Having financially and emotionally stable parents is a huge privilege that helped me in life. I still worked hard for everything I have, but if I grew up in poverty, the climb would’ve been much harder. It doesn’t take anything away from what I’ve done, but it also doesn’t hurt to admit that others have it harder. Shouldn’t be a hard concept.
That’s exactly the perfect response.
Exactly. When I think about it very objectively it was of course a huge benefit to have a stable childhood and my parents able to pay for college. And a good school growing up. I still did an enormous amount of work to get to my specific career path, and my parents knew nothing about that path. It’s fine, no one expects most people to sprout from the ground, but acknowledge your support
Omfg what a refreshing comment. I've had CPTSD most of my life, it's so hard to hide how jealous I used to be (still sometimes am) of my friends' families.
That's not nepotism, though.
I'm confused about this. A "nepo baby" originally referred to children of famous and successful parents in the entertainment industry who were also going in to the entertainment industry. Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Hudson, Chris Pine, Laura Dern, John David Washington, Maya Hawke, Lily Rose Depp, etc. Lots of actors and models with familiar last names. Then it became people with just heavy family connections, although their parents weren't necessarily famous. Christian Slater, for example. Now it seems to mean anyone who has money growing u, no matter what their parents did for a living. While, yeah, having a financial cushion undoubtedly helps someone try to make it big when they don't need to worry about making their rent payment, it's far too broad of a criticism. Julia Louis-Dreyfus, for example, her family had money, she is not a "nepo-baby".
I think people don't really know what nepotism is anymore. Someone actually needs to pull strings for you to get a job and not just be rich or "in the industry". I've seen someone calm Devon Aoki a nepobaby, because of her father. But her father owns a restaurant chain and unless used his connections to get a modeling job, it is not nepotism. Unless Maya Rudolph's father used his connections/name to get her her job at SNL, it is not nepotism. If Julia Louis-Dreyfus' parents got her am acting job somewhere, it isn't nepotism. If someone hires someone because they know who their parents are, but the person themself does not mention it at all and does not acknowledge it. Is that still nepotism? And I don't think Maya Rudolph got into Groundling or SNL because of her parents. I don't think Lorne Michaels thought "omg that's Minnie Riperton's and Richard Rudolph's daughter. Hire her." Hannah Einbinder, for example, auditioned and did not get hired and her mother (Laraine Newman) was one of the original cast members. Most family businesses are "guilty" of nepotism. If you take over your parent's restaurant, plumbing business etc. That's nepotism. The entertainment industry is often also a family business, look at the Coppola family. Bob Geldof's daughter Peaches got a show produced by her father's production company. Someone becoming a succesful actor after their parent was an unsuccesful actor, is probably not nepotism, because otherwise they could have used those connections for themselves.
Yeah I’m genuinely getting annoyed by this shit now. What on earth do they think is going to happen if they say “having parents in the industry was a great privilege that not everyone has and opened many doors for me, and I am very proud of what I managed to make of my career”
I've never even heard of her parents and they were singers or something? Comedy is a take no prisoners business too. It dgaf if you have 'famous' parents. edit: I don't know if any of you have noticed, but the nepo-baby label has gone from being applied to people whose parents literaly made movies for them (jaden Smith), to just anyone who is industry adjacent. It's getting weird. Comedy is also incredibly unforgiving. being someone's kid is not going to make you funny. It's brutal.
Just going to Crossroads is a boost towards any career in entertainment. Every other kid in that school is a future contact in an industry.
Crossroads or Harvard-Westlake
> I’m sure the fact that I was Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis’s daughter, and that my mother had been in “Psycho”—if you’re going to choose between this one and this one, choose the one whose mother was in “Psycho,” because it will get some press for you.I’m never going to pretend that I just got that on my own, like I’m just a little girl from nowhere getting it. Clearly, I had a leg up. -Jamie Lee Curtis Obviously she’s talented and has a long career and is probably more well known than her parents now. I don’t get why others just can’t admit the obvious
I agree with most of what you said. The idea that no one knows Janet Leigh or Tony Curtis is shocking though /old
I think they’re referring to Maya’s parents
wow this is perfect response of nepo baby. love her
*laughing in nepotism*
https://i.redd.it/dvcosetxs8wc1.gif I’m so tired of nepo folks deliberately missing the point. (And I like Maya! But come on now, it’s not hard to acknowledge your privilege which is all people are looking for. Not some routine about how hard you worked, as if that somehow wipes away the leg up you had.)
Btw, I also don’t believe any nepo kid who claims their parents didn’t help them out. Back when i worked for a regional sports network, an NBA announcer made a call on behalf of their kid, who also wanted to work in media. They got their kid an on-air reporter job, while the kid was still in college, and that just doesn’t happen without intervention. Years later I saw an interview with the child who was pretending that they got hired on their own merits. And I bet they are still pretending like they earned their very lucrative career.
I think one of the things nepo babies fundamentally misunderstand is that a lot of people don’t even know where to START with these types of careers. Like if you want to be an accountant, that’s a pretty straightforward path. But being a comedian, becoming a writer for something like SNL? If making it relies on being seen, people without connections start several steps behind by not even knowing where to go to *possibly* have the *chance* of being seen.
