Nepo Baby Michael Douglas Says the Descriptor ‘Really Pisses Me Off’

06 Oct 2026, 18:05 by Chrissy Stockton · Thought Catalog

Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images

Updated 5 minutes ago, October 6, 2026

Michael Douglas, the son of Kirk Douglas, is defending parents who help their children enter the family business and questioning why Hollywood families get singled out for it.

Speaking with Sean Hayes, Jason Bateman and Will Arnett on SmartLess, Douglas objected to the “nepo baby” label: “I don’t know a career where a father or mother don’t try to help their son or daughter get into their business and this and that, and why they picked on this because of the well-known aspect of it.”

Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones take in the scene from the paddock at the Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix on June 7, 2026. Photo by Andrej Isakovic / AFP via Getty Images.

The label describes an advantage at the starting line: access and opportunities that come through family connections. Someone can benefit from those connections and still work hard and build a successful career.

Both generations of the Douglas family earned Oscar recognition. Kirk, whose films included Spartacus and Paths of Glory, received 3 nominations and an honorary Oscar in 1996.

Michael Douglas and his father Kirk Douglas — who uses a cane — arrive together at the 2012 Vanity Fair Oscar Party at Sunset Tower in West Hollywood on February 26, 2012. Photo by Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images.

He died in 2020 at 103. Michael won best picture as a co-producer of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest in 1976 and best actor for Wall Street in 1988.

Douglas also advised aspiring actors to recognize “good material,” emphasizing how much the work they’re given can help their performances. His memoir, One Helluva Ride, comes out October 6.

Thank you for reading Thought Catalog. Keep up with us on Facebook, or dive into more on our website.