10 celebrities who shortchanged their children or left them without an inheritance at all (22 photos)

The world is arranged in such a way that parents try to take care of the well-being of their children and leave them some assets as an inheritance - money, valuables, real estate.





Which is logical - to whom, if not to children? But there are exceptions. And in the world of the rich and famous. Perhaps the stars are pursuing good intentions, to teach their offspring, who grew up in luxury, to independently earn money for bread and butter and caviar. Or the relationship simply turned out to be far from ideal. There are other reasons.

1. Daniel Craig



James Bond star Daniel Craig says he won't leave his children a significant inheritance because he finds the practice "disgusting."

When it comes to money, the star says he'd rather "get rid of it or give it away before I go."





Craig has a young daughter and a stepson - the son of his wife, Oscar winner Rachel Weisz, and an adult daughter Ella from his ex-wife, actress Fiona Loudon.

Craig said that he does not intend to leave his fortune to his children, preferring to give it away, citing the example of industrialist Andrew Carnegie. The media calculated that the actor's fortune, which will not go to his children, today amounts to more than $160 million.

2. Sean Connery



After the death of the iconic James Bond actor Sean Connery in 2020, the public eagerly awaited the release of his will to find out whether his son was included in the heirs to his $350 million estate. Despite this, Connery repeatedly stated during his lifetime that he would disinherit his son, wanting to teach him a valuable lesson in hard work and self-reliance.



In 2007, the actor publicly expressed his desire for his 45-year-old son to become independent and not depend on his father's financial support. However, Jason Connery, the now 62-year-old Connery's only son, is doing well: after his success as an actor, he became a director and producer and is working to train and support a new generation of filmmakers.

3. Philip Seymour Hoffman



The will of Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, who passed away in 2014, listed only one beneficiary of his entire $35 million fortune: his girlfriend and costume designer Marianne O'Donnell.



The couple had three children together, but the actor did not include them in his inheritance plans. His accountant said Hoffman didn't want his heirs to feel like they were "trust fund kids."

4. Joan Crawford



Hollywood icon Joan Crawford (real name Lucille Faye LeSure) was the mother of two adopted children, Christopher and Christina, before giving birth to twin girls of her own.



After her death in 1977, it was discovered that her older children were left without an inheritance, while her entire fortune of $20 million went to her younger brothers and twin daughters. This led to litigation, and eventually the older adopted children restored justice and received their share.

5. Marlon Brando



The famous actor had 11 children with whom he could have shared his fortune of 100 million dollars. However, during his lifetime, he decided to disinherit two: his adopted daughter Petra, whom he raised from the age of 14, and the son of his deceased daughter Cheyenne.



The official reason for this decision was never revealed. However, there is speculation that the actor may have excluded Petra because her mother sued him for financial compensation. The reason why the actor decided to disinherit his grandson remains unknown.

6. Tony Curtis



A year after the death of the famous actor (Tony's real name is Bernard Schwartz), The Tony Curtis Estate held an auction to sell memorabilia and other items belonging to the actor. According to Forbes, the heirs raised more than $1 million during the online auction, which went to the actor's widow and fifth wife, Jill Vandenberg Curtis, with some of the proceeds going to the couple's charity.



At the same time, Curtis's five children, including actress Jamie Lee Curtis, received nothing from the sale. Forbes reported that the actor rewrote his will and trust just a few months before his death, cutting all of his children out of it. Curtis listed all of his children by name, saying he wanted to intentionally disinherit them. No reason was given in the will.

His daughter Allegra later told Inside Edition that she and her siblings were "blindsided" by his decision, adding that being disinherited from their father's estimated $60 million inheritance was "very hurtful." She also said her father was under duress when he changed his plans for the estate.

7. Jackie Chan



Jackie Chan is, thankfully, alive and well and looking great at 70, but he has publicly announced his intention to disinherit his estimated $400 million fortune from his only son, Jaycee, upon his death.

According to the LA Times, Chan said in 2011 that half of his then $130 million fortune would go to charity, and the other half would not go to Jaycee.



Chan's son, now 42, has had a string of drug-related court troubles. In 2014, Jaycee was arrested in China for marijuana possession, prompting Chan, who was appointed China's anti-drug ambassador in 2009, to publicly apologize for his son's behavior.

But after he served six months in jail following his arrest, it was reported that father and son had reconciled:

I haven't seen him for too long. I feel like he's matured in that time. We didn't talk about misfortunes. It was just family chatter. We talked all night and didn't sleep.

8. Sting



Like Chan, Sting (Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner) decided the fate of his children when it came to their inheritance before his death.

In 2014, the musician told the English newspaper Mail on Sunday that he did not plan to leave any trust funds to his offspring.



After explaining that most of his $400 million in wealth has already been spent, the former Police frontman also said he didn't want the inheritance to be "an albatross around their neck":

Obviously, if they were in trouble, I'd help them out. But I've never had to. They have a work ethic that makes them succeed on their own.

9. George Lucas



After selling the Star Wars franchise to Disney for $4.5 billion in 2012, George Lucas, a father of four, said the proceeds would go toward improving education.



These words echo his 2012 Giving Pledge pledge to give away the majority of his wealth, which currently stands at about $5.5 billion:

As long as I have the means at my disposal, I will strive to raise the bar for future generations of students of all ages.

10. Bill Gates



In a Reddit "Ask Me Anything" chat with fans, the Microsoft founder said he believes leaving his vast fortune, estimated at more than $124 billion, to his three children would be a mistake.



He plans to leave most of his fortune to charity, including his own Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.



Do you think the rich and famous have taken the right stance? Do you want to leave your money to your children, or do you have other plans for your inheritance?