Reaching the pinnacle of success often hinges not just on what you know, but who you know.
This notion holds true when considering the interconnectedness of some of the world’s most renowned individuals.
From Hollywood icons and global leaders to music superstars and royalty, many prominent figures surprisingly share familial bonds.
Exploring the ancestry of the rich and famous has unveiled numerous unexpected genealogical connections, sometimes astonishing the celebrities themselves.
While one can’t choose their relatives, most stars are delighted to discover their glamorous kin, from Tom Hanks and Britney Spears to Barack Obama and the Pope.
Meryl Streep and Anna Wintour
Meryl Streep (left) and Anna Wintour (right) are already famously synonymous, thanks to the actress’ portrayal of Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada, which is largely believed to be inspired by the Vogue editor – but are actually distantly related in real life
Meryl Streep and Anna Wintour are famously synonymous with The Devil Wears Prada, thanks to the actress’ portrayal of Miranda Priestly which is largely believed to be inspired by the former Vogue editor.
The Hollywood legend’s performance was universally lauded and landed her yet another Oscar nod.
But her effortless ability to step into the fashion icon’s shoes may have been in her DNA, as it’s been revealed that the two women, both 76, are actually related.
Research conducted by Ancestry.com confirmed Meryl and Anna are sixth cousins and share fifth great-grandparents, Thomas Smith and Elizabeth Kinsey, who lived in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
The genealogy company made the discovery after examining ‘billions of historical records and public family trees’.
The pair have met a several times over the years since the 2006 film, both attending the Dolce & Gabbana show during Milan Fashion Week in September while Meryl was filming the sequel and appeared together on the latest cover of Vogue.
Brad Pitt and Barack Obama
President Barack Obama (right) was revealed to be distantly related to none other than film star Brad Pitt (left) during the 2008 campaign trail
President Barack Obama was revealed to be distantly related to none other than film star Brad Pitt during the 2008 campaign trail.
The Guardian explained the pair were ninth cousins, sharing Edwin Hickman, who died in Virginia in 1769, as a common ancestor.
Obama is a direct descendant of Hickman’s son James through his mother, Ann Dunham Sutoro, while Hickman’s other son, Edwin Jr, is head of the line leading to Brad.
Asked about the unexpected connection on The View, the former US President self-deprecatingly joked: ‘I think he got the better-looking side of the gene pool.’
Dakota and Elle Fanning and Kate Middleton
Elle Fanning’s penchant for portraying royalty may be in her blood, she and her sister Dakota (seen together left) are distant cousins of none other than the Princess of Wales (right)
She’s previously played Disney princess Sleeping Beauty and famed monarch Catherine the Great.
And it seems that her penchant for portraying royalty may be in her blood, as Elle Fanning is a distant cousin of none other than the Princess of Wales.
Ancestry.com discovered that the actress and her sister Dakota Fanning are descendants of King Edward III, making them 21st cousins to Kate Middleton.
Speaking about their royal connection, Elle told E! News in 2014: ‘It’s so weird… it’s crazy. I saw it the other day. My cousins called me up and they were like, “Look online!”
‘I looked online and like King Edward III is my great great-great-grandfather. I was like, “Is this real?”‘
‘I’ve always wanted to do the Ancestry.com thing because I think it would be really cool. But someone did it for me, which I think is great.’
Madonna and Pope Leo
It was recently revealed that Madonna (left) is related to Pope Leo XIV (right), after four decades of clashing with the Catholic Church over her use of religious imagery in her music videos and shows
The release of her Like a Prayer music video in 1989 (pictured) featuring burning crosses and an erotic depiction of Jesus sparked outrage from he Vatican State and multiple Popes
She has notoriously clashed with the Catholic Church several times over her use of religious imagery in her music videos and shows.
However, it was revealed last year that Madonna is related to none other that Pope Leo XIV.
Henry Louis Gates Jr., who hosts Finding Your Roots, shared the shocking revelation that the pair are ‘ninth cousins, various times removed’ during an interview with the New York Times.
After tracing the first American pope’s lineage, he discovered Pope Leo XIV (born Robert Francis Prevost) and Madonna were related through a distant maternal relative born in the 1590s.
While Henry added that through their Canadian ancestor, Louis Boucher de Grandpre, who was born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, the pope is actually related to numerous Canadian-derived distant cousins.’
