Catherine Zeta-Jones has a problem with the phrase “nepo baby.” The Oscar-winning actress, whose two children with husband Michael Douglas are both pursuing careers in the film industry, told the Sunday Times that the label unfairly punishes young people for circumstances they had no say in.
“This horrific phrase ‘nepo baby’ is horrible because these kids didn’t ask to be born into this, they’re finding their own way in life,” she said, according to the Sunday Times. “But they love it, and they’re good.”
The term has become a fixture of entertainment coverage in recent years, applied to the children of celebrities, executives, and other well-connected figures who follow their parents into high-profile industries. Zeta-Jones, 56, is herself part of a sprawling Hollywood family: she is married to Michael Douglas, the Oscar-winning son of screen legend Kirk Douglas.
Two Children, Two Paths Into Film
The couple’s children, Dylan and Carys, are both working in the business that made their parents — and their grandfather — famous. Zeta-Jones said Dylan is focused on acting while Carys is drawn to directing, and she described both as steadily working at their craft.
“It’s hard for them to forge a way forward on their own,” she said. The actress also suggested that she and her husband would step in if their kids weren’t genuinely committed, telling the Times that otherwise “Michael and I would be the first to go, ‘you know what? Maybe law school looks really good.'”
The children have already made red-carpet appearances alongside their mother. Dylan joined her at the premiere of the Disney+ series “National Treasure: Edge of History” in Los Angeles in December 2022, and Carys attended the opening ceremony gala dinner at the Cannes Film Festival with her mother in May 2023.
Reflecting on Her Own Start
Zeta-Jones, who was born in Swansea, Wales, compared her children’s situation to her own early entry into performing. She told the Times that she didn’t fully grasp the pressure young people face until she had kids of her own.
“Until I had my own kids, I didn’t realise the pressure, how big that was for a young adult — well, a teenager,” she said. She added that she caught the performing bug early through theatre, recalling, “I had a sniff of the joy of being in the theatre so young. I went, ‘I want to do this. I can’t imagine going through school and A-levels in Swansea.'”
Zeta-Jones is known for roles in films including “The Mask of Zorro” and “Chicago,” the latter of which earned her an Academy Award for best supporting actress, and more recently for the series “Feud.”
Not Her First Pushback
This isn’t the first time Zeta-Jones has publicly bristled at criticism of her family’s privilege. In 2018, she told the British Daily Mirror that she was tired of apologizing for her wealth, in comments reported at the time by Breitbart News.
“One thing I’m not is humble anymore. I’m sick of being humble. I really am,” she said then. “So sorry I’m rich, so sorry I’m married to a movie star, so sorry I’m not so bad looking.”
She went on to say that she had no apologies left to offer. “No sorrys. Enough. All that is important to me now is my work,” she said, adding that the rest of her life was a joy because of “two beautiful kids and a healthy, happy husband.”
Her comments about money have drawn attention before. In 2003, she described not considering $1 million to be much money, and she has also spoken openly about her interest in collecting houses.
The “nepo baby” debate has flared repeatedly across the entertainment press, with defenders of the label arguing that industry connections open doors unavailable to outsiders, and its targets insisting that lineage alone doesn’t guarantee a career. Zeta-Jones’ remarks place her squarely on the defensive side of that argument — a position that carries particular weight given that her children are now navigating the same industry themselves.
For now, the actress’s message is that her kids are working at their chosen craft like anyone else. Whether the industry and its audiences accept that framing is a question the next few years of Dylan and Carys Douglas’s careers will likely answer on their own.
Source: www.breitbart.com — https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2026/09/15/catherine-zeta-jones-mother-of-a-nepo-baby-decries-nepo-baby-as-a-horrific-term/