While being the child of a wealthy celebrity has its perks, some may find that their easy life of luxury won’t last forever.
Several A-list stars have publicly stated that they will not leave their children a hefty inheritance, with many choosing to donate their sizable fortunes to charity instead.
Sting recently said that leaving behind wealth so children “don’t have to work” is a “form of abuse,” while NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal once famously said, “In order to get my cheese, you’ve got to present me with two degrees.”
See below for more celebrities who have said they are not passing down their fortunes to their kids.
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Photo of Sting
Sting
Sting doubled down on not leaving his six children his fortune in an interview with CBS News Sunday Morning in May. The singer, worth $550 million, said telling children that they “don’t have to work” is “a form of abuse that I hope I’m never guilty of.”
“All of my kids have been blessed with this extraordinary work ethic, whether it’s the DNA of it or whether I’ve said to them, ‘Guys, you’ve got to work. I’m spending our money,'” he added. “‘I’m paying for your education. You’ve got shoes on your feet. Go to work.'”
Sting first made his intentions clear in a 2014 interview, telling the Daily Mail: “What comes in we spend, and there isn’t much left. I certainly don’t want to leave them trust funds that are albatrosses round their necks. They have to work.”
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Photo of Daniel Craig
Daniel Craig
Daniel Craig thinks “inheritance is quite distasteful” and won’t be leaving his two daughters his $200 million fortune. The James Bond star, who shares daughter Ella with his ex-wife Fiona Loudon, and a young daughter with his current wife Rachel Weisz, added to Candis magazine in 2021: “My philosophy is to get rid of it or give it away before you go.”
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Photo of Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis
Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis
Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis reportedly have a combined net worth of $575 million, but instead of leaving it to their two kids, they want to donate their money to charity and “various” other causes.
“If my kids want to start a business, and they have a good business plan, I’ll invest in it,” Ashton said on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast in 2018. “But they’re not getting trust [funds].”
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Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan would rather give his estimated $400 million fortune to charity than to his kids, especially his son, Jaycee. “If he is capable, he can make his own money. If he is not, then he will just be wasting my money,” he told Channel NewsAsia in 2011.
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Photo of Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger
Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger has hinted that his eight kids won’t get an inheritance from him. “The children don’t need $500 million to live well. Come on,” he told the Wall Street Journal, alluding that if he sells the band’s lucrative back catalogue, it might go to charity instead to “maybe do some good in the world.”
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Marie Osmond
Marie Osmond believes inheritances “breed laziness and entitlement,” so she won’t be leaving her $10 million fortune to her eight children. “Honestly, why would you enable your child to not try and be something? I don’t know anybody who becomes anything if they’re just handed money,” she told Us Weekly in 2023, adding that she planned to donate her fortune to charity.
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Elton John
Elton John admitted that while he wants to leave his two sons “in a very sound financial state,” it won’t be as much as his $650 million fortune. “It’s terrible to give kids a silver spoon. It ruins their life,” he told The Mirror in 2016. “Anything beyond the basic, they have to go out and earn it themselves. If they want a Picasso, they have to go out and earn it. I think there’s real sensibility in that,” he added.
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Photo of Shaquille O’Neal
Shaquille O’Neal
Shaquille O’Neal has made it very clear to his kids that they will not simply inherit his $500 million fortune but will need to earn their money instead. “My kids are older now. They’re kinda upset with me. Not really upset, but they don’t understand. I tell them all the time. ‘We ain’t rich. I’m rich,'” he told Business Insider.
Emphasizing the importance of his children earning their own success, Shaq, who famously said, “In order to get my cheese, you’ve got to present me with two degrees,” added: “You gotta have Bachelor’s or Master’s, and then if you want me to invest in one of your companies, you’re going to have to present it, boom boom boom, bring it to me. I’ll let you know, I’m not giving you nothing.”