Celebrities You Probably Didn't Know Were Cousins

Everyone and their cousin knows about these celebrities. They're all industry icons in their own, but they also share DNA with fellow stars that are just as talented as they are. Which former Disney rivals have an unexpected connection? Which three Canadian superstars share the same genes? (One of them is Justin Bieber!) What is Nicolas Cage's real name? The answers to all these questions and more may surprise you, as you learn all about the most famous cousins in Hollywood.

The actress sent the internet into a spiral after calling rapper Saweetie her "little cousin" on Instagram back in 2018. She later explained their relation on Twitter, writing, "Her father and I are 1st cousins. Her grandma is my aunt Joanne Glass who I based Eva from 'Deliver Us From Eva' on. Pretty runs in the family ❤️"

These two share a sense of humor—and DNA. Actress Melissa McCarthy and media personality Jenny McCarthy are first cousins. They also have each other's backs, with Jenny coming to Melissa's defense after a film critic's now-infamous personal attack on her weight back in 2013.

Model good looks run in this family. Hailey's father, Stephen Baldwin, and Ireland's father, Alec Baldwin, are brothers. That makes these beauties first cousins. They're so close, they even got matching tattoos back in 2015.

Singer Brandy, rapper Snoop Dogg, and WWE star Sasha Banks are all first cousins. Snoop is especially proud of his famous relatives, and isn't afraid to show it—he released music with Brandy and stepped into the ring to rap for Sasha.

In 2000, the Ray Donovan star revealed her relation to the Goop founder and actress. "She's my cousin!" Kate told The Observer, when asked if the two are close. "There really is no comparison at all. [Our] work and lifestyles are completely different."

Influencer Natalie Zettel is the daughter of Kris Jenner's sister, and often posts pictures with Kim, Kris, and the rest of the Kardashian crew. But, real talk: Are we sure she's a cousin, and not Kylie's twin?

The Black-ish actress is not only related to Nas, she was the flower girl at his wedding back in 2005. The second cousins have remained close over the years, with Yara honoring the rapper with a sweet speech at the 2016 REVOLT Music Conference. "We're here to honor Nas," she said, "who I get to call my Big Cuzzo."

Nicolas Cage—or as his relatives know him, Nicolas Coppola—comes from quite the famous family. His father is the brother of both director Sofia Coppola's iconic father, Francis Ford Coppola, and actor Jason Schwartzman's actress mother, Talia Shire. That makes the talented trio first cousins.

The meteorologist and the musician are second cousins. Many fans are often shocked to learn that Lenny's mother is The Jeffersons star, Roxie Roker. Al and Lenny's grandfathers were first cousins, something they’ve repeatedly addressed over the years. “What’s up, cousin?” the singer joked at the beginning of a 2020 Today interview.

Even though they were third cousins (they are both the great-great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria), Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip fell in love. They were married for 73 years before the Duke of Edinburgh's death in April 2021.

The Hadid sisters have a cousin just as gorgeous as they are. Fellow model, Joann Van Den Herik, occasionally posts snaps with her famous family members, including her aunt (Bella and Gigi's mom), Yolanda Hadid. Joann has followed in the footsteps of her cousins, launching a successful modeling career and building a massive social media presence.

From Bad Blood to, well, just blood. According to genealogy website MyHeritage, the pop stars are ninth cousins. No one was more shocked by this news than Katy. "We fight like cousins!" she joked on Capital FM, "I'm going to have to ask her if this is true, or if we should get blood tests together..."

When you see these two side by side, their resemblance is hard to miss. The U.S. senator and drag queen/TV personality are distant cousins. RuPaul found out the exciting news on PBS' Finding Your Roots, joking, "He looks like my kin!" After learning about the connection, Cory revealed to Wendy Williams, "I told everybody who would listen in my world, so yeah, my mom knows!"

Justin Bieber took to Instagram to share his Ancestry.com results, which revealed that Ryan Gosling is his 11th cousin, and Avril Lavigne is his 12th. We could break down the family tree even further, but things might get a bit too Complicated.

