These stars made shocking discoveries about their parents, siblings and even children — while one learned later in life his mother had been murdered.
Every family has a secret or two that they hope no one discovers — and sometimes these secrets are kept under wraps for so long that many family members don’t even know! That’s true for a few celebrities who went years without knowing about major family drama. For some of these stars, it wasn’t until they were well into adulthood that they uncovered their shocking family secrets. From secret siblings to murder mysteries, these celebs were in for a surprise when they learned of their family’s scandal.
Read on to discover these shocking secrets…
1. Kerry Washington
In 2018, Kerry Washington learned that the man who raised her was not her biological father. Ahead of an appearance on ancestry show Finding Your Roots, Kerry’s parents told her that she had actually been conceived through an anonymous sperm donor after they struggled with fertility issues. Before the show, they had never planned to tell her. Looking back, Kerry says the news “turned my world upside down.”
“When I got this information, I was like, ‘Oh. I now know my story,'” Kerry told People, adding that she had always felt that something was being kept from her. “I didn’t know what my story was, but I was playing the supporting character in their story.”
“I think that dissonance of like, ‘Somebody is not telling me something about my body’ made me feel like there was something in my body I had to fix,” she added, noting that she struggled with anxiety, self-esteem issues, and an eating disorder for years — which she believes may have been rooted in her parents’ secret.
2. Jack Nicholson
It wasn’t until Jack Nicholson was 37 that he learned that the woman who raised him, Ethel May, was actually his grandmother and not his biological mother. It turns out that the woman who Jack believed was his sister, June, was actually his mother. June had gotten pregnant as a teenager by a man named Don, who was married. In order to avoid bringing unwanted attention to the family, Jack’s grandmother raised him as her own.
Jack didn’t find out until well into adulthood when the secret was uncovered by Time magazine. Unfortunately, both June and Ethel May had passed away by the time he learned the truth.
“I was very impressed by their ability to keep the secret, if nothing else,” he later told Rolling Stone.
3. Liv Tyler
When Liv Tyler was a little girl, her mother Bebe Buell told her that her father was musician Todd Rundgren. It wasn’t until she was 8-years-old that she met Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler — and began to have suspicions that he was actually her father, especially after meeting his daughter Mia who looked just like her.
“I didn’t know who Aerosmith was. And my mom said, ‘Come here I want to introduce you to someone,’ and I was watching Todd play and I was like, ‘Ugh, I don’t wanna come!’ And she pointed to this guy standing at the bar and I was like, ‘Is that Mick Jagger’s son?’ And he bought me a Shirley Temple,” Liv told Wonderland.
She continued, “I fell madly in love with him. I had no idea who he was. After we met, he, Steven, started calling and we’d go see him. He was just out of rehab, so part of going through those steps is making amends by reaching out to my mom after years of being a drug addict and not ever being there.”
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4. Jennette McCurdy
In her memoir, Jennette McCurdy revealed that after her mom’s passing, she learned that the man who raised her, Mark, was not her biological father. Mark finally told Jennette the truth after being encouraged by his girlfriend. It turns out that her real father was a musician named Andrew, who had known about her existence for years but was prevented from seeing her due to a custody battle.
“This was maybe a year and a half after my mom died. My, who I thought was my father, told me that he was not actually my biological father,” Jennette said on The Drew Barrymore Show, adding, “I remember feeling like I got the wind knocked out of me. My mouth was really dry and I think I hugged him.”
Jennette noted that she had never truly had a relationship with the man who raised her and over time, she let their connection fade. She did end up meeting her biological father and after spending time with him over the course of several months, she said things “felt a little strange” and she seemingly stopped pursuing the relationship.
5. Dylan McDermott
When Dylan McDermott was just 5-years-old, his mother Diane was shot and killed while he stood outside their apartment door. Although her death was originally ruled a suicide, the case was reopened over four decades later when Dylan came to the police looking for answers. Soon after, it was discovered that Diane had actually been murdered by her boyfriend John Sponza.
As for why Dylan went to the police years later, police superintendent Michael Gugliotti told the Republican-American newspaper that Dylan said, “‘In order for me to survive and to get where I am today, I needed to bury that moment in my life deep within myself.’ He said it wasn’t until recently ‘that I’ve come to the point in my life where I’m able to begin to process all of this.'”
6. Oprah Winfrey
In 2011, Oprah Winfrey learned that she had a secret half-sister named Patricia Lee. She had been given up for adoption in 1963 when Oprah was nine-years-old and living with her father. Patricia was the first person to find out about her relation to the famed talk show host but kept the news private for several years before reaching out to Oprah. After confirming things through a DNA test, Oprah was finally told and they reunited on Thanksgiving day.
“What’s so extraordinary about Patricia…is that [she’s] known this secret since 2007…She never once thought to go to the press,” Oprah said on her show. “I didn’t know if it was true or not true, that you are my sister…[but] I had to meet you because I wanted to meet someone who had that kind of character.”
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7. Tim McGraw
For much of Tim McGraw’s childhood, he was raised by his stepfather Horace Smith. But when he was 11, he was snooping in his mother’s closet for Christmas presents and found his birth certificate. He discovered that his father was actually MLB pitcher Tug McGraw.
“I called my mom at work, and of course, she came immediately home. We drove around for a long time, and she explained everything to me…Mom got hold of him and said that I had found out and wanted to meet him. Of course, I did in Houston, Texas. I think he gave up a grand slam that night,” he said on Larry King Live.
Tim continued, “It was awkward. I was 11-years-old. I was a kid. I think it was more traumatic for everybody around me than it was for me. I think it probably became a little more traumatic for me as I got a little older.”
8. Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood had a secret daughter that he didn’t know about for years. Prior to getting married to his first wife, Clint had a fling that resulted in a pregnancy. He was not told about the baby and the little girl named Laurie was eventually put up for adoption.
It was reportedly decades before Clint learned about Laurie. Although he didn’t publicly share the news about reconnecting with his daughter, she has since accompanied him to many events, like the 2004 Oscars.
9. Keyshia Cole
When Keyshia Cole was just an infant, she was adopted by close friends of her birth mother. While she knew she was adopted, she never knew the identity of her biological father. It wasn’t until she was 34 that she learned her dad was famous boxing coach Virgil Hunter. She later opened up about the situation on Instagram.
“While in NYC I was overwhelmed with emotion, I explained while on stage at the Barclays, the situation I was faced with at that moment, which was, my father and I finding our way to each other, After 34 years. I knew at that time, a paternity test was in place, well the results are in, and this is my father!!” she wrote.
Keyshia continued, “His name is Virgil Hunter, and at this present time, I’m in Oakland spending time, getting to kno him! The story behind this is beyond me!!! God has his hands all in this!!! I’m so excited, So excited with taking this a day at a time!!!”
10. Gavin Rossdale
When Daisy Lowe was growing up, she was under the impression that her father was her mother Pearl Lowe’s ex Bronner Handwerger. She eventually began to question things when neither of her parents shared her O-type blood. After a paternity test, it was discovered that Daisy’s actual dad was her godfather Gavin Rossdale.
“The funny thing was, the moment that I found out that he could be my dad, I was like, ‘Oh this makes perfect sense.’ We think in the same way and we have so many quite frightening similarities. The guy who I thought was my dad, I didn’t really know, and when I met him I came home and I said to my mum, ‘I feel no connection with this man,'” Daisy said on the That Gaby Roslin podcast.
