Famous brothers who hate being the center of attention

Many of us can only dream of stardom. But who wants to settle for second best? Being the brother of a famous person, or even worse, being reduced to a relative of a celebrity, can be a complicated thing. As anyone with a more notable sibling knows, it’s hard enough to measure up to someone who has seemingly accomplished it all.

Therefore, it is quite rare for two siblings to achieve the same level of success. Sure, you have cases like the Olsen sisters, the Williams sisters, and Shirley MacLaine and Warren Beatty, but it’s not a given that a star shares the spotlight with her relatives. And hey, there are siblings to the rich and famous who aren’t looking to reach those same heights of prosperity. Many are perfectly content to lead normal lives away from the prying eyes of the media.

In fact, despite having A-list relatives, some really hate the idea of ​​stepping into the shadow of someone famous. Consequently, they choose to stay as far away from the public eye as possible. In other cases, the famous siblings may have made a name for themselves, but are disgusted with the pitfalls of living life in the spotlight. Don’t expect these folks to get caught on a red carpet near you anytime soon — let’s take a look at the celebrity siblings who hate the spotlight.

Rihanna’s brothers are quite reserved people. So private, in fact, that RiRi kept them a secret for years.

The pop superstar has two brothers, Rajad and Rorrey Fenty. Rather than attend glitzy events, Rajad is content to critique them from the comfort of her home; In 2016, she took to Twitter and offered humorous versions of the outfits on display at the Met Gala, lamenting that hardly anyone understood the assignment. As for Rorrey, he is a businessman with a luxury cigar brand.

However, in 2011, The Sun (via the New York Post) reported that Rihanna also has three older half-siblings. All of her half-siblings lead regular lives out of the public eye: her sisters Kandy and Samantha Fenty have respectively embarked on pharmaceutical and government consulting careers, while her brother Jamie Fenty is an artist. While Kandy admitted to The Sun that she doesn’t see her half-sister as much as she’d like, she did admit that she’s happier leading a quiet life away from the trappings of fame. “I have to work long hours, so I guess there haven’t been many opportunities to talk, really,” she said. “But I am very proud of what she has achieved. I’m not jealous of fame or fortune. I live a simple life in the countryside, but I am very happy with what I have.”

While Nicole Kidman is a star who has been a Hollywood staple for decades, her sister, Antonia Kidman, is a journalist, presenter, and author.

While many celebrities are constantly scrutinized by the public, including Nicole Kidman, Antonia’s decision to stay out of the Hollywood spotlight has allowed her more autonomy. During an appearance on the “Mighty Steps” podcast, Antonia explained that she is not tied to public perception and is free to pursue what she wants, encouraging others to follow a path in life that is not toxic to the well-being of others. she.

Testimony to her decision to lead an existence that is markedly different from her sister’s, Antonia even wrote a book titled “The Simple Things: Creating an Organized Home, a Happy Family, and a Life Worth Living,” advising readers to embrace the simple life. Chatting to The Sydney Morning Herald, Antonia suggested that people should stop chasing big dreams and instead realize that life itself, no matter how mundane the everyday tasks may seem, is the ultimate journey. “The big lesson I learn as I get older is that life gets away from me,” she explains in her book. ”While I enjoy the wisdom and confidence that comes with age, I am also well aware that this is it! I am not going to have an epiphany where I realize that I have lived a full and complete life. It is the journey that makes life.”

In 2011, talk show queen Oprah Winfrey found out she had a secret half-sister, Patricia Lee Lofton, according to ABC News. In 1963, Patricia was given up for adoption by Winfrey’s mother, who felt that she was not fit to care for another child. Little did Winfrey know that her little brother had been living just a drive away.

Despite learning that she has a superstar sister, Patricia has deliberately chosen to stay out of the spotlight. Winfrey’s best friend, Gayle King, praised Patricia for not going public after her family revelations; In particular, Patricia had suspected that Winfrey was her sister since 2007, but she refused to speak to the press. “Here’s a woman who legitimately had a story to sell and didn’t,” King told ABC News. “She was trying to find her mother. Oprah, of course, turned out to be an advantage.”

Patricia may keep a low profile, but that hasn’t stopped Winfrey from supporting her whenever she can. In 2014, E! News reported that the talk show host bought her sister a house that cost nearly $500,000. “Patricia’s biggest dream was to go to college and become a social worker,” Winfrey’s rep explained. “Oprah wants to support that dream.” And in 2017, Winfrey helped Patricia realize her dream when she graduated from college at the age of 53, according to the Daily Mail. Winfrey attended the ceremony and expressed her delight at her sister’s achievements. her.

It’s hard to believe that there is someone with the exact same DNA as Scarlett Johansson. It’s even harder to believe that said individual is living a low-key life. But the Hollywood star actually has a twin brother, Hunter Johansson. While Scarlett often makes the rounds on the red carpet, her brother leads a low-key life.

