These Successful Stars Didn't Share Any Money With Their Families. Here's Why

Imagine having so much money you could easily pay for all of your relatives to live an incredibly luxurious life. Then imagine having so much money you could easily leave behind enough cash that your loved ones would never have to work a day. And then imagine having that amount of money but choosing not to leave all of it to your relatives for one reason or another. 

You don't have to be a rich and famous celebrity to know that family dynamics can be complicated. But you probably do have to be a rich and famous celebrity to truly understand the ins and outs of what it is really like to be a rich and famous celebrity whose financial decisions are released into the public for all the world to see and judge. 

Such is the reality of this list of stars. Their talent has made them uber wealthy, and a variety of situations have made them keep their wealth to themselves, or at least away from their family members. From personal opinions to intense family drama, these stars have not and will not be giving the bulk of their money to their nearest and dearest. Here's why.

We've all heard stories of celebrities whose parents uprooted their entire lives so their child could follow their dreams and chase stardom. And many of those famous faces have gone on to support their parents financially. On the flip side, you have Quentin Tarantino, an incredibly successful screenwriter and director who, according to Celebrity Net Worth, is worth $120 million. However, he once promised to never share any of his earnings with his mother after she told him he'd never make anything of himself, and he's more or less made good on that. 

On an episode of "The Moment with Brian Koppelman" podcast, Tarantino opened up about his upbringing, noting one particular row he had with his mother. "She said, 'Oh and by the way, this little writing career?... That s**t is f**king over!”

The comment didn't sit right with the star. And with that, he vowed, "Okay, lady. When I become a successful writer, you will never see penny one from my success." Tarantino was not kidding. He added that although he did lend her some money to deal with "a jam with the IRS," he hasn't nor does he intend to share his money with his mother.

Portraying Agent 007 is a lucrative deal; notable men who've played the role have aggregated unbelievable net worths. Per Celebrity Net Worth, Pierce Brosnan is worth a cool $200 million, and Sean Connery was worth an estimated $350 million at the time of his death. Whomever they cast as James Bond next is likely to make a similar killing.

The sixth man to play the spy, Daniel Craig, is also super rich, but he has made it very clear that his children will not be seeing a dime of his fortune — which, according to Celebrity Net Worth, is at $160 million. As he told Candis, the actor finds it "distasteful" to leave an inheritance to kids, and said, "Isn't there an old adage that if you die a rich person, you failed?" He added that he will instead dole out his earnings from his acting career to worthy causes.

Though we don't exactly see Craig as a failure, we do admire his attitude. And it looks like he'll have a decent amount of cheddar to donate. For starters, the "Knives Out" movies sure seem to be lucrative gigs. According to Variety, Craig will make "north of $100 million" for his work in the second and third installments of the "Knives Out" franchise. The name's Rich. Super Rich. 

If there's one thing reality TV judge Simon Cowell is, it's honest. The British record executive has generated a net worth of $600 million forming popular boy bands and crushing the dreams of people whose closest friends lied to them and told them they could become professional singers. Sure, he's brutal, but someone has got to break the news to those people. And Cowell's got to put food on the table somehow.

Cowell will also have to break the news to his son that he's going to have to work for a living, because the notoriously tough judge is not going to be leaving funds for him. "I'm going to leave my money to somebody. A charity, probably — kids and dogs," he told Mirror about his future plans for his fortune. "I don't believe in passing on from one generation to another."

He added, "Your legacy has to be that hopefully you gave enough people an opportunity, so that they could do well, and you gave them your time, taught them what you know." Well, what Cowell knows is how to critique people, and if reality competition shows remain as popular as they are today, and if his son inherits his eye for talent (since he's not inheriting any of his money), perhaps he can someday find a job in show business.

Actor Joan Crawford did not leave her children money, but she did leave them drama. One of the greatest actors to ever live, the Academy Award winner had a $2 million fortune when she died in 1977. She was survived by four children, only two of whom were recipients of her money, per DuPont & Blumenstiel.

In her will, the silver screen legend said, "It is my intention to make no provision herein for my son Christopher or my daughter Christina for reasons which are well known to them." How's that for your mother's final thoughts? Understandably, the children were unhappy with the decision and contested the will in court, ultimately getting $27,500 each. Joan's other children, Cynthia and Kathy Crawford, were each left $77,500, the latter of whom also pulled in over $400,000 when she auctioned off her mother's Oscar some years later.

Although we'll never know Joan Crawford's reasons for only leaving money to two of her children, we did get perspective into one of their lives when Christina Crawford published her famous memoir "Mommie Dearest," which detailed the toxic nature of the fractured relationship she had with her mother. As Christina told The Guardian, she believed they were on relatively good terms before Joan died, but the message in the will suggested otherwise. So, Christina "went straight to her desk" and penned the book that would eventually be turned into a movie starring Faye Dunaway. 

Mila Kunis does not share money with her parents, and according to Celebrity Net Worth, she's got lots to share — $75 million, to be exact.  But it's not for the reason you might think. The actor, originally from the Ukraine, immigrated to the United States as a child, and her parents gave all they could so their daughter could get a foot in the door of the entertainment industry. And once Kunis found success, her parents refused to take any of her earnings.

In a 2016 interview with Howard Stern, the "That '70s Show" star opened up about her family's economic situation when she was still a child actor. "We were really poor and I had money," Kunis recalled. But when her career in show business started to take off, her parents refused to rely on her income. "Your parents, which I really do applaud, never took a dime from you," Stern said. And it sounds like not much has changed all these years later. Kunis shared that they still insist on buying her dinner, and have always seen her money as hers, not the family's.

