With Mother’s Day around the corner, what better way to celebrate than by spotlighting some of Hollywood’s most iconic mother-daughter acting duos? While the saying ‘like mother, like daughter’ rings true for these talented actors, what sets them apart is how each has been inspired by their parent’s success and gone on to boldly carve out their own path in the entertainment industry.
From Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli to Goldie Hawn and Kate Hudson, and Andie MacDowell and Margaret Qualley, we’re honouring generations of actors who have built enduring legacies, whether that’s as scream queens, rom-com royalty or Hollywood’s Golden Girls. These are the most powerful mother-daughter duos in film and TV – pairs who have lit up our screens in Hollywood’s Golden Age, big-budget blockbusters, HBO series and cult classics. Some of these famous actors have even shared the screen with their offspring, bringing their intimate bonds to life in unforgettable ways. This is the ultimate list of real-life mother-daughter pairs in Hollywood.
Judy Garland-Liza Minnelli
When it comes to famous mother-daughter actors, none are more legendary than Judy Garland and her daughter, Liza Minnelli. Garland remains one of the greatest movie stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age, and Minnelli, a larger-than-life performer and Broadway icon. Garland’s portrayal of the ruby-slippered Dorothy in The Wizard Oz (1939) and her timeless rendition of ‘Over The Rainbow’ are forever immortalised in cinematic history. Garland continued to win over audiences in some of Hollywood’s greatest musicals, with her leading roles in Meet Me In St Louis (1944) – directed by the man who would father Liza, Vincente Minnelli – and A Star is Born (1954).
During a time when most musical stars were primarily singers or dancers, Garland distinguished herself as a triple threat, earning recognition for her acting talents. She helped pioneer the modern musical, where emotive song performances became an integral force driving the film’s narrative. Minnelli, who shares her mother’s powerhouse vocals, was always destined for stardom. She delivered a compelling performance with great emotional range in Bob Fosse’s Cabaret (1972), for which she won the Best Actress Oscar. Minnelli’s subsequent roles in New York, New York (1977) and Arthur (1981) further secured her legacy. As a toddler, Minnelli briefly featured in In the Good Old Summertime (1949) alongside her mother, and later made guest appearances on The Judy Garland Show (1963-1964). Garland and Minnelli remain one of Hollywood’s greatest acting duos of all time.
Goldie Hawn-Kate Hudson
Roll out the red carpet for one of the most-loved mother-daughter duos: Goldie Hawn and Kate Hudson. Hawn’s career in Hollywood spans over five decades, and she starred in some of the most iconic comedies of the Eighties and Nineties. Her performances in Private Benjamin (1980), Overboard (1987) and Death Becomes Her (1992) prove Hawn isn’t just a first-class actor, but one with impressive range. Hudson, in turn, landed her career-defining role at 20, starring in Cameron Crowe’s Almost Famous (2000) and receiving an Oscar nomination for her performance. She went on to become a mainstay of 2000s rom-coms, most notably deliberately repelling a bewildered Matthew McConaughey in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003). Her varied work in everything from The Killer Inside Me (2010) to Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022) proves the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. While Hawn and Hudson are yet to share the screen in a feature film, we can only hope that this famous mother-daughter pair will join forces soon.
Debbie Reynolds-Carrie Fisher-Billie Lourd
Billie Lourd comes from a long lineage of Hollywood greats. Her grandmother, Debbie Reynolds, was the celebrated star of Singin’ in the Rain (1952), while her mother, Carrie Fisher, captivated audiences as Princess Leia in the Star Wars saga (1977-2019). While Reynolds and Fisher’s relationship had its challenges, with Fisher desiring a more conventional upbringing in her earlier years, over time, their bond grew stronger and they became incredibly close. In December 2016, Reynolds and Fisher tragically passed away within a day of each other. Lourd shared a similarly special connection with her mother. The two co-starred in Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens (2015), marking Lourd’s film debut. She went on to portray a key member of the Resistance in The Last Jedi (2017) and The Rise of Skywalker (2019), sharing the screen with her mother, who returned to her role as Princess Leia. Lourd now continues her family’s acting dynasty, carrying the torch for the third generation.
