How Nepotism Has Stormed into Hollywood

by Claudia Jeffrey

Hollywood is known for its films, glitz, and glamour and, of course, the movie stars. Hollywood celebrities are some of the richest in the world. And some of them are even more influential than some of the presidents the US would have seen. The celebrity persona, lifestyle from what they say to what they eat, and what they wear, everything associated with them becomes a benchmark that the general public looks up to and wants to follow it to the point.

No wonder people desire to live a life under the spotlight because the attraction of the monetary value, as well as fame, is uncanny. According to the statistics published on Statista, the forecast for the global box office revenue increased to a whopping 50 billion US dollars in 2020. Now, these figures clearly show that these revenues increasing would increase the income of the actors and actresses.

Then who wouldn’t want to be a part of the industry? This has given way to nepotism.

6 Major Reasons Why Nepotism Exists in Hollywood

The following are the six major reasons why nepotism exists in Hollywood.

1. Carrying The Inherited Family Name

One of the major reasons why nepotism has thrived is because it comes as an inheritance. For instance, if we take the Coppola family, the name has been known around for years in Hollywood. The family has had many generations seen Hollywood go through the retro timelines to the modern-day sci-fi era. Thus, many of the young ones didn’t have a choice to stray away from the family name. They joined in on the bandwagon and continued as actors and actresses even if they weren’t doing that good of a job of it.

2. The Overall Industry Attraction

Nobody can deny that industry life is attractive. Who wouldn’t want to live that celebrity lifestyle, under the spotlight for every little thing they do, being influential and making money for it? Hollywood has been branded and marketed as that fantasy world not easily achievable by the regular folks. It is why it intrigues many to become a movie star one day. Nepotism thrives off of it. Children born in families that are already a part of the film industry, they grow up to see this lifestyle as normal. It is not something new or exciting for them, so they never move out of that reality to try something else.

3. The Desire To Be Famous And Well Known

Many of the celebrities we know today started off being famous for being famous. Yes, you can read that again because the reason some of the well-known people today are famous is that they were born in a famous family, were associated with a famous person, or got famous for all the wrong reasons like being rich. One of the greatest examples of this would be the Kardashians. That is one family which is famous for being famous. They are rich and well known and started off for having no real talent other than having family ties with famous people and being rich enough to flaunt it.

4. Connections And Sources With Influential People

This brings us to our next point, which is having connections and sources with famous people. Having family ties with somebody famous or who is already well established in the industry is your one-way ticket to becoming a celebrity in no time. If you have influential people around you and the paparazzi give you a dedicated screen time, you could be a celebrity overnight. The perfect combination that works with it is being rich. Having money attracts the substandard company, which leads to everything from then on. So all those social media accounts you see fangirling over a favorite celebrity, don’t make fun of them. You never know where they will end up.

5. Taking The Legacy Forward

Working in the film industry works much like a business. An ancestor builds the business from scratch and helps it grow. The business thrives and is carried forward as an inheritance from generation to generation. A famous family name in the industry is more of a legacy of a single person that is then passed on to the generations to come. For instance, you can read articles about Michael Jackson’s siblings and family on Crowd Writer UK about how Jackson’s have taken their legacy forward throughout the years.

6. Because of Nepotism Sells

Lastly, the biggest reason why Hollywood has nepotism because it sells. Like honestly, think about it that a movie trailer being marketed with a name of a new artist would not be as exciting as a new movie launch with the lead actor being a known celebrity’s son or daughter. For example, Tom Cruise is a great actor and a public favorite. If in the future one of his sons start their acting carrier in would be a direct nepotistic move and it would sell like hotcakes.

6 Celebrities That Are a Product of Annoying Nepotism in Hollywood

Now for the annoying names that appear multiple times across the daily news related to Hollywood. Whether the medium is television, magazine, or social media, people love to hate these people, and yet they are a direct product of nepotism. Here are the top six celebrities who have grown on nepotism in Hollywood.

1. Kylie Jenner

Forbes listed her as the number one under-19 self-made woman of the year 2019. There are so many things wrong with just that piece of news to begin with that there might be nothing else to add more to it. The youngest of the infamous Kardashian/Jenner clan, Kylie has been the celebrity child since she was born to parents Kris and Bruce (now Caitlyn) Jenner. The title that she controversially got of being ‘self-made’ was not agreed upon by many because people understand that it had much to do with her name being the reason that sells her cosmetic brand than it being sold organically.

2. Kim Kardashian West

It would not be even appropriate to discuss how and why Kim Kardashian (now Kim Kardashian West) became famous. Let’s just say that all types of marketing might be good, but the reason here would be the last you would want for yourself. She is second to Kourtney Kardashian in the sibling hierarchy and married to famous singer/rapper Kanye West. She was originally known to be friends and stylist to Paris Hilton but soon gained wide recognition for her own life and shenanigans. Today, she is one of the most well-known people all over the world and has built a huge empire of fashion, makeup, family and drama around her, all courtesy to the nepotism she is a product of.

3. Paris Hilton

One of the most recognizable public figures, Paris Hilton, is also a product of nepotism known as an entrepreneur due to the chain of hotels and businesses that she helped start or were the sponsor of. She has been through a roller coaster of life right in front of the camera. Living in the heart of Hollywood, she is known more for her controversial choice of living than her actual commercial moves. She made waves when she was seen in crowds with many known faces of Hollywood around her. She even tried starting modeling and a signing career, all to fail eventually.

4. Jaden Smith

Jaden Smith is one of the two children of the Hollywood’s Fresh Prince of Bel-Air that is Will Smith with his wife Jada Pinkett Smith, making one of the most famous couples of Hollywood to this day. The main reason why we even know that Jaden exists is that his father is the heartthrob of the industry. If it weren’t for how well known Will Smith is, there is no real place for Jaden in this industry as he is an average actor to singer depending on what he chooses to build his career in.

5. Nicole and Sophia Richie

Known as the ‘socialite’ of Hollywood, Nicole is also known for being best friends formerly with Paris Hilton. Although she is the adopted daughter of Lionel Richie, her life is nothing short of the infamous Richie’s themselves. She tried both acting and modeling gigs that ended up not working out for her. And somehow passed on the same to her younger sister Sophia Richie as well, who was formerly famous for briefly dating Justin Bieber and is nowadays famous for dating model and the former flame of Kourtney Kardashian, Scott Disick.

6. Khloe and Kourtney Kardashian

Lastly, the two remaining Kardashian sisters who are famous just because their life stories have been excessively covered in the reality TV series that cover their whole family drama. The sisters are known for their fashion choices, famous love flames, and ties with other famous celebrities. Therefore, clearly having no skill or talent of their own.

Conclusion

Nepotism very much exists within the core of our film industry. But many of the products of nepotism are rightfully here because even if a famous family launched them, they made a name for themselves due to their talent and skill in the genre. However, the industry heads should now change the game and understand the value of raw talent that exists in the new generations to come and give them a chance instead of going for celeb-children who have nothing to offer.

Author Bio

Claudia Jeffrey is currently working as a Content Strategist at MHR Writer, an excellent dissertation editing services. Having studied in film school and a self-proclaimed artist, Claudia has a growing passion for the Hollywood movie industry. She shares her opinions and interest with a network of audiences online through her blogs.