We’re all familiar with the long list of nepo babies in showbiz – the children of celebrities determined to make a name for themselves by hanging off their talented parents’ glamorous coattails. But there’s a new breed of attention-hungry relatives in town.
Industry insiders have coined a new phrase – ‘nepo siblings’ – to describe the brothers and sisters of actors, musicians and sports stars whose shameless harnessing of their siblings’ fame is enough to leave nepo babies in the shade.
Some are unquestionably talented enough to have a lucrative career in the spotlight. But others are firmly D-listers, forever condemned to live in the shadow of their better-known siblings – however much they try to plunder their fortune for their own ends.
So who is top of the tree – and who is still scrabbling around at the roots?
A-LIST
TOMMY FURY, younger brother of world heavyweight champion boxer Tyson
26-year-old Tommy Fury was a break-out star of the 2019 season of Love Island thanks to his relationship with influencer Molly-Mae Hague
Tommy is nowhere near as famous, nor as wealthy, as his older brother Tyson, who has won multiple world heavyweight championships
He is nowhere near as famous, nor as wealthy, as his older brother Tyson, who has won multiple world heavyweight championships. But from his humble origins on 2019’s Love Island, when he was brutally billed simply as ‘Tyson Fury’s brother’, Tommy Fury has carved out a successful career of his own.
On the ITV reality show, his relationship with social media influencer Molly-Mae Hague made him one of that season’s break-out stars.
Since then, he has followed his brother into the ring, with modest success, and launched himself into the world of social media, with lucrative brand endorsements from Diesel clothing and M&S to luxury watch brand Richard Mille.
The 26-year-old is today worth an estimated £3 million, has five million Instagram followers, a biography and a BBC documentary to his name.
The fact that Molly-Mae, with whom he shares a two-year-old daughter, Bambi, is one of Gen Z’s biggest social media stars, with almost nine million Instagram followers, has only helped.
The couple got engaged in July 2023 – which means further lucrative magazine and TV deals should they sell the rights to their wedding.
Ironically, though, I’m told Tommy only went on Love Island to rejuvenate his boxing career.
A source says: ‘First and foremost, Tommy wanted to be a boxer. But when Love Island came knocking and they wanted the pull of Tyson Fury’s brother, he obliged in the hope he could spin this reality TV appearance into lucrative boxing deals.’
GEMMA STYLES, older sister of superstar singer Harry
Gemma Styles could easily have used Harry’s One Direction fame to take a predictable route into reality TV. But she has instead launched a career as a mental health campaigner
One minute Gemma Styles was a typical 20-year-old living in Evesham, Worcestershire; the next, her younger brother Harry had become one of the world’s biggest pop stars after appearing on The X Factor.
Gemma could easily have used his One Direction fame to take a predictable route into reality TV.
But she has instead launched a career as a mental health campaigner, speaking openly about her own struggles with anxiety and depression on her award-winning podcast, Good Influence. It has won the 34-year-old, who has a teaching degree and once studied medical genetics, ten million followers on Instagram.
Her book on mental health, Why Am I Like This?, has sold more than a million copies. And after appearing in a Vogue photoshoot with Harry, 31, who has become a global phenomenon as a solo artist, there’s a hefty dose of showbiz glamour to the mother of one’s appeal.
SAM THOMPSON, younger brother of reality star-turned-author Louise
Insiders say Sam Thompson’s booming career has been ‘a shock’ – he was only brought on to the Made In Chelsea cast 12 years ago because his sister Louise was one of the show’s stars
TV insiders say Sam Thompson’s booming career has been ‘a shock to all’ – given he was only brought on to the Made In Chelsea cast 12 years ago because his sister, Louise, was one of the show’s stars.
Louise, 35, made a name for herself beyond reality TV when she spoke movingly about the life-threatening complications she suffered while giving birth to her son in 2021, and the PTSD it left her with. She campaigns for women with birth trauma and has also been open about her battle with ulcerative colitis and being fitted with a stoma.
But Sam, who started on Channel 4’s Made In Chelsea as Jamie Laing’s personal assistant – because, I’m told, ‘bosses struggled to come up with a storyline that would keep audiences interested in him’ – has become so successful that he sold out London’s O2 arena last week.
The show was a stage version of his award-winning podcast Staying Relevant, which he hosts with fellow reality star Pete Wicks. In it, they poke fun at their desperate quests for fame, which has helped Sam amass three million followers on Instagram – one million more than his sister.
He won I’m A Celebrity… in 2023 and has had other TV hosting roles. As my TV insider concluded: ‘He’s just such a normal, unassuming guy – but that’s what makes him so magnetic.’
B-LIST
JOE SUGG, younger brother of YouTube star and author Zoe
Social media star Zoe propelled her younger brother to fame but it was when Strictly came knocking and he reached the finals in 2018 that he became a housewives’ favourite
He’s surely the only nepo sibling to have started his career as a roof thatcher.
And Joe Sugg can thank his older sister Zoe – better known to her millions of YouTube fans as Zoella.
The social media star propelled her younger brother to fame but it was when Strictly came knocking and he reached the finals in 2018 that he became a housewives’ favourite.
Today, he is a key member of the ‘Strictly family’ as the face of the show’s social media output, and is expecting his first child with his former professional dancer partner, Dianne Buswell.
Zoe, 35, encouraged him to follow her career path, and he became an early social media star, boasting brand deals with Sky, Coca-Cola and Google.
