By: Jane Wilde and Sam Gruetter

Humor Editor and Editor-in-Chief

The spot for 2026’s “it girl” needs filling, and we have the perfect candidate. Romy Mars, daughter of Hollywood moguls Sofia Coppola and Thomas Mars, has made her big break in both social media and music. taking full advantage of her status as a nepo-baby, a person who gains opportunities through family connections. 

Mars’s first exposure to the limelight was during 2020, when she posted a video of herself making vodka pasta while discussing how she was grounded for calling a helicopter to fly her friend into New York. The video went viral immediately, leading several viewers to express admiration for both her blunt attitude and lavish lifestyle. She later appeared on Hulu’s The English Teacher as a featured character; since then, she’s branched out into a very successful music career, amounting to over 8 million streams on Spotify and 700,000 followers on TikTok. Paired alongside her quintessential “it girl” style, her fashion sense is reminiscent of icons such as Carrie Bradshaw or Princess Diana: unique ,authentic, cool girl chic. 

In addition to being the daughter of filmmaker Sofia Coppola and frontman of Phoenix, Thomas Mars, Romy’s nepotism goes back five generations, as she’s a relative of Nicolas Cage and granddaughter of Francis Ford Coppola, director of The Godfather. This deeply rooted family legacy brings Mars inevitable hate, but also a lot of praise for her humility and transparency. 

 Most nepo babies are at fault when it comes to acknowledging their privilege. However, Mars adds a refreshing perspective to the mix in her hit song A-lister. Mars sings, “I love this golden sunny west coast scenery plastic world,” and “one day I’ll be bored with everything that I’ve got. Get out of fancy clothes…just to feel something real.” Mars is extremely straightforward about her multitude of Hollywood connections, posting alongside actor Jacob Elordi and singer Charli XCX, making no attempt to undermine her glaring privilege, a refreshing stance after many nepo babies attempt to claim their relationships do not influence their own fame. 

Mars’s humble personality can be attributed to her mother’s parenting style. Coppola explained to The Guardian why she chooses to keep her daughter grounded: “I never saw the point of taking little kids to movie premieres and stuff. I just want them to have a childhood, I don’t want them ever to be jaded.” Although Mars is not quiet about her wealth, her overtness is almost humble in itself. 

In an environment like Hollywood, where transparency is rare, Mars offers a new, authentic perspective on what it means to be a ‘nepobaby’. With careers in acting, singing, and advertising already in fruition, we have no doubt that Mars is a rising 21st-century icon.

(Sources: People, Style, The Guardian)