Celebrities who won’t leave their wealth to their kids
Gene Hackman
The will of legendary actor Gene Hackman has been made public following his passing in February, naming his late wife of 33 years, Betsy Arakawa, as the sole beneficiary. Of course, Arakawa was found dead alongside Hackman and their dog. Hackman’s three children—Christopher, Elizabeth, and Leslie—were not included in the inheritance. According to reports, the decision was made in 1995, long before his death at 95.
Anderson Cooper
Anderson Cooper revealed that he won't be leaving his wealth to his son, Wyatt, whom he welcomed in 2020. “I don’t believe in passing on huge amounts of money,” the CNN anchor explained on Air Mail’s September 25 episode of their 'Morning Meeting' podcast. “I don’t know what I’ll have,” Cooper said of his fortune, which is estimated to be around US$200 million. “I’m not that interested in money, but I don’t intend to have some sort of pot of gold for my son. I’ll go with what my parents said … ‘College will be paid for, and then you gotta get on it.’”
Cooper was said to have inherited less than US$1.5 million from late mother Gloria Vanderbilt’s estate after she passed in 2019, which is only considered "a little" if you're born a member of the famed Vanderbilt family of New York.
Nigella Lawson
In 2008 Lawson suggested she would not pass her fortune on. She told My Weekly: "I am determined that my children should have no financial security. It ruins people not having to earn money."
Gordon Ramsay
In 2017 Ramsay told the Telegraph that his fortune definitely won't go to his kids. He said that he doesn't want to spoil them; they also fly economy while their parents sit in first class.
Sting
In 2014 Sting told the Mail on Sunday that, firstly, he and his wife were spending a lot and, secondly, he didn't want to leave his children trust funds that are "albatrosses around their necks."
Elton John
In 2016 the singer told the Mirror: "It's terrible to give kids a silver spoon." He suggested that his kids would always have enough money to cover their basic needs, but never to go wild.
Simon Cowell
In 2013 Cowell told Esquire: "I don't believe in passing on from one generation to another." He added that he would probably leave his money to either a kids or dogs charity.
Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis
In a 2018 episode of the podcast ‘Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard,’ Kutcher said: When the time is right, we will donate everything we have to charity.”
Andrew Lloyd Weber
In 2008 he told the Daily Mirror: "I am not in favor of children suddenly finding a lot of money coming their way because then they have no incentive to work."
George Lucas
Although Lucas has four children, a spokesperson told the Hollywood Reporter that most of the proceeds from the deal would go towards educational philanthropy projects.
Daniel Craig
Regarding his decision not to leave his children an inheritance, Craig told UK's Candis Magazine, "Isn't there an old adage that if you die a rich person, you've failed?" per Daily Mail. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Craig has an estimated net worth of US$160 million. "But I don't want to leave great sums to the next generation," the James Bond star explained. "I think inheritance is quite distasteful. My philosophy is get rid of it or give it away before you go." Craig has two daughters, one with actress Rachel Weisz, and one from his previous marriage to Fiona London.
MacKenzie Bezos
MacKenzie Bezos joined the Omidyars and signed the Giving Pledge after her divorce from Jeff, which left her with an enormous stake in Amazon.
Larry Page
Google co-founder Larry Page and his wife, unlike the other Google co-founder Sergey Brin, have also signed the Giving Pledge, thereby promising to give away the majority of their riches.
Michael Bloomberg
Michael Bloomberg is a business mogul and former mayor of New York City. He has previously stated that he wants to offload his entire fortune before he dies.
Mark Zuckerberg
When Mark Zuckerberg's first daughter was born, he posted to Facebook saying that he and his wife would be donating 99% of the baby's inheritance to charity.
Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have also started the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), which, according to Inside Philanthropy, aims to "advance human potential and promote equal opportunity."
Warren Buffett
Warren Buffett has been described by Forbes as "one of the most successful investors of all time." He plans to pledge his whole fortune to charities, leaving nothing to his three kids.
He has promised, however, that some of the money will go towards his children's charities, in recognition of the success they have achieved. He will also donate to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Bill Gates
The multi-billionaire co-founder of Microsoft, who is also a keen philanthropist, told Reddit AMA in 2013: "I definitely think leaving kids massive amounts of money is not a favor to them." He cited Warren Buffett as having imparted this wisdom.
