15 Celebrities Who Cut Ties With Their Famous Parents

Angelina Jolie severed ties with Oscar-winning actor Jon Voight after he made unauthorized televised remarks about her personal life. She petitioned the court to remove Voight from her legal name and remained estranged from him for nearly a decade before cautiously reconnecting.

Kate Hudson and her brother Oliver grew up considering Kurt Russell their real father after musician Bill Hudson walked out during their early childhood. Following a Father's Day post in 2015, Bill publicly declared that he considered both of them dead to him.

Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Ronan Farrow severed all personal ties with his father Woody Allen following allegations made by his sister Dylan. Ronan has consistently supported Dylan publicly and wrote that Allen's behavior permanently fractured their relationship.

Coming from a legendary acting dynasty, Drew Barrymore achieved legal emancipation from her mother Jaid at age 14. She had little relationship with her father, John Drew Barrymore, although she paid for his medical care during his final years before his 2004 passing.

Following the worldwide success of Home Alone, Macaulay Culkin stepped away from acting to protect his earnings from his controlling father and manager, Kit Culkin. The resulting legal battle led Macaulay to remove his parents from his fortune, and the two never spoke again.

Tatum O'Neal won an Academy Award alongside her father Ryan O'Neal for Paper Moon in 1974, but their relationship rapidly soured. Decades of volatility, envy, and family drama kept them apart for 25 years until a fragile reconciliation was documented on television in 2011.

Daughter of rock legends Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love, Frances Bean was placed under the temporary guardianship of her paternal grandmother in 2009. A temporary restraining order followed, and Frances maintained strict distance from Love for years before establishing calmer contact.

Jamie Lee Curtis grew up distant from her famous father, Tony Curtis, who left the family when she was a toddler. Jamie noted that he had little interest in being an active father, and when Tony passed away in 2010, his will revealed that he had intentionally disinherited all his children.

Vivian Jenna Wilson petitioned a California court in 2022 to change her full name and recognize her gender identity. In her legal filing, she stated that she no longer wished to live with or be related to her biological father Elon Musk in any way, shape, or form.

Lily Collins experienced prolonged emotional estrangement from her pop icon father Phil Collins following his divorce from her mother Jill Tavelman. In her 2017 book, Lily wrote candidly about her childhood heartbreak, publicly forgiving him for not always being there when she needed him.

Norah Jones grew up in Texas with her mother Sue Jones and rarely saw her father, sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar. When her debut album swept the Grammys in 2003, Norah intentionally avoided mentioning Shankar in interviews, choosing to establish her musical legacy completely on her own terms.

Tori Spelling rose to fame on Beverly Hills 90210, produced by her father Aaron Spelling. Following Aaron's death in 2006, tensions erupted over his estimated 500 million dollar estate, leaving Tori estranged from her mother Candy Spelling for several contentious years.

Julian Lennon had a strained and distant connection with his father John Lennon, who left him and mother Cynthia in 1968. Julian later remarked that Paul McCartney showed him more warmth than his own father, and Julian was originally excluded from John's primary estate after his 1980 murder.

Christina Crawford was adopted by Golden Age Hollywood icon Joan Crawford. After Joan passed away in 1977 and explicitly disinherited Christina for reasons well known to them, Christina published Mommie Dearest, exposing severe private abuse behind the glamorous studio facade.

Miley Cyrus and her country star father Billy Ray Cyrus grew apart following his 2022 split from Tish Cyrus. When Miley won Record of the Year at the 2024 Grammy Awards, she thanked her mother, sister, and team, but noticeably omitted Billy Ray entirely, signaling persistent family distance.