You might recognize actress Shanica Knowles from her roles in Hannah Montana and The Young and the Restless. What's even more recognizable, however, is her last name, since she's first cousins with Beyoncé and Solange Knowles.

MyHeritage discovered that Chandler and Monica are 11th cousins, once removed—something that makes watching Friends reruns a lot more awkward. Both Matthew and Courteney are descendants of the same family, the Haskells, from the 17th century. Could we BE any more surprised?

Miley and Selena grew up together as Disney darlings, but their history goes back even further. MyHeritage claims they're 13th cousins, twice removed, as they're both descendants of the same English family, the Kempes, dating back to the 17th century.

Lady Gaga and Lady M have battled for the pop music throne in the past, so they might be surprised to find out they're related. Celebrity genealogist Chris Child proved that the singers are ninth cousins, once removed, back in 2011. "When I saw that Lady Gaga had French Canadian ancestry I thought there might be something there," he told the Boston Globe.

Although at first glance these leading men look like brothers, Stephen Amell and Robbie Amell are actually first cousins. They've both played superheroes in the DC Universe, but the Canadian cousins are far from competitive—Robbie almost landed the lead role in Arrow, but convinced Stephen to audition instead.

Bravo to the person who discovered this. Andy Cohen and Scarlett Johansson share "identical" DNA on multiple chromosomes, PBS' Finding Your Roots host Henry Louis Gates, Jr. shared. "Are you going to tell me who my cousin is now? ScarJo?! YES!" Andy exclaimed after the big reveal.

While it's rare to have two musical legends in one family, Dionne Warwick and Whitney Houston are the exception. The cousins were extremely close, often collaborating both on the stage and in the studio. A month after Whitney's tragic passing, Dionne opened up about their relationship, telling ABC News, "She basically was the little girl I never had."

Everyone knows about their iconic Boston bromance, but the duo's connection goes much deeper. The actors are tenth cousins, once removed. The New England Genealogical Society discovered the childhood pals are both descendants of William Knowlton Jr., an English bricklayer from the 1600s.

Ellen DeGeneres revealed on her talk show that she's the Duchess of Cambridge's 15th cousin. "I'm definitely invited to the wedding now!" she joked after revealing the news in 2011. "Let me know where you're registered, because I have a Pier 1 and a Target real, real close to my house."

In 2014, Ancestry.com revealed that Tom Cruise and William Mapother (you might know him from Lost), are first cousins—and the resemblance is obvious. Fun fact: Tom Cruise's real name is Thomas Cruise Mapother IV. Now it all makes so much more sense.

Music is a family affair for these two producers. Timbaland shocked the industry after revealing he and cousin Pharrell are related through their grandmothers. "I call him my brother," he shared on The Cruz Show back in 2016. He also wrote about their high school days in his memoir, The Emperor of Sound: A Memoir.

Audra's first reaction after finding out she shares DNA with Diddy? "I kissed my cousin!" she yelled on PBS' Finding Your Roots. The pair costarred in a 2004 revival of A Raisin in the Sun.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey and Karate Kid stars go way back. Melissa and Ralph are distant cousins, the reality TV personality confessed on Twitter in 2012. Don't expect to see them at a family reunion anytime soon, though. "We are like really distant cousins. Never even met him," Melissa told The Huffington Post. "We always said it when we were little. It's like through marriage, my aunt Rosile."

These lovely ladies have more than just their acting skills in common. Brooke Shields' great-grandmother was the sister of Glenn Close's grandfather, making the two stars second cousins, once removed.

"Julianne? Julie? You know we went to school together? Jules! Oh, I can't wait to tell her!" Marisa Tomei gushed on PBS' Finding Your Roots. She later posted a clip of the show on Instagram, which broke down why the discovery was so odd. Apparently, Julianne has no Italian heritage, yet she shares identical strands of DNA with Marisa.

While they might not be related by blood, Ludacris and Monica are as close can be. When "The Boy Is Mine" singer's mother married the rapper's uncle, the step-cousins formed an unbreakable bond. "Before there was Ludacris and Monica, there was Christopher Bridges and Mo," Monica told Hip Hop Weekly (via Essence) in 2010. "And we were just always close."