Scream queen Emma Roberts has just weighed in on the ongoing “nepo baby” debate. Other celebs such as Maya Hawke (daughter of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman) have shared their opinions on this ongoing topic in the past, and now it’s Roberts’ turn.
Roberts is a member of a very famous Hollywood family as she’s the daughter of actor Eric Roberts and niece of iconic actress Julia Roberts. She began acting in 2001 but didn’t land her big break until 2004 when she starred in the Nickelodeon series Unfabulous. Since then Roberts has starred in several movies and TV Shows like Wild Child and the American Horror Story franchise. But despite her extensive acting resume, Roberts has still faced criticism for being a “nepo baby” — a term she’s not a huge fan of.
On the June 25 episode of the Table for Two podcast, Roberts joined host Bruce Bozzi for a conversation that touched on the “nepo baby” discourse. Roberts claimed that there are “two sides of the coin” in the nepo baby debate, sharing that she feels as though women get more criticism than men do. “I always joke, ‘Why is no one calling out George Clooney for being a nepo baby?’” Roberts said, referring to his famous aunt, Rosemary Clooney. “…I don’t really see people calling out sons of famous actors,” she added.
Despite coming from a privileged family, Roberts acknowledged the inevitable hardships of her career. “People only see your wins, because they only see when you’re on the poster of a movie – they don’t see all the rejection along the way.”
She also elaborated on the unique struggles that come along with being from a famous family and the expectations that surround it. “People like to say, you know, you have a leg up because you have family in the industry. But then the other side to that is, you have to prove yourself more,” she explained. “Also, if people don’t have good experiences with other people in your family, then you’ll never get a chance.”
Roberts touched on how daunting fame can be, saying, “Fame has never been the goal, because fame at a certain level is kind of scary,” noting that she never wanted her fame to outweigh her work. Roberts has made it clear that she doesn’t wish to compromise quality for fame, saying, “There’s nothing scarier to me than being so famous that you’re never left alone, but also you’re not getting good jobs.”
Roberts finished the conversation with final commentary on the trending “nepo baby” conversation, saying that she doesn’t think “anyone should be called out for wanting to follow their dream.” Emma Roberts has made it clear that hard work is still required to reach one’s dreams, even if your aunt is the one and only Julia Roberts.