Which actor/actress were you surprised to discover is hugely connected?

Leo Woodall's dad is Andrew Woodall, an actor whose face you'll recognise from loads of TV dramas. His stepdad was Alexander Morton, who played Golly in Monarch of the Glen – he died last week.

That's not true

There are plenty of successful actors who came into the profession without connections. For instance:
Meryl Streep
Tom Hanks
Judi Dench
Jack Nicholson
Anthony Hopkins
Renee Zellweger
Jessie Buckley
Julie Walters
Matthew Goode
Gemma Arterton
Jimmy Nail

Next to none, I'd have thought. No showbiz connections in their background as far as I know. Their parents split up when they were young and their mother brought them up alone thereafter, on a teacher's salary. Not really a good example for this thread. Two bright and motivated brothers who have each succeeded in their different fields.

I've just got to assuming everyone in the film business is a Nepo of some description.

It used to be 'hollywood dynasties'. Not so much now.

I liked it when I found out big Mo from EastEnders is Gary Oldman's sister though.

QueenOfHiraeth
It's bad enough that acting, TV, etc is such a closed shop but now we are supposed to believe they are all incredibly talented novelists or children's authors in their spare time!
I wonder if an ordinary person wrote any of the celeb books that top the charts, would they even get published?

I read a thread on this just today- if they’re into drama they’re probably readers do it’s not a stretch they’d write for extra money. If they get my kids into reading I don’t care who they are!!

Yes, because you won't make the grade unless you have the ability.

Your parents can open doors for you.

Yes. They all do, but some rely on them more and some rely on them less. If you saw the amount of editing that has to be done for celebrity memoirs; even if they attempt to write it themselves, they have no formal training, and the editing will practically rewrite it. Non-fiction books by comedians have a tiny bit more authenticity usually, but not that much. Source: have been a small-scale ghostwriter but I know some VERY big ones. What I’ve been told: Janet Evanovich - fake. Nora Roberts - real. And even that might be a load of old shite. You can’t say for sure about anybody. Some celebrity writers will be more or less involved in the process, depending on how interested they are, but you can guarantee that anyone famous who suddenly publishes a bestseller had help, though only the people who attended the writing meetings knows how much and it’s supposed to stay that way. If the pay is good enough and the NDA is strong enough, ghostwriters tend to keep their mouths shut or they don’t get re-hired in the industry.

Haven't RTFT so apologies if a repeat:

Shirley Maclaine and Warren Beatty. Siblings.

And her son, Crispian mills, of Kula Shaker.

At least most of these have some talent. The ones who don't become models, no matter what they look like.

I’m nearly 50.

so some of that was still around. But I still had to leave school and work to keep a roof over my head, I was alone in the world.

Not everyone could make use of grants or just stay on the dole.

Wow! I had no idea! Very few get in through sheer talent aline , sadly.

Oliver Hudson is her brother, also an actor, although I admit this one surprised me a few years ago!

Louisa Jacobson, who plays Marion in The Gilded Age, is Meryl Streep’s daughter. And Hattie Morahan, who plays Lady Sarah, is the daughter of Anna Carteret of Juliet Bravo fame.

Lets go right back to Hayley Mills daughter of the late great John Mills

It's not just connections. It's having the money to fail. You can afford to live in London while auditioning. You're not tired from working a day job and having a small part in a play. You can get to auditions without asking for time off. You can eat and heat a flat. You can have a flat to yourself.

Honestly having money is easier if you're just starting out.

I agree that's harder now, but most of the people you're talking about had the same good fortune I did - we were in the tiny minority of our generations to go to university at a time when the Local Education Authority paid the fees and we got grants for maintenance. If your parents' earnings were low enough, you got a full grant and if they were a bit higher you got less, but most parents (mine included) made up the difference and no repayment was required or expected. It was perfectly feasible when I was a student to work hard enough to get a decent degree and also do a lot of interesting stuff on the side. The benefits system was quite different then too. You could claim supplementary benefit (not much, but easy to get hold of) in the summer vacations or after graduating and nobody was pushing the claimant to keep applying for unsuitable jobs. A huge amount of creative stuff from the UK was made possible by the talent having enough money to get by and unlimited time thanks to student grants and the benefits system.

I think it is. While it's true that these professions often run in families, in order to become a doctor or lawyer, you have to go through years of rigorous training and pass difficult assessments. If you don't pass your exams, you won't make the cut no matter who your parents are.

With acting, modelling or other similar professions, it's much less structured. Like I said above, for every successful actor, there are many others, equally talented, who will never get a role. Having a parent in the industry gives you a huge advantage.

And her daughter- Gaia Wise

Steve Coogan's elder brother Martin is/was the lead singer of The Mock Turtles. Can you dig it? 😉

Toby Stephens
Daniel Radcliffe
Sabrina Carpenter
Tilda Swindon
Phoebe Waller B

The list goes on, and on

Is it any different though if you follow your parent into the medical/lawyer/banking professions?

Another of Meryl Streep’s daughters Is in The Gilded Age.

RIchard Osman, that’s another - his brother is in Suede. Not sure how much influence that had on his career.