The Stunning Transformation Of Lola Consuelos

Lola Consuelos is not the standard celebrity kid type. Although her parents, actor Mark Consuelos and actress and TV host Kelly Ripa, are household names, she's spent most of her life happily existing under the radar. Hell, Lola barely even showed up at red carpet events. It was only in her late teens that she made her Instagram account public, thereby inviting in fans of her parents who'd watched Lola grow up via their social media, which provided glimpses into the family's busy home life.

Being the middle child has the effect of making Lola seem less public-facing than her brothers Michael, who is four years her senior, and Joaquin, 20 months her junior, but really she's just as social media-savvy as anyone else her age. In fact, most of the time it's Lola who's cheekily calling her folks out for being gross on Instagram while her brothers mostly stay out of it. Although Lola had her ups and downs with her mom, Ripa's heart broke when sending her off to college. Still, she knew her only daughter could handle whatever life threw at her — and that's proven to be true. Here's a look at the stunning transformation of Lola Consuelos.

Naming kids is tough at the best of times, but when you're a high-profile star competing with the celebrity baby names like Apple (Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin's daughter) and Slate (Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Teddi Mellencamp's daughter), it has to be even more daunting. Thankfully, with Michael, Joaquin, and Lola Consuelos, it seems Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos weren't bothered trying to give their kids the most, er, interesting names possible. Rather, they chose monikers to suit each child. In Lola's case, Ripa knew the name had to fit the little spark plug whose energy she could barely contain in her arms.

As Ripa told Good Housekeeping, Joaquin's name was chosen because it sounded "ethnic" and "very manly" while Michael was named after Consuelos' grandfather who'd recently passed. "But with Lola, I mean, we just knew she was going to be a little showgirl," Ripa explained, which ended up being pretty on the nose. As a baby, Lola met none other than legendary actor Tom Cruise, whom she immediately charmed. "He held her for nearly an hour," Ripa recalled proudly. "They were totally in love. She kept stroking his face."

Kelly Ripa told Good Housekeeping, "[Lola] just knew she had to live up to her name" when it came to showing everyone around her who was boss. As Ripa recalled, Lola's older brother Michael had a bunch of his friends over to play and one in particular was so much bigger than the others the TV host reckoned she'd fit into his clothes. "And the boys were pushing Lola around," she explained.

Little Lola Consuelos kept trying to get at her toys, but the boys continuously intercepted her, taking them away and pushing her out of their reach. Rather than crying to her mother or sulking in the corner, Ripa said "she came up behind them both and grabbed them by the back of their necks and knocked the two of them onto the ground." Soon it was the boys who were crying while Lola simply went back to playing, content that justice had been served.

Although she's fully prepared to do the hard work to keep her kids on track, there were times Kelly Ripa struggled with Lola Consuelos. She told WebMD that the little girl was much tougher than her brothers, especially when she was younger. Her sons were always happy to see their mother and shower her with affection. "With Lola, everything is up for debate. Everything is a conversation," Ripa divulged. "First thing in the morning, it's a major discussion about what she's going to wear."

When it came to anything more serious, the mother of three worried that she'd have trouble convincing Lola to just accept what she was telling her. In particular, living in New York City, the Live with Kelly and Ryan host worried about what would happen in the event of another terrorist attack, like 9/11 — not necessarily because Lola would be scared, but because, "I can just see me having to debate with Lola about why we have to leave right this minute. I've literally had to say to her: 'Honey, if there's an emergency, you don't have the liberty to argue with Mommy, OK?'"

Kelly Ripa is a proud, doting mother (rightfully) obsessed with her children and willing to gush over every small achievement (at least, judging by her Instagram page), but the All My Children alum is no pushover either. As Ripa explained during an appearance on The Wendy Williams Show, she doesn't care about being liked, only that her kids listen to and respect her. Of Lola Consuelos, she shrugged, "I don't think she likes me, but I don't care," reasoning, "I'm like, 'I'm not your friend, I'm your mom.'"

Ripa admitted that her main concern is keeping her daughter grounded so she'll understand how the real world works and won't just expect everything to go her way all the time. She even regaled Williams with a story about how Lola had her phone and internet privileges revoked after slacking off instead of doing her homework. "We're very fair parents and we will give you certain freedoms, but ... you can't have privacy and be on Instagram. That's not how it works," she explained of her and Mark Consuelos' approach to keeping their children in check.