Hunter is a passionate charity worker and activist. He founded the nonprofit Solar Responders, which focuses on helping firefighters and paramedics fight natural disasters. In 2020, Scarlett volunteered for her twin’s organization and helped him install solar panels at a charity mission in Puerto Rico. “If there’s one truly altruistic person I know in my life, he’s my brother,” she told People. “He reminds me that I have to be a better person all the time. I am incredibly proud of him.”

In an interview with “The Impossible Network,” Hunter explained that his decision to ignore the spotlight was largely inspired by the values ​​instilled in him by his family, who always emphasized the importance of everyday people. “I really have to give credit to my parents, my brothers, my family, my grandmother, who exposed me to everyday people and appreciated everyday people and their stories,” she said. When asked about her sister’s fame in contrast to her more guarded personality, she revealed that the couple is very close and frequently hangs out behind the scenes, even if they don’t publicize their relationship.

Florence Pugh has been generating all kinds of headlines lately. Whether it’s her relationship with her much older ex-boyfriend, Zach Braff, or the soap opera-style debacle of “Don’t Worry Darling,” Pugh is quickly becoming a staple of the tabloids. However, the same cannot be said of her brother, Toby Sebastian.

In 2020, the Twitterverse found itself in a collective thirst trap after discovering that Pugh’s brother is quite handsome. Like his younger brother, Sebastian is an actor, and above all, he appears in “Game on Thrones”. In 2018, he played opera legend Andrea Bocelli in the biopic “The Music of Silence.” Unfortunately, the movie was heavily criticized; as Variety wrote, “Sebastian is handsome enough, with big pouty lips and an adorable layer of baby fat, but his impersonation of a shy, vision-impaired singer is frustrating.” Oh.

Since the ill-fated role, his acting career has stalled, but that may very well be to Sebastian’s liking. These days, he’s more focused on his music than attending glitzy movie events. In 2022, he released his single “Real Kicks” and revealed that his music ultimately means more to him than being on camera. “The music is mine, it’s more personal… It’s a wonderful release of emotions when I’m feeling things the most,” he told Songwriting Magazine. “Acting is also personal because you have to find the truth for whoever you’re playing. It’s someone else’s script though, so you’re really there to fulfill his vision.”

While Gwyneth Paltrow decided to follow in her mother’s footsteps into the realm of acting, her brother, Jake Paltrow, decided to follow their father’s career path. Like her late father, Bruce Paltrow, Jake works behind the scenes.

A writer and filmmaker, he made his directorial debut, “The Good Night,” in 2007. Although Jake cast his sister in the lead role, he told New York Magazine that he was initially afraid of facing nepo baby claims. After seeing how well Gwyneth was in the role, his worries eased. Unlike his A-list sister of his, however, Jake is content to remain a background player in the industry. Later, he said that writing was the ideal profession for an introvert like him. “You are on your own, there is no question whether it will be done, whether it is good or bad,” he explained. “It’s become a really nice time.”

AW Magazine’s profile of Jake’s wife, Taryn Simon, highlights that the couple is intensely private and not interested in the spotlight. “Taryn is very cautious about the connections that she has to certain worlds: Hollywood versus the art world, and what kind of attention she gets,” said her friend, Joseph Logan. Even when he talks about his job, Jake is evasive. In 2020, he started making the movie “June Zero”, about the execution of Nazi officer Adolf Eichmann. In an article about the making of the film, Haaretz noted the reluctance of the media-shy Jake to discuss the project, for which the outlet suggested it was an unusual choice of director.

The Olsen brand is synonymous with “Full House” fashionista twins, Mary-Kate and Ashley, and to a lesser extent, their indie queen, Sister Elizabeth. Therefore, it is hard to believe that there is also an Olsen brother. Unlike Mary-Kate and Ashley, who have long been tabloid staples, Trent Olsen keeps an extremely low profile. On Instagram, he has a mere 4,000 followers and mostly posts memes and photos of snacks.

After a brief stint as an actor (he had an uncredited role as an extra on “Old School”), Olsen dabbled in writing, manipulating the Facebook algorithm, and fundraising for charities. He may be uncomfortable with the spotlight, but that doesn’t mean Trent hasn’t exploited his sisters’ fame for his own gain. As one of his school friends told the New York Post, he once had a lucrative side job selling autographed photos of his sisters. “I definitely bought one. We all did it!” said the friend.

Despite his low profile (and shady autograph antics), he reportedly remains close to his famous brothers. For example, the twins named her fashion line Elizabeth and James in her honor. Plus, fashion designers are apparently eager to help his brother further his career, but he’s perfectly content to stay out of the media. “If he wanted to, he could ask his sisters for help with movie stuff and anything, really,” a college friend told the New York Post. “They are incredibly close. But I think he wants to basically do it all on his own.”