A source close to the siblings tells me: ‘Zoe knew she was on to something and they had to strike while the iron was hot. She wanted to bring Joe with her, knowing he could be successful, and she was right – he got more than six million followers at the drop of a hat.’
With one eye on the future, Joe, 34, has co-founded his own talent management firm, as well as a production company.
LOTTIE TOMLINSON, younger sister of One Direction’s Louis
Despite her brother being one of the most well-known boyband singers in the world, those who know his younger sister Lottie say her success is largely her own
Despite her brother being one of the most well-known boyband singers in the world, those who know his younger sister Lottie say her success is largely her own.
‘He just got her on the first rung and that’s all she needed,’ my insider reports.
Aged 15, she was hired by her brother’s hair and make-up stylist, Lou Teasdale, to assist her on the One Direction tour.
Lottie made the most of the opportunity, and thanks to her skills ‘working the room’ and making contacts, she became a beauty influencer.
Today, 27-year-old Lottie is worth around £1 million, thanks to her fake tan company and various brand endorsements. She also won fans for writing a book about grief after the siblings’ mother died of cancer and their younger sister Felicite died a year later, aged 18, from an accidental overdose.
‘Louis knew how helpful his platform could be for Lottie and never shied away using it to help promote her many beauty endeavours,’ my source says.
Today, Lottie is engaged to former professional tennis player Lewis Burton, who previously dated the late TV presenter Caroline Flack.
The couple, who have two children, are currently completing a high-end renovation on a house in Kent.
SAM HOLLAND, younger brother of Spider-Man actor Tom
26-year-old Sam Holland is a TV chef is endearingly close to his older brother Tom – and open about how his connections have given him a ‘leg up’
Gordon Ramsay once told him he was ‘born to cook’ – but TV chef Sam Holland is said to be open about how his ‘Hollywood connections’ have given him a ‘leg up’.
The 26-year-old is endearingly close to his older brother Tom. And Sam, who has 700,000 Instagram followers, is not afraid to name-drop. He happily discussed his brother’s superstar fiancée, US actress Zendaya, when promoting his cookbook in Tatler recently.
‘I’m very proud of the vegetarian section,’ he said. ‘Tom’s partner [Zendaya] is plant-based. He was in Boston while she was filming, and I sent him all the veggie recipes because he didn’t have anything to do. He… let me know they were a big success.’
FINN COLE, younger brother of Peaky Blinders actor Joe
Finn Cole – who is rumoured to be dating Florence Pugh – is said to have spent months ‘nagging’ Joe to get him in front of Peaky Blinders’ bosses
They are best known for playing cousins on BBC drama Peaky Blinders. And my sources tell me that there’s no doubt Joe Cole, 36, who landed his career-defining role as John Shelby on the show, gave younger brother, Finn, 29, a helping hand.
Finn is said to have spent months ‘nagging’ Joe to get him in front of the show’s bosses.
A TV insider said: ‘Joe was very keen for Finn to find his own way, but eventually he relented and got him an opportunity to audition for the role as Helen McCrory’s long-lost son, Michael. Whether bosses cast him because he was Joe’s younger brother is up for debate.’
Finn is now rumoured to be dating Hollywood star Florence Pugh.
D-LIST
RINA LIPA, younger sister of pop star Dua
There’s no doubt that Dua Lipa’s younger sister Rina shares her passion for music. But one friend told Dolly Busby: ‘She’s absolutely dining out on her sister’s fame’
As an alumna of the Sylvia Young theatre school, there’s no doubt that Dua Lipa’s younger sister Rina shares her passion for music.
But the 24-year-old is also very comfortably piggybacking on her far more successful sibling.
Rina freely admits that she ‘worshipped’ her sister when they were children and she has certainly had a far smoother path to fame.
One Kiss singer Dua, 30, grafted for years, sharing singing videos on YouTube before she was picked up by Warner Music in 2015.
Meanwhile, Rina – who has been dubbed a ‘Gen Z It Girl’ – landed a turn at Milan Fashion Week in 2021 and has gone on to model for Miu Miu and Versace.
As one friend in Rina’s circle told me: ‘She’s absolutely dining out on her sister’s fame.’
ZOE RAE, older sister of social media influencer Molly-Mae
Molly-Mae’s older sister and influencer Zoe Rae recently came under fire for complaining that Bali didn’t live up to her expectations – so left after 48 hours for Dubai
The older sister of Molly-Mae, who shot to fame on Love Island, has tried to establish herself as an influencer.
But in an arena defined by her younger sister’s lucrative endorsements and posts, Zoe Rae, 29, has had difficulty creating a distinct niche. Having served in the Army’s medical corps, she has chosen to specialise in wholesome fitness and family content.
But this has sometimes backfired. One tone-deaf video saw her complain to her 151,000 TikTok subscribers (Molly-Mae has 2.4 million, and a further nine million on Instagram) that her chosen holiday destination of Bali didn’t live up to her ‘expectations’.
Ironically, given she makes a living from curating her own content online, she seemed put out that Bali wasn’t quite as it was depicted on social media.
She left the beauty spot after just 48 hours for Dubai because, as she explained in her video, she wanted to be somewhere ‘we know that we love and can relax and can drink the water’ – comments that attracted significant backlash.
I’m told Zoe ‘loves being an influencer but struggles at times with all the trolls’.
