Barack Obama's Take On Daughter Malia's Attempt To Dodge Nepo Baby Allegations

Celebrities like Zooey Deschanel are always trying to deny being a nepo baby (which is short for nepotism baby), but it's obviously hard not to associate even an ounce of the successful career of a celebrity's offspring to their parents. For example, when you think of Lily-Rose Depp, how can anyone not think of her famous father, Johnny Depp? It just might be why some children of the rich and famous are taking extreme measures to dissociate from their family name. A prime example of this might be Malia Obama, who dropped her last name on the credits of her directorial debut film, "The Heart." Instead, she chose to identify herself by only her first and middle names, as "Malia Ann." Barack Obama humorously ribbed her for this decision.

On an episode of "The Pivot" podcast, the former president poked fun at his daughter for her decision not to use her last name, saying that he told her, "You do know they'll know who you are." He stated her response to his comment was that she simply wanted the audience to watch the film for the first time without thinking of her last name. He also added that both of his daughters, Malia and Sasha, will go out of their way to not leverage their status. The former president described his daughters as "sensitive" and "stubborn," and stated it was a "challenge" for he and his wife, Michelle Obama, to give their daughters any help at all.

While the Kennedys might say politics runs in the family, for the Obamas, that's not so true. Malia and Sasha don't seem to have an interest in pursuing politics. The girls appear to be more drawn to the entertainment industry. It's probably why they've chosen to take up residence in Los Angeles, and while it's unknown what Sasha is up to, her older sister made her directorial debut in 2023.

Before her debut, Malia was busy trying to make a name for herself in Hollywood. During her gap year from Harvard University, she interned at the Weinstein Company, which led to her working on Donald Glover's hit series, "Swarm." Glover seems to have recognized her talents from her days in the writers room, as he told GQ in an interview that one the very first films his production company, Gilga, chose to invest in was Malia's debut film.

Glover explained that he told Malia that she "will only get to do this once." He told her, "You're Obama's daughter. So if you make a bad film, it will follow you around." It seems like she took his advice to heart when she made her directorial debut without her powerful last name. Netizens had mixed feelings about her decision to do so. While some stated they "understood why she dropped her last name" as it "would overshadow her work," others felt indifferent and said, "I'm sorry but you're a Nepo baby. Just acknowledge it and be grateful for it, but don't pretend."