Catherine Zeta-Jones condemns ‘horrific’ nepo baby label

Catherine Zeta-Jones has described the phrase “nepo baby” as “horrific”, adding: “These kids didn’t ask to be born into this.”

The 56-year-old Welsh actress, known for roles in Chicago and Ocean’s Twelve, has given her opinion about the label assigned to those who achieve success and career opportunities largely thanks to their famous or wealthy parents.

Zeta-Jones has two children, Dylan and Carys, with fellow actor Michael Douglas. They have both followed their parents into the entertainment industry, with Dylan pursuing acting and Carys interested in directing.

Catherine Zeta-Jones has two children with her husband of more than 20 years, Michael Douglas (Ian West/PA)

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Zeta-Jones reflected on how her children, who are in their 20s, are finding their footing in their respective careers during an interview with The Sunday Times.

“They’re plugging away,” she said.

“My daughter wanted to be Amal Clooney for a while. But you have to go with your dreams, your passion,” she said, referencing the international human rights lawyer who is married to actor George Clooney.

“It’s hard for them to forge a way forward on their own.

“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.

“But they love it, and they’re good.

“Otherwise, Michael and I would be the first to go, ‘You know what? Maybe law school looks really good.’”

Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas with their children Carys and Dylan when they were younger (Ian West/PA)

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Zeta-Jones landed her breakthrough West End role as a teenager in a production of 42nd Street in 1987, and became a household name in the UK in 1991 after starring in hit television series The Darling Buds Of May.

The star, from Swansea, has since achieved global fame, appearing in blockbusters such as The Mask Of Zorro, Entrapment, Traffic and in the 2002 silver screen adaptation of musical Chicago.

“Until I had my own kids, I didn’t realise the pressure, how big that was for a young adult – well, a teenager,” Zeta-Jones told the newspaper, reflecting on the origins of her acclaimed career.

She added: “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 famously met Douglas, 81, at the Deauville Film Festival in France in August 1998 where he tried to use a bold pick-up line to impress her.

The couple got engaged a year later, and tied the knot during a lavish ceremony at The Plaza hotel in New York in 2000.

They welcomed Dylan in 2000 and then Carys in 2003.

Zeta-Jones and Douglas have faced media attention and scrutiny due to their 25-year age gap.

Despite briefly separating in 2013, they have stayed together through personal struggles including Douglas’s battle with stage four throat cancer and Zeta-Jones’s public treatment for bipolar II disorder.