Why Susan Sarandon Says She Won’t Apologize For Daughter Eva Amurri’s Upbringing Being Like A ‘Circus’

Susan Sarandon on Monarch on Fox
(Image credit: Fox)

In recent months, there’s been a lot of discussion regarding how many actors working in Hollywood right now are actually the children of other famous people. Among the nepo babies who’ve spoken to this conversation is Eva Amurri, the daughter of Susan Sarandon and Italian filmmaker Franco Amurri. After Eva dished about her “disorienting” upbringing, Sarandon was asked about the comments. And no, the Thelma & Louise actress is not going to apologize for parenting whilst being a Hollywood star. The actress also explained her reasoning for taking that stance.

The 76-year-old Oscar winner is the mother of three children, with Eva Amurri being her eldest. Following her 37-year-old daughter sharing her feelings about growing up as the child of two celebrity parents, Susan Sarandon had an honest take. In making her point, she also continued to use the "circus" metaphor:

I think normal is very overrated. I think everyone likes to go to the circus, so I don't see any problem with that as long as all the animals don't get too out of control. I think our life is unusual and they're exposed to lots of [things]. I dragged them with me whenever I worked, so they went all over the globe. I think it's one of the best things that I ever gave them, that view of their place in the world.

It was Entertainment Tonight with whom Susan Sarandon shared these views on her children’s upbringing. And while she agrees that her three kids Eva, Jack and Miles -- who are all in their thirties now -- had an unusual upbringing, she is also happy that she was able to expose them to a lot and give them experiences that few other kids get to have. The actress also said this: 

Also, they're very flexible and adjustable and I think that's a really, really important thing for kids to have that adults have. So, no apologies here. I'll talk to her therapist, but I don't apologize.

Eva Amurri made her comments when taking to TikTok early this month to open up a little bit about what it was like for her to grow up as the child of a major celebrity. Check out her post below:  

@thehappilyeva

♬ original sound - Eva Amurri

Eva Amurri was honest about people who grew up in the industry and likened the experience to “growing up in a circus,” because she’d spend periods of time getting close with other kids, whose famous parents were working on a certain project at the time. Afterwards, they'd go their separate ways, as their parents finished up work and went on to the next project. Amurri called it “really sad sometimes” yet overall quite “unique.” 

The daughter of Susan Sarandon is one of many nepo babies who have joined the larger conversation that has been going around recently. Though her comments are more about actually growing up in the industry, whereas a substantial amount of the debate has been about stars' various takes on earning or being handed down their opportunities. 

Recently, supermodel Kaia Gerber, the daughter of Cindy Crawford, added to the discussion, saying she “won’t deny” her privilege whereas daughter of Brian Williams, M3GAN’s Allison Williams straight-up called out the unfairness that comes with being a nepo baby and having access to certain resources in comparison to people with zero connections. It would seem that Eva Amurri is also well aware of her situation and the eclectic upbringing that came with it. Her youth surely had its ups and downs but, if you ask her famous mother, she's all the better for having had it.

Ea Amurri and Susan Sarandon recently worked together on the shocking Monarch series, with her daughter playing a younger version of herself. Sarandon’s latest project is Maybe I Do, also starring Richard Gere, Emma Roberts and William H. Macy, and the 2023 movie release is now playing in theaters. 

Sarah El-Mahmoud
Staff Writer

Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.