Hiram Lodge, the biggest gangster in Riverdale and father figure to scheming wannabe kingpin (or should that be queenpin?) Veronica, is one of the most high profile roles of Mark Consuelos' career. The role has made Consuelos visible to millions of teens around the world and has even made him a so-called "Daddy," as an Esquire interview with the actor breathlessly reported.

It's clearly the role of a lifetime for Consuelos, who gushed to the publication about everything from the talented young cast of Riverdale to the set location in Vancouver and, naturally, his dearly departed costar Luke Perry who passed away in March 2019.

While Consuelos and tons of teens may love his role in the series, one particular teenager didn't seem very excited about Consuelos landing the job. "Right before I was starting Riverdale, one of Lola Consuelos' friends in homeroom asked her, 'Hey, is your dad on Riverdale?' Like, she knows I'm on Riverdale. But she answers, 'Um...I don't know?' She didn't want to cop to it ... She's a piece of work," he recalled, noting nobody can deflate an ego quicker than a teenage girl.

Despite being too embarrassed to even admit her dad was on the show, Lola Consuelos does appreciate how cool it is that her dad Mark Consuelos is involved in Riverdale, even as the resident baddie. Although she has no plans to follow in her brother's footsteps by appearing on the show, there was one way the teenager wished she could emulate the flashy lives of the Lodge family. Thankfully, it had nothing to do with building prisons or selling drugs.

Kelly Ripa told People that Lola was shocked to watch her father on a show she actually liked, but more surprising to her was his onscreen character's lax approach to parenting. Aged 16 at the time, Lola couldn't believe that Veronica, who was also 16 in the show, frequently enjoyed a mimosa with breakfast. As Ripa recalled, "My daughter's like, 'Dad never lets me drink mimosas at breakfast!' And I go, 'Yeah, because he's a real father and that's a character on TV!'"

Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos may both be in-demand TV stars, but Lola Consuelos definitely doesn't think her parents are cool. As a teen — and much like a typical teen — pretty much everything they did embarrassed her. While attending a charity event, Consuelos gushed to People that his daughter, then 18, is, "Really cool. She's always been cool," quickly following up with an acknowledgement that neither he nor Kelly Ripa can take credit for it.

"We have nothing to do with it literally because she's mortified by everything we put on," Ripa chimed in, advising that Lola isn't shy about telling her parents off if she thinks they look bad in an outfit. However, Consuelos has no shame about asking his daughter for advice when putting looks together, even if it means getting answers that are, at times, perhaps too frank for his liking.

One of the major perks of having parents who work in the business is getting a leg up. However, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos are adamant that their kids aren't just handed whatever they want. The TV host even joked about the college admissions scandal involving several of her fellow Hollywood moms during an episode of Live with Kelly and Ryan. "I'm so glad this scandal broke after my kids went through [the college application process] because I know my daughter would have been like, 'Hey, can you call that man?'" she quipped at the time.

Although Ripa wants her kids to have the best of everything in life, they have to earn their way just like everybody else. Back in 2016, she proudly told People both Michael and Lola Consuelos were spending that summer working in California alongside their father. "The two teens are doing internships. They're working at film houses, and Mark is working on a TV show...," she gushed with pride.

Growing up in the public eye is tough, but a young woman trying to figure out who she is will arguably always have it harder. Luckily for Lola Consuelos, both of her parents are committed to ensuring she has the right values and a support system in place to help her achieve her goals.

Mark Consuelos proudly told Today that he's equally inspired by his mother and his wife, both of whom he described as "very powerful." The Riverdale actor argued, "We are limiting ourselves when we eliminate or exclude half of our population, which are women, their voices, their ideas, their contributions."

He expressed horror at the idea Lola could face a wage gap upon entering the workforce and emphasized the importance of teaching his kids that this isn't acceptable and to fight for their rights. Although Consuelos does the best he can, he sees Kelly Ripa as the biggest encouragement for his daughter. "She works, she provides, she contributes, and she shapes the conversations in our lives," he said.

Lola Consuelos is adept at calling out her parents for being a bit too lovey-dovey. In March 2019, Kelly Ripa posted a throwback photo of her and Mark Consuelos, captioning it, "Those hands" to which her daughter responded, "Is the caption necessary?" When a fan tried to intervene, suggesting the commenter was just jealous, Ripa responded, "No she's just grossed out. That's my daughter."

