These Famous, Non-Nepo Baby Siblings Prove That Sometimes, Genes Are Stronger Than Money

This is a nepo baby-free zone, people.

If you've so much as opened a social media app in the last two years, you will have heard of nepo-baby discourse. The term refers to the celebrity children of famous and well-connected (usually wealthy) parents – and like it or not, there sure are a lot of them in Hollywood.

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So it makes sense that in families that include more than one famous child, rich and famous family members are the norm (think Gigi and Bella Hadid, the Kardashian family, Kate and Oliver Hudson...I could go on).

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Which makes it even more remarkable when multiple siblings do well *without* industry parents. We found 12 celeb brothers and sisters who prove that sometimes, the talent not only runs in the genes, but also against the nepo baby trend:

1. Liam and Chris Hemsworth

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The actor brothers have starred in movies like Avengers, Thor, and The Hunger Games, but their parents led more regular lives – dad Craig was a counsellor for Child Protective Services, while their mother Leonie was an English teacher. Both parents went on to run a community centre and work on a cattle farm in Northern Territory, which Chris says was "four-and-a-half hours from the nearest town." Oh, and quelle surprise – the Aussie brothers' parents were just as good-looking as they are. 

Side note – apparently Woody Harrelson fully didn't realise the very similar-looking pair were related:

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2. Joe, Nick, and Kevin Jonas

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The Jonas parents wasted no time getting married, having met each other at church aged just 18 and tying the knot in August of that same year (woah). At the time, the brothers' dad, Kevin Jonas Sr, was a carpet installer. Their mother Denise says they relied on food stamps when the kids were younger, adding that Kevin Sr came from a "dirt poor" family. It seems both parents' passion for their children's music was the main driver for their eventual success (aww). 

Here's a 15-year-old clip of the entire clan for ya:

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3. Serena and Venus Williams

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The sisters are known for beating tennis record after tennis record (Venus has won 49 singles titles over the course of her career, while Serena won 73). In fact, Serena Williams managed to break two Guinness World Records right before she ended her career. Their father Richard was a security guard before he became the sisters' full-time coach, and their mother Orcene worked as a nurse. 

Here's Venus and Serena talking about the movie based on their father:

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4. Dylan and Cole Sprouse

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The famous twins' careers started early, with childhood appearances in shows like Friends and, of course, The Suite Life Of Zack and Cody. But parents Melanie Wright and Matthew Sprouse worked as English language teachers in Italy after meeting in California (very romantic, but probably a little less well-paid that the twins' current careers). The pair's father gained full custody of the children when they were aged 10. 

Here they are as absolutely tiny babies:

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5. Dannii and Kylie Minogue

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The Aussie duo are famous for songs like "Holiday" and "I Begin To Wonder" – and of course, recently, the viral "Padam". But despite both sisters being incredibly famous in their own right, their parents seem to have had no sway over their children's showbiz fates. Their mother, Carol Ann, was a former ballet dancer who sailed over to Aus on a £10 scheme from England, and her father was an accountant at a family-owned auto repair business. Kylie's music career took off after her appearance on TV show Neighbours, and her sister's fame soon followed.

Here's Daanii speaking on the comparisons to Kylie:

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6. Tom and Emma Hiddleston

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You might know Tom Hiddleston from Loki, Thor, and more – and his older sister Emma starred in everything from The Witcher to Endeavor. Both grew up in Westminster, England, with arts administrator mum Diana Patricia Hiddleston and chemist dad Norman. They have one other sister, journalist Sarah Hiddleston – so it's safe to say that whatever was going on in the family's London home when they were growing up, the Hiddleston siblings grew up seriously talented.

And apparently, he introduced Taylor Swift to his loving parents when they were dating:

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7. Lilly and Lana Wachowski

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The sisters are directing and writing legends, both being the brains behind smash hits like The Matrix and Cloud Atlas. The duo grew up with siblings Julie and Laura in South Chicago, all children of businessman Ron Wachowski and nurse and painter Lynne Luckinbill. The pair seemed to have been very close to their now-late parents, the grief over whom led Lilly to create her TV show Work In Progress.

Here's Lana talking about their Matrix return:

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8. Jared and Shannon Leto

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Aside from his recent antics climbing a Berlin building, you might *also* know Jared Leto as the lead singer from band 30 Seconds to Mars. His actor and composer brother Shannon Leto is the drummer in the band. They describe growing up on food stamps with "hippy" mother Constance Leto, who sometimes raised the kids on communes. While their biological father seems to have been more or less out of the picture and has since passed, their opthalmist stepfather, Dr. Carl Leto, spotted the kids’ talents early on.

Here's their beloved mum:

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9. Tia and Tamera Mowry

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Speaking of famous twins, it doesn't get much better known than Tia and Tamera Mowry – best known as child co-stars in Sister Sister, the identical twins now have successful careers in their own right. Both grew up in a military family with mum Darlene and dad Timothy (both sergeants in the army). In fact, when the kids' careers took off, their mother had to plead in court to be allowed to move to Hollywood – her wish was granted by the army, but dad Timothy had to stay behind in his German post.

Awwww:

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10. Mark and Donnie Wahlberg

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Mark Wahlberg is known for his roles in smash hits like Planet of the Apes, The Italian Job, and much, much more, while singer-songwriter and actor brother Donnie has appeared in Saw II and Blue Bloods. Both brothers grew up in Boston as part of a family of nine children (woah). Dad Donald worked in the army, and while we don't have much information about him, we do know he fathered siblings the brothers knew nothing about for years after separating from mum Alma. "Both my parents worked very hard to put food on the table, so we didn't get the kind of time that I would have liked with him, especially when they got divorced," he told Esquire.

Here they are fighting for the coveted favourite son status:

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11. Chad and Rob Lowe

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Chad and Rob Lowe's mum (Barbara Lynn Helper) worked as a teacher and writer – as Rob shared with Oprah, “She wrote every day of her life, and she gave to me the gift of loving literature and loving words.” The creative bug appears to have spread to his brother too – both have established successful acting careers.

Here they are working together on The Grinder:

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Are there other famous siblings who came from humble beginnings that you expected to see here? Let us know in the comments below!