People have had lots of complaints about nepo babies in recent years, and Sylvester Stallone has joined in on the discourse. The 80-year-old actor has starred in the series Tulsa King for several years. His daughter Scarlet Rose Stallone, 24, has been working alongside him, and people don’t think it’s a coincidence, meaning they don’t think she landed the role based on talent alone.
And what does Sylvester have to say about that? Of course she didn’t. Basically, she got the role due to nepotism (duh). And he doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with that.
He thinks it’s a pretty normal thing for parents to do for their children.
Like, if you can help them out in some way, you will. So, when people complained about his daughter Scarlet being a nepo baby, Sylvester responded to the criticism with, “Of course it’s nepotism, you idiot,” during a USA Today interview.
A lot of people have an issue with nepo babies because of their privilege. It is this privilege and access that makes them feel like there are plenty of people out there who are potentially more talented or who worked harder but simply didn’t have the connections that they have. However, Sylvester thinks it’s very natural for parents with industry connections to take advantage of that for their children’s sake.
“First they go, ‘Nepotism is terrible,'” Sylvester told the publication. “I said, ‘Oh please, you’re not a good parent if you haven’t performed a little nepotism. Then obviously you don’t care about your kids, because they come first.'”
He added, “That’s why we’re parents. We want the best for our children. So obviously, we let them have every advantage.”
Sylvester admitted that it was pretty “easy” for Scarlet to get this role.
At the same time, actually succeeding in the industry is a different thing entirely. He argued that his industry connections might be enough for his children to have access to opportunities, but that access alone won’t make them successful in their careers.
“People will say, ‘She got that job, it’s too easy,'” he told the publication. “You’re right. Perhaps it could be. But to maintain that, to be in front of millions of people, you either got it or you don’t.”
He explained that parents can “open the door” for their kids, but that doesn’t mean their children will “have the ability to go through it.”
Meanwhile, Scarlet has talked about how working alongside her dad has changed their relationship.
“It’s completely changed [our relationship] — a complete 180,” Scarlet told People when talking about her role on the show. “We’ve been working together for the past five years, so now it’s become very natural.”
She said that her dad often “teases” her on set, and they both “make fun of one another sometimes,” which is actually “the best experience ever.”
“We’ve grown as friends,” she told the publication. “We’ve really become friends. We really got to know one another and really respect each other throughout this whole process, through the ups and downs.”
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