1.
Ian Ousley performs Sokka in Netflix’s new live-action remake of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Showrunner Albert Kim stated the present was “a chance to showcase Asian and Indigenous characters as living, breathing people.” According to the biography posted by his supervisor, the actor is “mixed-race, Native American and is a Cherokee tribe member.”
But Cherokee Phoenix reported that social media customers appeared into Ian’s background and found he isn’t a member of Cherokee Nation, United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, or Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Twitter screenshots claim the one tribe to substantiate Ian as a member was Southern Cherokee Nation of Kentucky. Cherokee Phoenix described this as “one of dozens of federally unacknowledged tribes decried as false by the three recognized Cherokee governments.” Ian’s casting sparked fierce debate on-line, and a petition referred to as on Netflix to “get the facts straight.”
2.
In 2019, Forbes named Kylie Jenner the “youngest self-made billionaire” in historical past. “There’s really no other word to use other than self-made because that is the truth,” she stated on the time. “That is the category that I fall under… I used 100% of my own money to start the company, not a dime in my bank account is inherited… and I am very proud of that.”
But the backlash was swift and extreme. Many identified that Kylie calling herself self-made was disingenuous contemplating she was born right into a rich household, grew up on Keeping Up with the Kardashians, and certain would not have loved the identical success together with her cosmetics firm if not for the celebrity of her sisters. She shortly modified her tune, telling the New York Times, “I can’t say I’ve done it by myself. If they’re just talking finances, technically, yes, I don’t have any inherited money. But I have had a lot of help and a huge platform.”
In a surprising twist, Forbes introduced the next yr that Kylie was not a billionaire. When she offered 51% of her firm to Coty Inc., monetary particulars apparently got here to mild. In this video, Forbes editor Chase Peterson-Withorn stated, “It’s clear that for years, the Jenners have been lying… The sale has laid bare one of the Jenner family’s biggest secrets, which is: Kylie Cosmetics is not nearly as big of a business, or as successful of a business, as they spent years leading the entire world — including Forbes — to believe.”
3.
Last yr, Sydney Agudong was solid as Nani Pelekai within the live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch. Initially, this sparked a viral debate on colorism. At the time, many believed Sydney was light-skinned with Native Hawaiian ancestry, and that the position ought to have gone to a Native Hawaiian with a darker pores and skin tone.
However, many social media customers shortly dove into Sydney’s background and located no indication that she is definitely Native Hawaiian in any databases, newspaper clippings, and so forth. According to web sleuths, her mom is white, and her father is Filipino — which means she has no Polynesian ancestry in any respect. This sparked fierce backlash, however Disney appears to have ignored Pacific Islanders’ requires the position of Nani to be recast. Many have accused Sydney of misrepresenting herself and her background, however the actor has but to make an announcement.
4.
Over the years, Ariana Grande has spoken extensively about manifestation. In her music “Just Like Magic,” she sings strains like “manifest it, I finessed it” and “I get everything I want ’cause I attract it.” On a 2021 episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, she stated, “I have this weird manifesting gift, I think.” She recalled asking to audition for a Nickelodeon present when she was 4 years outdated (she went on to play Cat in Victorious, a Nickelodeon present). Jimmy additionally performed a clip of Ariana singing the nationwide anthem at a Florida Panthers hockey recreation when she was 8 years outdated.
But many have referred to as out the singer’s insistence that she merely manifested a profitable profession. That Panthers recreation the place she sang the nationwide anthem? Her mother and father had been seasonal ticket holders and secured her early publicity. Ariana’s mom was the CEO of an organization that manufactured communications gear for the Marines and the Navy, and her father based a graphic design agency.
5.
Throughout his profession, John Leguizamo stated he was Puerto Rican and Colombian. The actor — who moved from Colombia to New York City at 3 years outdated — stated his Puerto Rican heritage comes from his father’s facet. He was named Puerto Rican Day Parade Global Ambassador of the Arts in 2011.
However, only a week earlier than the National Puerto Rican Day Parade, John’s father instructed a newspaper that they don’t seem to be Puerto Rican. “It hurts me that John is lying to the Puerto Ricans and not backing up his Colombian roots,” he stated. John denied the accusation, telling reporters as he marched within the parade, “I am Colombian-Puerto Rican. I don’t know why he’s saying that. I say that I love him, and why is he saying that?”
Last yr, John appeared on an episode of Finding Your Roots — a PBS present the place celebrities find out about their ancestral histories. The actor’s lineage included notable figures like Sebastián de Belalcázar, a Spanish conquistador, and Higinio Cualla, who served as mayor of Bogota, Colombia. The present didn’t discover any hint of Puerto Rican ancestry.
6.
In the 2023 Beckham documentary sequence, Victoria Beckham — aka Posh Spice — stated she grew up “working class.”
