Hero Fiennes Tiffin Shares How He Really Feels About Being Called A 'Nepo Baby'
Hero Fiennes Tiffin has opened about what it feels like to come from a famous filmmaking dynasty – and how he feels about the “nepo baby” label.
The British actor – who is currently best known for appearing in the Together movies – is the latest actor to put his spin on the classic Sherlock Holmes character in the upcoming Guy Ritchie series Young Sherlock.
Hero is also the nephew of actors Ralph Fiennes and Joseph Fiennes, something he told Tatler he used to be embarrassed about.
“As I get older, I appreciate it more, but when I was younger, I think I just wanted to be more normal. Now I feel nothing but pride,” he said.
Hollywood is definitely a family business for the Fiennes Tiffins, with his mother, Marth Fiennes, working as a director and his father, George Tiffin, as a cinematographer.
Much has been said in the last few years about so-called “nepo babies”, a term used to describe a relative of a celebrity, whose success is often attributed to their family name.
During his latest interview, Hero acknowledged this label and agreed that his success is partly due to his connections.
“I don’t feel any sense of it getting my back up. I think it’s so fair,” he insisted. “I would never be an actor if it wasn’t for my family being in the industry and I’m extremely lucky that they were, and nepotism is the appropriate word for why I do what I do.”
He added: “If someone told me that I don’t deserve it, then I definitely would defend myself. But no, I’m so lucky to have had the opportunities.”
As a child, Hero landed his first role in Hollywood playing a young Voldemort in the sixth Harry Potter film.
He was initially hesitant to audition for the part, which would see him playing an 11-year-old version of a character brought to life by his Uncle Ralph, fearing that “real actors” who actually “practise acting” were “more likely to get the role”, but when his mum pointed out that he would get a day off from school, he was convinced.
After five auditions – and, indeed, more days off school – he eventually landed the part and admitted the experience “was nothing but fun”.
Hero claimed that one of the best things about having Oscar-nominated actors in the family is watching them play charades during the holidays.
“Now I’m older, I’ve realised how lucky we were: front row seats in the living room to watch incredible actors. But again, me and my brother would just be like, ‘Oh, this is so weird,’” he joked.
Young Sherlock, which also stars Max Irons, Joseph Fiennes and Colin Firth, is released on Prime Video on 4 March.
Read Hero Fiennes Tiffin’s full interview in the March issue of Tatler, which hits newsstands on Thursday 5 February.