Then, just a few months later, Consuelos appeared on Live with Kelly and Ryan and regaled the hilarious story of being caught in the act by Lola on Father's Day — coincidentally her birthday. According to Ripa, Lola informed her parents later that day, "You guys have no chill. You act like you're 20, but you're not."

In February 2020, Lola called her parents out again for being too mushy in public after Ripa shared a funny video of a producer hiding under her dress while adjusting it for a red carpet, below which her husband commented, "Been there." Lola naturally waded in, writing simply, "Absolutely repulsive" — much to the delight of fans who routinely wait around on such posts to catch her cutting commentary.

The summer of 2019 brought prom and with it a stunning look from a grown-up Lola Consuelos, who chose a beautiful emerald green dress for the occasion. Kelly Ripa shared some shots from the big night on Instagram, quipping, "It only took 20 hours, but we finally got two approved prom photos." Although Ripa was involved with every aspect of the decision-making process with Lola  — even working with her stylist to make the custom Raza Wijdan dress, according to Page Six — there was one element of which Ripa did not approve.

When the night came, the Live with Kelly and Ryan host realized a certain very noticeable alteration had been made. While appearing on Jerry O'Connell's Jerry O' Show, Ripa revealed that her daughter had secretly changed her prom dress to make it sexier. "So that's why the 'girls' are fully on display," she quipped of the deep V-cut that Ripa didn't know about until Lola descended the stairs on prom night.

Lola Consuelos started college in 2019 at New York University where her brother Michael also attended. More specifically, Lola began at its Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music. Kelly Ripa admitted in an interview with Ryan Seacrest on his radio show, On Air With Ryan Seacrest, how emotional it was dropping her off for the first time, but said she was looking forward to Lola establishing herself as her own, independent person. That is, if she could get over one major issue. "Sharing a bathroom with five roommates; it's gonna be the main challenge," Ripa laughed.

Thankfully, Lola settled in just fine, with Ripa telling guest host Anderson Cooper on Live with Kelly and Ryan that she loved it at NYU. "She was born to live outside of the house!" Ripa enthused, sharing that Lola used to play pretend dorm room when she was a little girl. However, Lola might have been having a little too much fun as Ripa revealed on a subsequent episode (via People) that she had to cut off her debit card because the 18-year-old was ordering food from Postmates instead of eating at school.

In December 2019, Lola Consuelos proved getting into music school was no fluke when she shared a couple of videos to Instagram of her singing and playing the piano. Both of her proud parents naturally took notice, with Kelly Ripa gushing, "You are gifted," while Mark Consuelos posted a string of heart emojis. Camila Mendes, who plays Consuelos' onscreen daughter Veronica in Riverdale, also chimed in writing simply "GIRL?" Lola's brother, Joaquin, meanwhile gushed, "Wow! The best voice I've ever heard!"

It makes sense that her brother would chime in as it turns out that Joaquin and Lola are especially close. Ripa shared on Live with Kelly and Ryan, (via People) that the experience of dropping her daughter off at college made it clear how truly bonded Lola and Joaquin really were. "I didn't realize how close they were until it was time to say goodbye," she said. However, Lola was more than ready to part ways with her doting parents, with the TV host revealing she flat out told them not to expect to see her again before Thanksgiving.

She might have been happy to finally have her independence and be on her own at college, but in spring 2020, she had to return home as New York City temporarily closed schools and universities. While appearing on an at-home version of Live with Kelly and Ryan, Lola was questioned by Ryan Seacrest about how it was living with her parents again. She admitted via (People) that "it wasn't so bad." As for whether Lola discovered anything potentially shocking about her family's behavior, she deadpanned, "I'm remembering everything I forgot at college!"

Lola may have been enjoying spending more time with her family, but she was keeping them off her new favorite social media platform, TikTok. As Kelly Ripa told Seacrest, "You have a better chance of doing a TikTok video with Lola ... That I can guarantee you." It's a shame because the whole family agreed in a previous interview with People that Lola is the funniest member. Mark Consuelos gushed about his daughter, "She is just so smart and witty and funny, and she just gets it, you know? Lola knows exactly what people are about and how to handle herself in any situation."