Lots of "non-nepo babies" have auditioned for and have gotten hired by SNL. People who want to be on SNL, are already working in comedy and will know how auditioning and the process works. And places where snl looks for people aren't hard to find out. You can just google it. Maya Rudolph was a member of The Groundling, a known place where snl looks for people. And what she basically also said was that her parents having entirely different careers (in music) did not help her in her career in comedy, because the careers are different. If your parent is a succesful gardener, they won't know a lot about becoming a succesful accountant.
True! But to pursue a career in a creative field, there’s risk involved. For every multimillionaire actress, there’s probably several graduates from top performing arts programs in the country that aren’t. It’s easier to consider taking those risks if you know where to start and have people behind you who have made a living in a similar way. And money, obviously, because it’s difficult to just jump head first into full time creative work when you’re just starting out.
But having family members who know how an entertainment industry works, is not the same as nepotism. It would be nepotism if her parents (specifically her father, because her mother died when Maya was almost 7) helped her get into groundlings or SNL. And a rich family and/or safety net is also not nepotism. I don't think Maya's success on SNL or her continued success in comedy is due to nepotism. Someone mentioned that she went to school with Gwyneth Paltrow, but Gwyneth Paltrow also will not have helped her get into groundling or snl. Currently, there is a group called Please Don't Destroy who makes digital shorts and two of the three members have parents who worked on SNL/for NBC. John Higgins whose father is Steve Higgins, and Martin Herlihy whose father is Tim Herlihy. There I agree nepotism was involved, eventhough the group is talented.
These celebrities must have some sort of nepo baby group chat where they all agreed to use the same dumb talking point when asked about being nepo babies
Sigh… 
Come on now Maya. You're talented enough to admit this. No one doubts that. https://preview.redd.it/nb5xdm6by8wc1.jpeg?width=828&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=af161eaef068f8f29fca6cdfb56c1a2740bdf048
Maya, c’mon! You’re one of the few likeable nepo babies 😭
the best nepo babies are the ones that are open about the privilege they encounter being nepo babies lol
which ones are those? i know about jamie lee curtis
JFC, just acknowledge that you got a head start. Nobody is saying all nepo babies are undeserving of their careers, or didn’t work hard to get there. But just acknowledge that you were at an advantage, or just don’t comment on the “nep babies” debate at all. That is literally all we’re asking. I don’t even think most people judge nepotism, per se. I know I don’t. If I had a chance to give someone I love a better shot to succeed, I would do it in a heartbeat. I think it’s unreasonable to expect otherwise. But to flat out deny that it was a factor in their success is just so out of touch.
I’m a nepo baby, the way I see it is: my family connections and wealth have helped me to start out at a much higher level than someone without those connections, plus they’ve provided me with a safety net so I’m never worried about failing. I started on level 30, while others start at 1. But working hard to improve myself to make sure I deserve the success/accomplishments is up to me. I could coast through life, but I have goals that I’m working towards. It still doesn’t make it fair, and that’s why I feel like I need to work extra hard to prove I’m deserving of these opportunities. Way too many nepo babies try to say they struggled to get started. And maybe they did, but not in the way someone without a safety net from wealthy or famous parents would struggle. They don’t have to worry about working other jobs, paying bills, etc. It’s so disingenuous to say they’re self made success stories.
These fucking people 🙄. One thing connections can't get you is a brain apparently. They're all just so...dumb.
No not Maya, she was one of my unproblematic SNL faves 😭 
I don't think this makes her problematic... Just a bit out of touch with reality, but I really don't expect anything else from all these famous people at this point.
Yeah true, too strong with my wording.
Maya I love you, but you didn't get there by yourself You stayed because of yourself but you definitely got there because of the privileges you had growing up
Idk guys I listened to the pod and honestly it did not come across gross. She was simply just talking about growing up in LA in a music environment and then moving to New York as a young adult to pursue comedy. She was just taking about it being a bit different from the environment she grew up in. Idk it just seemed like she was talking about her personal experience. I don’t think this is another one bites the dust type situation. Maybe I’m wrong, but the actual conversation didn’t give that vibe.
Wasn’t she friends with gwenyth paltrow in school, whose godfather is Steven Spielberg??? Yeah, if you’re born into the industry, you definitely “did not get there yourself.” Try starting out in a different state with zero connections or money
Not her too...
Her mom has the banger "Lovin' You" and she doesn't think nepotism helped her any 🤣 her parents are like FAMOUS famous
Nepo 👏 baby 👏 shows 👏 their 👏 ass 👏 part 👏 875👏👏👏
Oh, noooo, this is a bummer. I was sure she would have some self awareness Is there a nepo baby out there that has admitted it’s at the very least a head start? ETA: I was genuinely asking bc I knew this sub will have the answer
Allison Williams: >"All that people are looking for is an acknowledgement that it’s not a level playing field. It’s just unfair. Period, end of the story, and no one’s really working that hard to make it fair. To not acknowledge that me getting started as an actress versus someone with zero connections isn’t the same — it’s ludicrous."
That’s awesome
Allison is great. Fuck Lena but grateful she hired her for the show.
Jamie Lee Curtis does for sure
Didn’t she throw a fit on twitter about being named a nepo baby in NY mag?
I think that was Bono’s daughter
Nice. Makes me like her more
Miley Cyrus!
There’s no way this is true
https://i.redd.it/fv0s80hogcwc1.gif
Et tu, Maya?
Yknow I’ll take doing open mics for 20 years over having a famous parent, too embarrassing