nepo baby

noun

ˈne-(ˌ)pō- 

variants or less commonly nepotism baby

plural nepo babies also nepotism babies

: a person who gains success or opportunities through familial connections

especially : a child of a famous parent (such as an actor, musician, entrepreneur, or politician)

… I thought it was a talent competition for aspiring nepo babies whose famous parents refused to book them auditions.

—Kyndall Cunningham

… [Actor] Ewan McGregor's daughter Clara has admitted that she has had all the privilege a so-called 'nepo baby' can enjoy.

—Beverley Lyons

… he [Ben Stiller] starred in a … Pepsi commercial that poked fun at his nepo baby status.

—Jen Shiori Adams

George emanates a grating "good vibes only" philosophy borne from his privileged upbringing; he's a nepotism baby by way of his famous artist father.

—Variety

Anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. … filed paperwork Wednesday to launch a presidential challenge to President Biden, continuing a centuries-long tradition of nepotism baby presidential contenders.

—Zach Blackburn

Examples of nepo baby in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Inequality is not based on the chances that a nepo baby can have. —Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 11 Jan. 2025

Brooke Shields Shares Sweet Family Snaps with Her 2 Daughters and Husband Chris Henchy from Their Christmas Celebration While chatting with PEOPLE for an August cover story, Grier and Rowan revealed their thoughts on the nepo baby conversation. —Hannah Sacks, People.com, 7 Jan. 2025

Yet the news wasn’t all bad for nepo baby directors and executives in 2024. —Tatiana Siegel, Variety, 19 Dec. 2024

But part of what the director seems to be getting at with the film’s elder-millennial generation of characters is that useful nepo babies with ideas are good while party-hopping nepo babies are bad. —Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2024

Continue reading to learn more about the nepo babies that the ATF highlighted. —Madeline Fitzgerald, Quartz, 30 Dec. 2024

The outrage is because Lively grew up in an affluent neighborhood in Los Angeles and has been considered a nepo baby. —Benedict Cosgrove, Newsweek, 19 Dec. 2024

Next-gen nepo baby Sunday Rose Kidman-Urban, the 16-year-old daughter of Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban, in her runway debut. —Hayley Maitland, Vogue, 1 Oct. 2024

And the supporting cast, led by nepo babies Jamie Lee Curtis and Billie Lourd, have earned raves for their moving performances. —Tatiana Siegel, Variety, 19 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1992, in the meaning defined above