Uma Thurman-Maya Hawke
Uma Thurman’s screenwork has dominated pop culture. The Hollywood star has appeared in three celebrated Quentin Tarantino films, securing her breakthrough role in Pulp Fiction (1994) before leading Kill Bill: Volume 1 and 2 (2003-2004). Film lovers might also recognise Thurman as the villainous, brilliantly red-haired Poison Ivy in Joel Schumacher’s Batman and Robin (1997). Her daughter Maya Hawke is making her own mark in the industry. She rose to stardom playing Jo March in BBC’s miniseries Little Women (2017), later flexing her acting chops in Netflix’s Stranger Things (2019-2025). She joined the cast in season three as Hawkins High School’s irreverent new student in town, quickly becoming a fan favourite. Like her mother before her, Hawke collaborated with Tarantino on Once Upon A Time In Hollywood (2019), playing a Manson-following flower child. Thurman and Hawke both co-starred in Nicol Paone’s black comedy The Kill Room (2023), where Thurman plays a dodgy art dealer and Hawke lands a supporting role. They are undoubtedly one of the most iconic on-screen duos.
Andie MacDowell-Margaret Qualley
2024 was a milestone year for Margaret Qualley, with standout roles in The Substance, Kinds of Kindness and Drive-Away Dolls. Most notably, her performance in The Substance, opposite Demi Moore, earned her critical acclaim and award nominations, further solidifying Qualley’s status as a rising star. Her mother, Andie MacDowell, is best known for the Nineties rom-coms Groundhog Day (1993) and Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994). She has joked about experiencing reverse nepotism and earning cool-mum status thanks to her daughter’s success. The pair’s special bond shines through in Maid (2021), a Netflix drama based on Stephanie Land’s memoir, where they star side by side. Qualley, who portrays abused single mother Alex on the show, suggested that her real-life mum play Alex’s free-spirited and unpredictable mother. Qualley gushed about the experience, saying, ‘I got to work with somebody that I’ve grown up admiring since the fricking get-go – my very first idol.’
Tippi Hedren-Melanie Griffith-Dakota Johnson
Dakota Johnson was born into Hollywood royalty. Her grandmother, Tippi Hedren, is renowned for her legendary roles in Alfred Hitchcock classics The Birds (1963) and Marnie (1964). Meanwhile, her mother, Melanie Griffith, broke out with her career-defining role in Working Girl (1988) – an office-based romance, which was a major box-office success and earned Griffith an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. She delivered other standout performances in Close to Eden (1991) and Lolita (1997). The mother-daughter acting duo even shared the screen in the infamous big-cat movie Roar (1981). Despite growing up in the shadow of a famous family, Johnson has carved out her own path. After making her acting debut alongside her mum in Crazy in Alabama (1999), Johnson rose to fame playing a billionaire’s sexual subordinate in the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise (2015-2018). Since then, she has been a familiar face on the arthouse circuit, appearing in Luca Guadagnino’s Suspiria (2018) and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s The Lost Daughter (2021).
Zoë Kravitz-Lisa Bonet
Ready for a celebrity mother-daughter duo who epitomises cool? Enter Lisa Bonet and her daughter, Zoë Kravitz. Bonet is the Nineties cultural icon best known for her role as the most free-spirited Huxtable child on The Cosby Show (1984–1992). Her daughter, Kravitz, has paved her own way, portraying very different, yet equally strong-willed, complex and enigmatic characters like a suburban mother on Big Little Lies (2017–2019) and Catwoman in The Batman (2022). But Kravitz truly shines in her leading role in Hulu’s High Fidelity (2020), a gender-swapped remake of Stephen Frears’ 2000 film, in which Bonet portrayed one of John Cusack’s love interests. Last year, Kravitz made her directorial debut with the twisty thriller Blink Twice (2024), starring Channing Tatum and Naomi Ackie, which quickly gained a cult following. This mother and daughter share more than just family ties: they’re fearless trailblazers carving out their own legacy in Hollywood.
