Is greatness genetic? Is fame hereditary? We know that some of the characteristics that can help people become celebrities are genetic, right? Athletic skill, musical ability, and perfect facial symmetry are all things that can run in families, but is there some other kind of greatness that happens in some families? We couldn't help but wonder about that when we started learning how many current celebrities are related to major historical figures.
For example, what is in the DNA of a family who has produced a world-class cricket player, a British prime minister, a double Academy Award nominee who also starred in the Harry Potter films, a Spanish diplomat, a navy vice admiral, and the nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale? And, yes, all of those people are related to a current celebrity (check out No. 4 on our list to find out who).
Whether it is DNA, privilege, or just sheer coincidence, it turns out that there are at least 15 celebrities who have some surprising or famously historical ancestors. From the descendants of Abraham Lincoln and Ernest Hemingway to the distant cousin of Hugh Hefner, some celebrities have some super fascinating family trees!
Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks, one of America's favorite actors, is a descendant of one of America's most famous presidents. Yep, Tom is related to Abraham Lincoln through his mother's side of the family. The two are essentially third cousins, which makes it extra special that Tom has actually narrated a biography of Lincoln.
Riley Keough
Riley Keough is an actress on the rise. She recently appeared in the movie Zola and is the star of the upcoming (and highly anticipated) Amazon adaptation of Daisy Jones and The Six. She'll be playing a singer, which maybe will require her to tap into her musical DNA that she gets from her late grandfather, Elvis Presley.
Cindy Crawford
Supermodel Cindy Crawford (and her famous model daughter, Kaia Gerber) are both distantly related to one of the kings of American literature. Cindy's family has long roots in the US, and one branch of her family tree includes writer Ernest Hemingway.
Helena Bonham Carter
Remember that amazingly connected actor we mentioned in the introduction to this piece who is related to a British prime minister and Florence Nightingale, among others? Yep, all of those people are part of Helen Bonham Carter's family lineage. She's from a well-connected British family with a long history in politics and diplomacy.
Zooey Deschanel
Like many other celebrities, actress Zooey Deschanel learned fascinating facts about her family when she appeared on the TV show about genealogy Who Do You Think You Are? like the fact that her ancestors played a major role in the Civil War, including owning a farm that was a stop on the famous Underground Railroad.
Jim Parsons
Big Bang Theory star Jim Parsons has an ancestor who literally left a permanent mark on French history. His sixth great-grandfather was an architect named Louis-Francois Trouard, who designed and built the chapel at Versailles and many other historic landmarks still standing in France today.
Robert Pattinson
OK, this one is a little on the nose! It turns out that Robert Pattison, who made many teenage hearts flutter as a vampire in the Twighlight movies, is actually distantly related to Vlad the Impaler. Vlad the Impaler not only had one of the great nicknames in history, but also was said to be the original inspiration for the most famous vampire ever: Dracula!
George Clooney
Another celebrity who can count 16th President Abraham Lincoln as an ancestor is George Clooney. George's family has deep roots in Kentucky, as did Lincoln's family, and the two are connected through a shared ancestor named Lucy Hanks. Hanks … hmm, why does that name seem so familiar?
Johnny Depp
We wouldn't exactly describe him as "regal" (maybe more like "scruffy" and "always looking like he needs a shower"), but Johnny Depp has some royal roots, including sharing an ancestor with Queen Elizabeth. They are both connected to King Edward III, who ruled England in the 1300s.
LMFAO
For those of us who remember the total earworm song "Party Rock Anthem" (a massive hit in 2011 that was nominated for a Grammy), here is a blast from the past. The uncle/nephew duo behind the electronic dance group LMFAO are not only related to each other (who knew?), but also to Motown Records founder Berry Gordy Jr. and former President Jimmy Carter.
Ozzy Osbourne
Rocker Ozzy Osbourne has always seemed to have a bit of a rebellious side, which he may have inherited from one of his distant ancestors, the outlaw Jesse James. Ozzy discovered this connection after scientists did some sequencing of his DNA, which also revealed that Ozzy is distantly connected to King George I.
Sophia Loren
Sophia Loren, now in her 80s, is one of the all-time icons of sex appeal on the silver screen. She's from Rome and has a family connection through marriage to former Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, which may not be a family tie she's proud of, given his connections to political violence.
Glenn Close
Actress Glenn Close is a fourth cousin, seven times removed (no, we're not exactly sure what that means, either) with none other than Founding Father and first President George Washington. Interestingly, England's Prince Harry is also a distant cousin of Washington. He and Prince William are counted as second cousins, nine times removed.
Check out our Meghan Markle page for all the latest news about Meghan, Prince Harry, and their growing family.
Patton Oswalt
Comedian Patton Oswalt is one of the many, many, many people who claim to have a genetic connection to famous Mongol Empire leader Genghis Khan. Genghis Khan was said to have been very, um, prolific with his genetic material as Patton hilariously described during an interview with Conan O'Brien in 2017.
Hugh Hefner
Late Playboy founder Hugh Hefner was no Puritan himself, but he was a direct descendant of William Bradford, a Puritan leader who came over on the Mayflower and became governor of the Plymouth colony. Interestingly, Hef shared this ancestor with former President George W. Bush.