These include Angelina Jolie, Hillary Clinton, Justin Bieber, Pierre and Justin Trudeau and Jack Kerouac.
Madonna was quick to share the exciting news on her Instagram Story as she shared a photo of them side by side, alongside a caption declaring him her ‘distant relative.’
But while the Queen of Pop – who was born and raised Catholic – was thrilled over the connection, the news was likely less welcoming for the Church.
She’s been condemned by the Vatican State and multiple Popes several times over the last four decades, beginning all the way back in 1987 over a concert she played in Italy during her Who’s That Girl Tour and again two years later, for her Pepsi ad.
However, the criticism turned to outrage with the release of her Like a Prayer music video in 1989, featuring burning crosses and an erotic depiction of Jesus.
At the time, Pope John Paul II encouraged fans to boycott Madonna in Italy and not attend her Blond Ambition tour the following year.
While the release of her racy and controversial book Sex in 1992 did nothing to redeem the singer in the eyes of the Church, thanks to its sadomasochistic images, softcore pornography, and simulations of sexual acts.
The Material Girl then came under fire again in 2006 for staging a mock crucifixion during a concert in Rome, leading Cardinal Ersilio Tonino, with the approval of Pope Benedict XVI, to declare that she ‘should be excommunicated’.
Condemning her racy performances, he said: ‘This time the limits have really been pushed too far. This concert is a blasphemous challenge to the faith and a profanation of the cross. She should be excommunicated.’
Madonna appeared to be making efforts to make amends in 2022, as she tweeted to Pope Francis to ask him to meet to discuss ‘some important matters’ – specially, her ‘blasphemous’ behavior.
She wrote: ‘Hello @Pontifex Francis – I’m a good Catholic. I Swear! I mean I don’t Swear! It’s been a few decades since my last confession.
‘Would it be possible to meet up one day to discuss some important matters? I’ve been excommunicated 3 times. It doesn’t seem fair. Sincerely Madonna.’
However, two years later in December 2024, she once incited fierce backlash after sharing AI-generated images of herself with the late Pope.
The fake images showed Pope Francis seemingly getting handsy with the hitmaker as he stood with his arm around her waist and his face very close to her.
Niecy Nash, Sterling K. Brown and Danielle Brooks
Emmy winner Niecy Nash-Betts (left), This Is Us star Sterling K. Brown and Orange Is the New Black’s Danielle Brooks (right) were revealed to cousins on Finding Your Roots – showing talent runs strong in their family
Niecy shared the incredible link to fans in January 2024 as she shared a tribute to Danielle and Sterling (pictured) after they landed their first Oscar nominations
Fans were left gobsmacked in 2024, after learning that not two, but THREE award-nominated Hollywood stars were related.
Emmy winner Niecy Nash-Betts, This Is Us star Sterling K. Brown and Orange Is the New Black’s Danielle Brooks were revealed to cousins on Finding Your Roots – showing talent runs strong in their family.
Revealing how they found out about the link, Niecy explained all three of them had been ‘surprised to learn it’, telling the Wall Street Journal: ‘We were all like, “Wait, what?” [All of our families] have roots in St. Louis.
‘Now that we all know, anytime we’re in the same venue, we’re like, “Cousins unite!”’
While speaking about the relation on Live with Kelly and Mark, Danielle urged: ‘We are family. Somebody make a movie or a TV show!’
She added that the connection ‘felt right’, as she’d already known Sterling for a while through the theatre scene, while Niecy had ‘took me in at one point and really mentored me through the industry’.
Niecy shared the incredible link to fans in January 2024 as she shared a tribute to Danielle and Sterling after they landed their first Oscar nominations.
Sharing a snap of the three of them together, she gushed: ‘Both of my COUSINS are OSCAR NOMINATED. Yes! We are blood related! REAL cousins!
‘I’m so proud of my fam! @thedaniellebrooks @sterlingkbrown I’m rooting for you!’
And it wasn’t only fans that were floored to learn of the familial connection, with Kerry Washington commenting: ‘So the talent runs in the family, got it.’