Blythe Danner-Gwyneth Paltrow
Now for one of the most memorable mother-daughter duos who have shared the screen twice. Blythe Danner and her daughter Gwyneth Paltrow prove talent runs in the family. Their first collaboration came in the TV miniseries Cruel Doubt (1992), where Paltrow played the daughter of Danner’s character, effortlessly bringing their real-life bond to the screen. Over a decade later, they reunited for Sylvia (2003), a biopic about the troubled poet Sylvia Plath, where Paltrow plays the lead role and Danner portrays her mother. Danner has earned acclaim in projects like Butterflies Are Free (1972), Meet the Parents (2001) and I’ll See You In My Dreams (2015), while Paltrow built her own successful career, winning an Oscar for her performance in Shakespeare in Love (1998). Paltrow went on to appear in classics The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) and Wes Anderson’s The Royal Tenenbaums (2001). Together, they make one of the best on-screen mother-daughter duos.
Thandiwe Newton-Nico Parker
Not many actors’ first role is starring alongside Colin Farrell and Danny DeVito in Tim Burton’s live-action Dumbo (2019). But Nico Parker is no ordinary actor. The daughter of Thandiwe Newton earned her stripes with impressive performances in Dumbo, HBO’s The Last of Us (2023) and the offbeat indie flick Suncoast (2024), where she held her own against Hollywood powerhouses Laura Linney and Woody Harrelson. Her mother, Newton, is best known for her Emmy-winning role as saloon madam Maeve in HBO’s Westworld (2016-2022). Whether you’re watching Newton in Crash (2004), Mission: Impossible II (2000) or The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), she commands the screen. Catch the celebrity mother-daughter duo co-starring in Reminiscence (2021), a noirish psychological thriller full of twists and turns.
Leslie Mann-Iris and Maude Apatow
One of Hollywood’s most famous acting families has teamed up multiple times in film and TV comedies. As children, Iris and Maude Apatow played their real-life mother Leslie Mann’s on-screen daughters in Knocked Up (2007) and This Is 40 (2012). Both of these romantic comedies were directed by their father, and Mann’s husband, Judd Apatow, making them truly a family affair. Maude initially gained prominence as frustrated drama kid Lexi Howard on HBO’s Euphoria (2019–), and was cast as Pete Davidson’s younger sister in The King of Staten Island (2020). Iris starred alongside her mum in The Bubble (2022), and had a notable role as a bratty child star in the Netflix series Love (2016-2018). The Mann-Apatows are certainly a mother-daughter powerhouse family.
Janet Leigh-Jamie Lee Curtis
Janet Leigh and Jamie Lee Curtis share a remarkable legacy in the film world, with their careers intersecting in fascinating ways. Eighteen years after Leigh’s legendary performance in Psycho (1960), her daughter Jamie Lee Curtis solidified her place in horror history with her iconic role as Laurie Strode in Halloween (1978). Both scream queens co-starred in The Fog (1980) and Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998). Beyond their shared projects, Curtis has spoken about how her late mother’s creativity, humility and altruistic nature continues to inspire her today.
Ingrid Bergman-Isabella Rossellini
Ingrid Bergman and Isabella Rossellini are one of Hollywood's most accomplished mother-daughter duos. Ingrid Bergman, a three-time Academy Award winner, rose to fame with unforgettable roles in classics like Casablanca (1942) and The Bells of St. Mary’s (1945). Isabella Rossellini, who followed in her mother’s footsteps, is known for her breakthrough performance as Dorothy Vallens in David Lynch’s cult classic Blue Velvet (1986). Her haunting performance as a nightclub singer trapped in an abusive relationship marked her transition from a supermodel to an actor to be reckoned with. Rossellini starred in the career-defining comedy Death Becomes Her (1992), and most recently garnered an Oscar nomination for her role in Edward Berger’s Vatican thriller Conclave (2024). Together, Bergman and Rossellini represent one of the most inspiring mother-daughter duos to ever grace the screen, pushing the boundaries for women in cinema across two generations.
Diane Ladd-Laura Dern
At the 64th Oscars, Diane Ladd and Laura Dern made history as the first mother-daughter duo to receive acting nominations for their work on the same film, Martha Coolidge’s Great Depression-era drama Rambling Rose (1991). Both actors deliver emotional performances, with their on-screen chemistry being a testament to the deep bond they share. Just a year prior, the Hollywood pair had co-starred together in Wild at Heart (1990), where Dern joined forces with Lynch again, after starring in Blue Velvet (1986). Ladd and Dern’s collaborations continued with the HBO series Enlightened (2011–2013), which Dern co-created and starred in, with Ladd playing her mother. The enduring partnership between Ladd and Dern remains one of Hollywood’s most treasured.
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