But she was instantly referred to as out by husband David Beckham. He popped his head by way of the door and instructed her to be sincere. “I am being honest,” she insisted. So, he requested her what automotive her dad drove her to highschool in. Victoria would not give a straight reply at first.
When David insisted on an sincere response, she admitted, “Okay. In the ’80s, my dad had a Rolls-Royce.”
7.
Kelsey Asbille is finest recognized for taking part in Monica in Yellowstone. Her character was a Native American girl obsessed with Native rights, tradition, and historical past. Kelsey has stated in interviews that she is of Chinese, European, and Cherokee descent however didn’t develop up in a Native neighborhood.
However, Kelsey’s casting sparked backlash and a name to boycott the present. Though the New York Times reported that she was a descendant of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, the nation’s Tribal Enrollment Office declared the tribe had no document of her. Additionally, they may discover no proof that she was a descendant. Saulteaux actor Adam Beach — who proposed the preliminary boycott — instructed BuzzFeed News, “What got me jolted by it was that I have a lot of Native female actors that need a job. I immediately called it out.”
(*11*)
8.
In Kid Rock’s 1998 “Cowboy” music, he says, “I ain’t straight outta Compton, I’m straight out the trailer.” He constructed his total public persona round being a self-described “lowlife.”
However, a number of retailers reported that he really grew up in a 5,660 square-foot mansion with seven loos, a visitor home, and a pool. His childhood dwelling sits on a 5.5-acre lot, full with a regulation tennis court docket.
9.
For years, many individuals believed Hilaria Baldwin was from Spain. In this 2012 Good Morning America episode shortly after her wedding ceremony to Alec Baldwin, her accent is obvious. She’s been featured in publications like Latina journal and Hola journal and captioned many Instagram posts in Spanish. Additionally, Spain was listed as her birthplace within the bio of her company’s web site and on Google.
But in 2020, social media customers claimed Hilaria was faking the accent, sparking public scrutiny. The world found that Hilaria was born Hillary Thomas in Boston, Massachusetts. Her mother and father usually are not Spanish; the truth is, her father as soon as made a weblog submit stating his household is Midwestern, and Spanish meals and tradition deeply influenced his life regardless of not having “an iota of Latin blood.” Though her mother and father traveled to Spain all through Hilaria’s life, they did not transfer there till 2011.
In a now-deleted Instagram video, Hilaria addressed the state of affairs, saying, “I’m born in Boston, and then I spent some of my childhood in Boston, some of my childhood in Spain… There was, like, a lot of back-and-forth my entire life.” She additionally touched on her ever-changing accent. “It’s one of those things that I’ve always been a bit insecure about… If I get nervous, or I get upset, then I start to mix the two.”
10.
In 2016, Gwyneth Paltrow instructed Glamour, “People think, ‘She’s just a rich kid.’ Until I was 18, I was. Then I was broke. I’ve never taken a dime off my parents. I’m completely self-made.” She recalled dropping out of faculty and dwelling in an condominium with a roommate to pursue appearing. “I worked as a hostess at a restaurant; I would scrounge quarters to buy Starbucks — and walk there to save gas… Those were the days. Enough to know the value of money.”
Her romanticizing of poverty and insistence that she’s self-made has drawn a whole lot of criticism through the years. Many identified that Gwyneth’s mom is actor Blythe Danner, her father is movie producer/director Bruce Paltrow, and her godfather is Steven Spielberg — who solid her as teenage Wendy in his 1991 film, Hook.
11.
And lastly, Lana Del Rey has insisted that she grew up poor on plenty of events. In October, she made a since-deleted Instagram video saying she got here from a rural city and solely attended an elite boarding faculty as a result of her uncle labored there, entitling her to monetary assist. “I had such a tough time there because everyone knew how much money everyone had. Unfortunately, my experience every day was having people call me WT from LP: white trash from Lake Placid” (the city the place she grew up). She claimed that her father did not discover wealth till later, together with his web area firm. In the feedback, she wrote, “We had absolutely no money.”
However, a 2012 Guardian article reported that her father was a millionaire who supported her profession — although it is price noting that Lana not too long ago referred to as the article “tabloid-psycho untrue” in an interview with the Sunday Times.
Even so, individuals criticized Lana for saying she grew up with “absolutely no money.” Before her father based his firm, he labored as a copywriter at an promoting company the place he met Lana’s mom, an assistant account govt. Their wedding ceremony announcement was revealed within the New York Times. After they welcomed Lana, they moved to Lake Placid, the place her mother turned a trainer and her dad labored in actual property and created furnishings that was featured in design publications. Fans have pushed again on Lana’s insistence that she grew up in poverty and stated her upbringing sounds solidly middle-class, even when she wasn’t as rich as her schoolmates.
Any different celebs who’ve been accused of mendacity about their upbringing or background? Share them within the feedback under.
Discussion about this post