Well, well, well, looks like we’ve got ourselves a little “NePo baby” on our hands. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term, NePo baby refers to the offspring of the rich and famous who seem to be completely out of touch with reality and/or who have entered the same, or adjacent, careers of their celebrity parents, finding success largely because of the access and privilege accorded to them due to nepotism. And it seems like Sophia Coppola and her husband Thomas Mars’s daughter, Romy Mars, has just become the poster child for this particular brand of entitlement.
Mother Coppola is a film director and arguably a NePo baby herself — she is the daughter of legendary auteur filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola — and her husband Thomas is the lead singer for the successful French pop-rock band Phoenix, which makes them something of a low-key indie film-and-music industry power couple.
In case you missed it, Romy recently posted a TikTok video where she revealed that she was grounded by her parents because she had tried to use her dad’s credit card to charter a private helicopter from New York City to Maryland to visit a friend. Now, let us just say that there is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to see your friends. But there’s something undeniably cringeworthy about a NePo baby trying to use their daddy’s credit card to fly in a private helicopter. Of course, the internet has been having a field day with Romy’s TikTok video. Some have defended her, while others have slammed her for being completely out of touch with reality.
First of all, let us just say that we are fans of Sophia Coppola’s work. “Lost in Translation”? Brilliant. “The Virgin Suicides”? A masterpiece. And we’re fans of Thomas Mars’ band Phoenix — We’ve even seen them perform live at a concert at New York’s Central Park Summer Stage and crushed it — they’re a legit great live act. But when it comes to daughter Romy’s TikTok video, we can’t help but wonder if this is what Sophia had in mind when she made those films about the ennui of the wealthy.
Look, we get it. Romy is young, and she’s grown up in a world where private helicopters and exclusive credit cards are just a part of everyday life. But there’s something unsettling about a NePo baby using their privilege to flaunt their wealth on social media. It’s tacky, it’s gauche, and it’s the opposite of cool.
So, there you have it, folks. Will she learn from this experience and use her privilege for good? Only time will tell. But for now, let’s all just sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.
GLOBAL GRAPHICA 