Maya Hawke admits she’s ‘comfortable’ with being a ‘nepo baby’: ‘It’s a lucky place to be’
Maya Hawke is proud to be the child of famous parents.
The “Stranger Things” actress, who is the daughter of Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke, admitted that she feels “lucky” to be able to follow in her parents’ footsteps on the silver screen.
“There are so many people who deserve to have this kind of life who don’t, but I think I’m comfortable with not deserving it and doing it anyway,” Hawke, 25, told The Times of London.
The term “nepo baby” refers to celeb children who’ve gotten a leg up in the entertainment industry because of their famous parents.
Hawke also said that her not taking advantage of her situation “wouldn’t help anyone.”
“I saw two paths when I was first starting, and one of them was: change your name, get a nose job and go to open casting roles,” she explained.
“It’s okay to be made fun of when you’re in rarefied air. It’s a lucky place to be. My relationships with my parents are really honest and positive, and that supersedes anything anyone can say about it.”
Elsewhere, the actress recalled comments she made to The Hollywood Reporter in 2019 about her first major onscreen role in Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.”
At the time, the “Maestro” actress played it coy about how she was able to get her foot in the door to secure the role.
“I got an audition for the project through the normal channels through my agents,” she said at the time. “I did an audition in my bedroom with my dad. We sent in the tape to Quentin and I got a callback.”
After her comments raised eyebrows on social media, Hawke has now set the record straight and admitted that nepotism definitely played a part.
“I’ve been wildly made fun of for this clip when I said, on the red carpet, that I auditioned,” she told the outlet. “I never meant to imply that I didn’t get the part for nepotistic reasons — I think I totally did.”
Last year, Hawke starred in the drama “Wildcat,” which was directed by her famous dad.
Despite her best efforts calling her dad “Ethan” on set, Hawke admitted that she reverted back to “Dad” very quickly.
“We were both being asked constantly if we were nervous to work with each other but we weren’t nervous, because I spent my whole life making art with that guy,” she said.
