Meet Netflix's rising star Ella Beatty: Nepo baby, 26, is set to take over Hollywood with lead role in Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story - as she follows in parents Warren and Annette Bening's footsteps

Ella Beatty is set to make her mark in the industry with her lead debut in Netflix's hit anthology Monster series.

The rising star, 26, takes on the role of acquitted murder suspect Lizzie Borden in Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story.

Lizzie was accused of killing her parents, Andrew and Abby Borden, in a brutal hatchet attack in 1892. She was found not guilty by an all-male jury the following year.

And if you thought Ella's surname rings a bell, that is because she is the youngest child of icons Annette Bening and Warren Beatty. 

Her parents have one of the longest marriages in Hollywood and have credits in some of the biggest movies of the 90s to their name, including American Beauty, Dick Tracy and The American President. 

Now Ella is set to follow in their legendary footsteps as she makes her lead debut in the haunting drama. 

Ella Beatty is set to make her mark in the industry with her lead debut as Lizzie Borden in Netflix's hit anthology Monster series

And if you thought Ella's surname rings a bell, that is because she is the youngest child of Annette Bening and Warren Beatty (pictured in 2016) 

She was born in April 2000 in Los Angeles and is the niece of another star: Her aunt Shirley MacLaine.

'I totally acknowledge that there is an inherent privilege and exposure that comes from having well-known actors as parents,' she told Vogue in 2024. 

'And I really hope that I can offer something meaningful.' 

Growing up with her famous parents meant she spent a lot of time on film sets and in dressing rooms.

So it might come as no surprise that she 'always' wanted to be an actor. 

When asked about growing up in an acting family and if they influenced her decision to become an actor she replied: 'I don't know anything else. I have no other context for the world.'

'But my parents are the most loving, supportive, incredible artists,' she said, noting they taught her to 'contextualize the world' as artists since she was 'a very little girl'. 

Growing up, she was involved in community theater and appeared in productions of the musicals Annie, The Lion King and The Little Mermaid.

Despite having family who were well connected in the industry, she didn't become a child actor.

Instead she went on to study drama at The Juilliard School in New York, where she studied under legendary instructors like Moni Yakim, before graduating in 2022.

After graduating, Ella landed her first TV role in the FX anthology series Feud: Capote v The Swans.

'I totally acknowledge that there is an inherent privilege and exposure that comes from having well-known actors as parents,' she told Vogue in 2024

She starred in the period drama as Kerry O'Shea, who was the daughter of Truman Capote's lover, John O'Shea.

Speaking with WWD on the red carpet during the premiere in 2024, she highlighted the show themes that resonated with her most. 

'Kindness, friendship, loyalty, [and] chosen family at the end of the day can be what's really important, and to respect and love those around you.'

She then went to make her Broadway debut, appearing in the Brandon Jacobs-Jenkins play Appropriate, replacing Elle Fanning. 

It was there where she struck up a friendship with Sarah Paulson, who was not aware of Ella's famous parents.

Sarah told Ella on a Zoom interview: 'My interest in you, my estimation of you as a performer, had nothing to do with that.' 

That following year, she returned to theatre to play flirtatious maid, Regina Engstrom in the production of Henrik Ibsen's Ghosts and Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Class.

She also appeared on screen in the 2025 Oscar-nominated A24 comedy-drama If I Had Legs I'd Kick You, starring Rose Byrne.

Now, Ella is returning to the screen with Sarah for Netflix's Monster.

'I am so excited for viewers to experience our exploration of Lizzie Borden's story and the questions that her life animates to this day,' Ella told Netflix's Tudum in August. 

'It has been a dream come true to investigate this complicated person's psychology and to examine an American crime that feels almost mythic in proportion. ... I cannot wait to share it with the world.'

When asked what it was like to work with Sarah again, she replied: 'She's one of my very best friends in the world, to get to work together again is very special.'

Co-creator Ian Brennan said it 'felt right' to cast Ella as Lizzie.

He said: 'She can have a real blank slate of a face.

'She exudes this sense of innocence.  There's so little photographic evidence of Lizzie, but the iconic daguerreotype of her — she's got such a strange look. 

'There's something about Ella that was able to match that inscrutability.'

In 2024, she she struck up a friendship with Sarah Paulson, who she worked again with for Netflix's Monster

Netflix's Monster anthology series has been a massive commercial success, despite drawing mixed reviews.

Evan Peters, who starred in the first season – The Jeffrey Dahmer Story – won a Golden Globe Award and received an Emmy nomination for his chilling lead performance.

The series, which landed on the box in 2022, became an instant global phenomenon, pulling in 196.2 million hours watched in the first five days – making it the most-watched English language series in Netflix history.

Cooper Koch and Nicholas Alexander Chavez played Erik and Lyle Menendez in the second season - The Mendez Brothers  - which propelled both young actors into global spotlight.

In 2024, it opened to strong with 97.5 million hours watched in its first four days and ranked as the third most-watched Netflix series globally in the second half of 2024.

Charlie Hunnam led the third installment – The Ed Gein Story – which scored the actor his first Emmy nomination alongside a Golden Globe and Critics Choice nods.

It debuted with 12.2 million views in the first few days before climbing to No1 on the weekly charts.

Ella's next project after Monster is in the film adaptation of The Bell Jar, directed by Sarah Polley and starring Billie Eilish.

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story drops on Netflix on Thursday, September 17