As an adult, Kunis and husband Ashton Kutcher don't intend on passing down their money to their two children. As Kutcher said to Dax Shepard on "Armchair Expert," "I'm not setting up a trust for them. We'll end up giving our money away to charity and to various things."

Rockstar Sting is beyond financially comfortable thanks to a long career in music. Since the 1970s, the musician has regaled fans across the world with his talent, and he's got quite the bank account to show for it. According to Celebrity Net Worth, he's amassed $550 million. 

Sting has six children, and if any of them want to enjoy a luxurious life, they're not going to do it on his dime. "I certainly don't want to leave them trust funds that are albatrosses around their necks. They have to work. ... All my kids know that and they rarely ask me for anything, which I really respect and appreciate," he told the Daily Mail in 2014. "Obviously, if they were in trouble I would help them, but I've never really had to do that. They have the work ethic that makes them want to succeed on their own merit."

Though he doesn't take fiscal responsibility for his adult children, at the time of the interview, he was financially responsible for about 100 employees. The star also noted that even if he wanted to leave his children money, he's not sure there would be much left as he is spending what he has. Can't blame him for enjoying the fruits of his labor.

Plenty of stars have verbally committed to bequeath their fortunes to people who don't share their DNA, but one actor actually went through with it. Kirk Douglas, one of the most prolific actors of Hollywood's Golden Age, led a true rag-to-riches story. He lived in poverty as a child, and when he died on February 5, 2020, he had a $60 million fortune to his name.

And with that fortune, he was generous while still alive and generous in death, giving nearly all of it to the Douglas Foundation, an organization dedicated "to helping those who might not otherwise be able to help themselves."

Kirk Douglas didn't leave a cent to his son Michael Douglas, according to the Mirror — presumably because he felt that his superstar son could fend for himself. And unless Michael is completely inept at money management, or goes on a spending spree like Nicolas Cage, we think that with his $350 million fortune, the "Wall Street" actor will be more than fine without any sort of inheritance. 

Keeping the theme of celebrities refusing to leave money to their children is longtime performer Marie Osmond. After learning that Kirk Douglas had donated his money instead of leaving it to his progeny, the variety show icon revealed she had a similar plan. Per CNN, she shared on an episode of "The Talk" that her nest egg won't be going to her kids when she dies. "My husband and I decided that you do a great disservice to your children to just hand them a fortune because you take away the one most important gift you can give your children, and that's the ability to work," she said.

Marie Osmond has a hefty chunk of change to her name. After a decades-long career singing and acting with her brother Donny Osmond, the star has racked up an estimated $20 million net worth, according to Celebrity Net Worth. So, where will that cash go? As she told her "The Talk" co-stars, she wants it all to go to the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, a nonprofit she cofounded in the early '80s.

James Brown was one of the most influential musicians to ever live, defining a genre and inspiring countless musicians. With his immense talent came an immense fortune, one that he insisted on a leaving to charity. According to the AP, Brown's assets were "estimated to be worth anything from $5 million to more than $100 million" when he died in 2006. His former partner, children, and grandchildren saw very little of it. According to The New York Times, he "left the bulk of his assets to a trust to provide scholarships to poor children in South Carolina and Georgia."

Per The New York Times, his financial decisions were called into question by his family, and the dispute was dragged out. His nearest and dearest fought for more money from the estate than they were initially awarded when he died, as their original acquisitions were "costumes and personal effects" and money "to underwrite scholarships for his grandchildren." The complicated litigation went on for years, as there were multiple lawsuits brought by multiple people, all of whom were seeking money or rights to his property. In 2021, a settlement was finally reached. The details were not shared publicly. 

Andrew Lloyd Webber earned a lot of money composing works like "Cats," "Phantom of the Opera," "Evita," and "Jesus Christ Superstar." Webber has indelibly burnt scores into the brains of musical theater geeks and casual musical theatergoers alike. His work is more or less inescapable, he's obviously a legend of the Great White Way, and, like we said before, he's made heaps and heaps of cash over the course of his career: According to Celebrity Net Worth, he's worth $1.2 billion.

His kids, however, will not be given all of his riches. "I am not in favor of children suddenly finding a lot of money coming their way because they have no incentive to work," he said to the Daily Mail of his perspective on generational wealth. But according to Webber, his children seem to have a chill take on their dad's perspective. "They aren't bothered," he said. "They don't think that way. It is about having a work ethic — I don't believe in inherited money at all." We're glad his children have such a good outlook on it, because it could certainly be difficult not to be just a little bitter.

Gordon Ramsay is one of the richest chefs in the world, with Celebrity Net Worth estimating a $220 million fortune to his name. He is known for his hot temper and brutally honest critiques, both of which have made him very entertaining to watch on his television show "Hell's Kitchen." And yes, his larger-than-life personality has helped make him very, very rich.

And as for those riches? Well, it sounds like they won't be passed on to his children. As he told the Telegraph, "It's definitely not going to them, and that's not in a mean way; it's to not spoil them." So far, his kids seem to be doing just fine as they pave their own paths. As Gordon shared on a January 2021 episode of "The Tonight Show," "Our eldest daughter is working in PR. Holly, our middle daughter, is doing fashion. Tilly's taking a gap year. Jack has become a Royal Marine." (It is worth noting that Tilly Ramsay has a TV career of her own that includes presenting a cooking series called "Matilda and the Ramsay Bunch.") Gordon joked that Oscar Ramsay, the baby of the family, is "his last hope of getting anyone into the industry." Only time will tell if it's whisk-ful thinking.