Naomi Campbell and Sandi Bogle
In another instance of two worlds unexpectedly colliding, Gogglebox favourite Sandi Bogle (right) is the cousin of supermodel Naomi Campbell (left)
In another instance of two worlds unexpectedly colliding, Gogglebox favourite Sandi Bogle is the cousin of supermodel Naomi Campbell.
The reality star left fans shocked when she revealed Naomi’s mother is the sister of her mum, during her time on Celebrity Big Brother in 2017.
Though she later admitted that she hadn’t intended to share her connection to fashion royalty, but had accidentally let it slip while being gunged on the Channel 5 show.
While Sandi has shared that the pair have always been supportive of each other and she often catches up with her famous cousin at family events.
She previously told The Mirror: ‘Naomi watches me on [Gogglebox] and she loves it. We support each other in whatever we do. I’ve always had my businesses and she’s always done her thing.’
And in 2023, she confirmed that she had met Naomi’s daughter, after the catwalk star welcomed her first child in May 2021.
Speaking in a new interview on Wednesday, the reality TV personality explained that she often catches up with Naomi, 52, at family events.
‘I am Naomi’s first cousin and yes we do talk to her and see each other,’ she told The Sun. ‘Like any cousins, she does her thing and I do mine but she did actually go on the Gogglebox sofa with one of the Gallaghers, and Kate Moss.’
Sandi added: ‘We do get together and have since [we were] kids. If there’s a celebration or something like a wedding we’ll get phone calls and we’ll go.
‘At the end of the day it’s a family thing isn’t it. I’ve met her daughter, yes. I was trying to keep it quiet and then it all came out on Big Brother so that didn’t work.’
Speaking about Naomi following in her footsteps by appearing on Gogglebox for a charity special for Stand Up For Cancer, she said: ‘You wouldn’t expect to see Naomi on a sofa having a drink and cracking jokes while watching those shows.
‘But she does that every day or every other day, just like normal people. It was a good thing, it got everybody watching the show and got everybody supporting the charity. Cancer affects all of us. It doesn’t care about colour or age.’
Larry David and Bernie Sanders
Larry David famously portrayed Bernie Sanders on Saturday Night Live during the 2016 and 2020 elections, using their uncanny physical resemblance and similar mannerisms (Larry and Bernie seen on SNL)
Larry David famously portrayed Bernie Sanders on Saturday Night Live during the 2016 and 2020 elections, using their uncanny physical resemblance and similar mannerisms.
But both were still left stunned after it was revealed on Finding Your Roots, that they were in fact distant cousins, sharing similar Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry from the same region in Europe.
Larry declared: ‘What the hell!’ upon learning of the connection, adding: ‘Oh that is so funny, that is amazing. Alright, cousin Bernie!’
The Curb Your Enthusiasm star later added to Variety: ‘I was very happy about that. I thought there must have been some connection.”
While Bernie couldn’t hold back his shocked laughter when he told about their genealogical link, exclaiming: You’re kidding! That is unbelievable!’
‘When people talk to me about Larry David, I say “You know he does a better Bernie Sanders than I do”‘ the US Senator joked.
The duo later appeared together on the Today show in 2020, with Larry saying: ‘I feel a familial connection with him’, and joking that Bernie being elected president would create ‘too much’ impressionist work for him, as the politician shot back: ‘I’m getting you a good job for four years and you’re complaining!’
Ashley Tisdale and Austin Butler
Ashley Tisdale was nearly brought to tears when she found out that she and her former co-star and Hollywood star Austin Butler are 10th cousins once removed (pictured together)
She was thrilled by the revelation, having been close pals with Austin for over a decade, after starring together in 2009’s Aliens in the Attic and 2011’s Sharpay’s Fabulous Adventure (pictured in film together) and said that they had always joked they were siblings
Ashley Tisdale was nearly brought to tears when she found out that she and her former co-star and Hollywood star Austin Butler are 10th cousins once removed.
The High School Musical star actress discovered that she was related to the Oscar nominee on a 2022 episode of Ancestry’s 2 Lies & A Leaf series.
She was thrilled by the revelation, having been close pals with Austin for over a decade, after starring together in 2009’s Aliens in the Attic and 2011’s Sharpay’s Fabulous Adventure and said that they had always joked they were siblings.
‘Austin and I always say that we’re like fraternal twins born very far apart because he’s much younger and we’ve always had that connection,’ Ashley cried.
