With the rise of YouTube, the narrative of the self-made celebrity is more present than ever. Whereas once upon a time celebrities were delivered to us in their final form, we now get to watch them climb from grainy videos filmed in their parents’ basement to crowd-pleasing appearances on late night talk shows. Gigi Gorgeous, for instance, has had fans since she was just a GTA boy going by “Gregory Gorgeous” and doing Drugstore Hauls from his neighbourhood Shopper’s. She now walks in high-profile fashion shows and will soon appear in her first movie.This, in my opinion, makes it all the more interesting to witness people who become world famous thanks to phone numbers in a family member’s Rolodex. While people like Shane Dawson and Smosh have had to hustle and audition and get knocked onto their butts, other and often more famous celebrities just had to tug on a parent’s sleeve and say: “My turn now.”
Perhaps it’s a little presumptuous to assume they never did a day’s work in their lives. Even after Fantastic Four, Jessica Alba still had to audition for a role in Getting Smart, a part she didn’t end up getting. But it’s safe to assume, I think, that the following 20 celebrities didn’t have to work nearly as hard as say, Iggy Azalea, who worked three jobs just to pay the bills as she ground towards her ambition in every minute of her spare time.
