Hollywood Stars Related To Royalty

Robert Pattinson

You hear the term Hollywood royalty bandied around a lot by the tabloids. There are the Kings and Queens, those such as Angelina Jolie and Tom Cruise who seem to rule over all those A-Listers. Then there are the older generation of royalty, those like Jack Nicholson and Dame Judi Dench who once had the throne but have since handed it on to those younger. Then there are jesters, the Adam Sandlers and Jim Carreys of this world who are always ready to make the ‘court’ laugh.

It may come as a complete surprise to film lovers but there are also those that we love to watch up on the big screen who can proudly boast that they do in fact have royal blood flowing their veins. Let’s take a look at some of the A-Listers who could replace the red carpet with the royal robes if they so wished.

There aren’t many out there that would argue that Brad Pitt isn’t Hollywood royalty. The dashing good looks make him look like Prince Charming and then there is the fact that this award winning actor is also the partner of one of the Queens of Hollywood – Angelina Jolie. The surprising news is though that Brad Pitt has actual royal blood flowing through his veins. Through his mother’s side of the family, Pitt is related to England’s King Henry II who ruled between 1154-1189. King Henry II also has another Hollywood descendent in the form of Paris Hilton who, when not attending the opening of an envelope, has been known to act in films including “House Of Wax” and “The Bling Ring.”

Not to be outdone by her partner, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie can also lay claim to some royal blood, thanks to the fact that her mother, actress Marcheline Bertrand, was a descendent of France’s King Philip II. Yes Angelina and Brad are a ‘royal couple’ in every sense of the phrase. Also related to the French Royal Family is “The Blue Lagoon” actress Brooke Shields who recently discovered on an episode of “Who Do You Think You Are” that her family tree includes Henry IV of France. “Who Do You Think You Are” also discovered that Johnny Depp is the 20thcousin of Queen Elizabeth. Another French royal family member was the great Katherine Hepburn and Anthony Perkins who were both related to King Louis IV of France.

She may no longer be considered Hollywood royalty, and recently slummed it in “Movie 43,” but actress Uma Thurman has some royal bloodlines in the real world due to the fact that she is a relative of King Edward 1 of England (who ruled from 1272-1307). Actor Hugh Grant may have seen an incident with Divine Brown cause him to fall off his thrown, but he also has a double royal connection. Grant can trace his family lines back to both Henry VII and James IV The King Of Scotland (ruled from 1488-1513.)

Another Hollywood celebrity who may be wondering why she doesn’t receive any invites to Buckingham Palace is the Queen of Hollywood Chat Shows, Ellen DeGeneres, who was recently told by the New England Genealogical Society that she is the 15th cousin of Kate Middleton and is also related to King Edward III (who ruled from 1327-1377). Also related to King Edward III is brother and sister acting duo, Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal, Hilary Duff, Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart, Laura Dern and Michael Douglas. Now that could be one talented family get-together.

If you were looking for another family get-together with both talent and royal lines you could do a search down the family tree of King John of England (ruled from 1199-1216), whose modern day ancestors include Academy Award winner Tom Hanks, Glenn Close and Sissy Spacek.

In what has to be one of the most ironic royal links of all time, Robert Pattinson recently found out that he can trace his family back to Vlad The Impaler. Yes that’s right; the actor who famously played vampire Edward Cullen in the “Twilight” franchise of films is, in fact, related to the ruler that inspired the Dracula mythology – the ruthless Vlad the Impaler. Just for good measure, Pattinson is also a cousin to Prince William and Prince Harry.

Just to wrap up this talented bunch of ‘celebrity royal relatives,’ you have Sigourney Weaver and Clint Eastwood who were both related to King Henry I (ruler of England from 1100-1135), as well as Ralph and Joseph Fiennes who have King James II of Scotland (1437-1460) in their family tree.

While it would seem unlikely that any of this talented bunch would ever swap Tinseltown for a crown, it is fascinating to learn just who can claim to be the true ‘Hollywood Royalty.’