She continued: ‘No wonder we have such a connection! We’ve always said we were brother and sister! That is insane. I literally am going to cry.
‘I’m telling you when we first met, I was like “Oh, my God!” We were like brother and sister from the minute we met.’
She later revealed she had texted Austin – who she called her ‘best, best friend’ to tell him the news they were actually related, and shared his response: ‘He goes, “No f***ing way!”‘
Lance Bass and Britney Spears
As well as being iconic noughties pop stars, Britney Spears and Lance Bass are also related, with genealogy experts revealing they are sixth cousins, once removed (pictured in 2003)
The *NSYNC star was thrilled when he learned his connection to his pop princess pal on a 2021 episode of Ancestry YouTube show, 2 Lies and a Leaf, where they showed how their family trees overlapped (pictured)
They both are iconic pop stars who defined the early Noughties.
And it turns out that Britney Spears and Lance Bass are also related, with genealogy experts revealing they are sixth cousins, once removed
The *NSYNC star was thrilled when he learned his connection to his pop princess pal on a 2021 episode of Ancestry YouTube show, 2 Lies and a Leaf.
‘Look, I wanted to be related to the Queen,’ he said. ‘Well, now I’m related to the queen of pop!’
Lance said the revelation ‘means so much to me’ because Britney was ‘like family’ to him, revealing he was born just 98 miles away from her in Laurel, Mississippi.
He said: ‘That is so crazy, though, because I feel like she’s my little sister. And this whole time she’s been my little cousin. And it makes sense because we were born an hour from each other. This is so cool.
‘That’s too good to be true. For some reason, I always felt like we looked like family, even when we were kids.’
He continued: ‘This means so much to me. She is like family to me. So, the fact that we are blood-related is amazing.’
The duo rose to stardom at the same time in the 90s and even went on tour together alongside his bandmate and Britney’s ex Justin Timberlake.
And Britney later referred to herself as an ‘auntie’ to Lance’s twins Violet Betty and Alexander James back in 2023, sharing a snap of her cuddling them with the caption: ‘I’m a new auntie for Lance’s babies !!! They are absolutely gorgeous babies !!!’
Tom Hanks and Fred Rogers
Tom Hanks (left) was stunned to learn he was sixth cousins with the late Fred Rogers (right), as they shared the same five-times great-grandfather
Tom discovered he was related to the iconic children’s TV host after playing him in 2019 biopic, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (seen in film)
Tom Hanks discovered that he was related to the late Fred Rogers after playing him in 2019 biopic, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.
The Hollywood star was stunned to learn he was sixth cousins with the iconic children’s TV host on Access Hollywood with his wife Rita Wilson saying: ‘No, impossible … you’re pulling our leg!’
While Tom reacted to the revelation, by insisting: ‘Listen, it all just comes together, you see.’
The link was discovered by Ancestry, who found records showing the two men shared the same five-times great-grandfather – a German immigrant named Johannes Mefford, who was born in 1732.
While research also showed Tom and Fred both descended from two brothers who fought for American independence.
Fred’s widow Joanne was also delighted to learn of the familial link between her husband and Tom, saying Fred had been a ‘huge fan’ of the Oscar winner.
She gushed: ‘That is just wonderful. Now, that is amazing and Fred would have loved it. He loved family tree stuff.’
Hugh Grant and Thomas Brodie-Sangster
Love Actually co-stars Hugh Grant (left) and Thomas Brodie-Sangster (right) share an even greater connection offscreen, as they are actually second cousins, once removed
They starred opposite each other in iconic 2003 romcom, Love Actually.
But Hugh Grant and Thomas Brodie-Sangster share an even greater connection offscreen, as they are actually second cousins, once removed.
Hugh initially had no clue of their link until Thomas – who was aged 13 at the time – revealed they were related on the set of the hit film.
‘His grandmother and my great-grandmother are sisters… [Hugh] didn’t know,’ the actor previously explained to ITV’s Lorraine in November.
‘I said, “Apparently, you are my uncle or my cousin or something”. Then he kind of remembered my mum and uncle.’
Thomas added that the Notting Hill star gave a sweet nickname after learning of their connection, recalling: ‘For the rest of the shoot, he went round saying “Hello cousin”. He’d come and ruffle my hair. That felt quite cool.’
