13 Celebrities With Insane Family Secrets

Whether it’s a fascinating genealogical tree or wild facts hiding in their family’s past, some A-listers happen to have unbelievable secrets despite their high profiles and publicity-rich personas. Be prepared to be bewildered while you scroll through this list of revelations made by 15 stars that we handpicked especially for you.

1. Pocahontas and Edward Norton

Edward Norton had grown up hearing he was a direct descendent of the indigenous figure Pocahontas, the daughter of Chief Powhatan, the leader of a tribe of Native Americans. But the star believed the story was merely a “family legend.”

However, while tracing Norton’s ancestry recently, it was discovered that his family roots go back further than he believed. In fact, the seventeenth-century Powhatan woman, Pocahontas, is indeed his twelfth great-grandmother.

2. Ernest Hemingway and Cindy Crawford

The famous supermodel Cindy Crawford and her model daughter, Kaia Gerber, happen to have big roots. Crawford had thought it was just a family rumor and fantasized about being related to one of America’s literary giants, Ernest Hemingway. But it turned out that she could trace her roots back to the renowned author.

3. Elvis Presley and Riley Keough

Known for her roles in the thriller, The Good Doctor and the black-comedy film Zola, Riley Keough is a star in her own right. Nevertheless, she is better known for her illustrious lineage. The actress has Elvis Presley’s blood running in her. The actress and filmmaker was born to musician Danny Keough and the late singer-songwriter Lisa Marie Presley, the only child of the famous rock star.

4. Vlad the Impaler and Robert Pattinson

Robert Pattinson, the star of the wildly popular supernatural series, Twilight, is related to a real-life vampire. The actor is a distant relative of the fifteenth-century Romanian ruler, Vlad III, a.k.a. Vlad the Impaler, who was also considered to be the inspiration for the most famous vampire of all time, Dracula.

5. Zooey Deschanel

Imagine finding out that one of your female ancestors risked her life to help secure freedom for slaves. When actress Zooey Deschanel went on a TV show about genealogy, she learned an amazing secret about her courageous ancestry. Her relatives owned a property that was a stop on the famed Underground Railroad.

6. The late Queen Elizabeth II and Johnny Depp

Ancestry experts revealed that Hollywood royalty, Johnny Depp, shares the same distant bloodline as the royal family. They discovered a connection that established the famous actor and the late Queen Elizabeth II as twentieth cousins. They are both linked to King Edward III of England, who ruled in the 1300s.

7. Bandit Jesse James and Ozzy Osbourne

Ozzy Osbourne has always had a rebellious streak, which he may have acquired from one of his distant relatives, outlaw Jesse James. The rockstar learned about this connection after experts sequenced his DNA, indicating that he is related to King George I on a distant level.

8. Puritan William Bradford and Hugh Hefner

Hugh Hefner surprisingly had conservative beginnings. In fact, through his father’s line, Hefner was a direct descendant of William Bradford, a Puritan leader who arrived on the Mayflower and became the governor of the Plymouth colony. And interestingly enough, he shares this ancestor with former President George W. Bush.

9. Genghis Khan and Patton Oswalt

Genghis Khan, the Mongol empire ruler, boasted genetic prowess that the nation considered an unparalleled accomplishment. And one of the many people who claim to have a genetic link to the very fertile emperor happens to be the comedian Patton Oswalt.

10. Princess Diana and Glenn Close

Versatile actress Glenn Close appeared on a TV series and found out that she was a distant cousin of Princess Diana. She and Princess Diana are eighth cousins. The 2 actually met and were photographed together in March 1989 at the premiere of Close’s film, Dangerous Liaisons, but it seems that Close only knew of their relationship during her appearance on the TV show.

11. Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey revealed that she has a half-sister that her mother, Vernita, had hidden from her. The sister, Patricia, had been given up for adoption in 1963, and her existence was kept secret from Winfrey for 47 years. The 2 sisters have bonded, and Winfrey even brought her to the Academy Awards in 2011.

12. Sofia Coppola and Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage’s birth name is Nicolas Kim Coppola. And the reason that surname sounds familiar is that the actor and Sofia Coppola are first cousins. Sofia Coppola is the daughter of esteemed director Francis Ford Coppola, and Cage is the son of Francis’s older brother. They actually managed to keep their family ties from attracting too much attention.

13. Jack Nicholson

For 37 years, Jack Nicholson believed that his mother, June, was his sister and that his grandmother, Ethel May, was his mother. June had a baby out of wedlock and pretended to be young Jack’s sister. Her mother and father acted as Nicholson’s parents. The actor only found out about the charade in 1970 when the fact was revealed by a journalist.

Which of the above revelations did you find the most surprising or unexpected? Feel free to share your opinion in the comment section.