Patrick Schwarzenegger talks about the ‘baggage' of having famous parents. Why he's set on making a name for himself.
While chatting with his movie star father, Arnold Schwarzenegger, for Variety's "Actors on Actors" interview published on Tuesday, Patrick discussed the challenges of being seen as an actor in his own right. Patrick's mother, Maria Shriver, is a journalist and member of the Shriver and Kennedy families.
The 31-year-old actor garnered acclaim for his portrayal of Saxon Ratliff, a narcissistic finance bro turned introspective sad boy, on Season 3 of The White Lotus. The anthology series, written and created by Mike White, is a social satire built around the guests and employees at a luxury resort.
'Mike White said that it comes with baggage, the idea that when you have successful parents like I do with you and mom, there's an added level of what other people think. Mike was worried about, if he cast me, what other people would think,' Patrick told Arnold of carrying the Schwarzenegger name. 'Which they did — they did care about that; people said that I got the role because of you and mom.'
Patrick had contemplated dropping the Schwarzenegger name altogether.
'There were times earlier in my career where I was wondering, does it make sense to go under some sort of alias?' he said. 'It took a while for me to get to a point where I was less worried about, like, comparison and living in your shadow versus me just wanting to carve my own path and wanting to do it the way I thought I should do it.'
Arnold told his son, 'You have never asked me to call a studio or to call an agent. You never asked me for advice when it comes to acting itself. You're a rare breed, and I'm very, very proud of you.'
This isn't the first time Patrick has discussed the pitfalls of coming from a famous family. For his February 2025 cover story with the Sunday Times, the actor spoke candidly of the 'blessings and curses' of having such a recognizable surname, and how the nepo baby label minimizes the work he put into securing the role of Saxon on The White Lotus.
'I know there are people who'll say I only got this role because of who my dad is,' he said. 'They're not seeing that I've had 10 years of acting classes, put on [high] school plays every week, worked on my characters for hours on end or the hundreds of rejected auditions I've been on.'
Patrick admits to having moments where he wishes he weren't a Schwarzenegger. Those moments are fleeting though.
'I would never trade my life with anyone," he told the Sunday Times. "I'm very fortunate to have the life and the family that I have, the parents I have and the lessons and values they've instilled in me.'
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Patrick's earlier acting credits include Stuck in Love, the love interest in Ariana Grande's 2013 music video for 'Right There,' Scream Queens, Moxie and Gen V.
The actor's pushback against claims that he's a nepo baby — even after talking in the "Actors on Actors" segment about why he doesn't think he is — has generated controversy online. On X, many users criticized Patrick's comments, calling him a nepo baby who refuses to acknowledge it. Others, including his White Lotus costar Aimee Lou Wood, with whom he recently reunited, have been quick to come to his defense.
'Patrick Schwarzenegger says it's 'frustrating' that 'there are people who'll say I only got ['THE WHITE LOTUS'] role because of who my dad is.' … And then bringing his dad along on his Emmy campaign,' one X user wrote, while another said, 'I don't know how to explain it, but Patrick Schwarzenegger has the most pure energy. Just golden retriever, happy to be here, the most un-nepo baby to ever nepo baby.'
Wood, meanwhile, called Patrick the 'hardest working and kindest man ever' in an Instagram Story in May that she posted alongside a clip of him speaking about how it feels to be told he only got his White Lotus role 'cause his dad's in the industry.'
Other children of celebrities and prominent figures who've been dubbed nepo babies have chosen to chart a course different from Patrick's: They've parted ways with their famous last names.
While chatting with Kate Hudson and her brother Oliver on their podcast, "Sibling Revelry," former first lady Michelle Obama spoke about how her daughters Malia, 26, and Sasha, 23, with former President Barack Obama, 'don't want people to assume they don't work hard' or 'that they were handed things.' Malia, according to Michelle, goes by Malia Ann, her first and middle names. The 26-year-old filmmaker decided to drop her famous moniker from the short film she debuted at Sundance Film Festival in 2024.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's daughter, Shiloh Jolie, 19, debuted her new nickname, 'Shi' last month. The change comes a year after she petitioned to drop her father's surname. Vivienne, 16, another one of Jolie and Pitt's daughters, followed in her older sister's steps. She worked as a producer's assistant for The Outsiders, and her name was listed as 'Vivienne Jolie' in the Playbill.
Nepo babies are celebrating their famous parents with the 'Holy Airball' trend on TikTok in which famous or wealthy teens and 20-somethings share an incorrect assumption or expectation made of them, followed by a humblebrag about how successful they actually are. The name of the trend is a reference to basketball, when a player egregiously misses scoring a basket.
While many celebrity children are embracing their nepo baby status, others are reluctant. As Patrick demonstrates, there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution to navigating life as a celebrity offspring.
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