Kate Hudson says parents taught her to ‘earn’ everything despite privilege

Kate Hudson is reflecting on growing up with Hollywood privilege and how her parents, Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, made sure she never felt entitled to it.

The 46-year-old actress’s biological father is musician Bill Hudson, 76, who was married to her mother Goldie Hawn, 80, from 1976 to 1982. Bill and Hawn also share son Oliver, 49. Hudson and Oliver were primarily raised by Hawn and her partner of 43 years, Russell, 74, whom the actress has publicly described as her father figure.

During a recent appearance on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast, Hudson recalled her grounded upbringing by Hawn and Russell and how they were “adamant” that she would have to earn every opportunity on her own.

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“I’m being really honest with you, I grew up in L.A. where I saw kids coast by with parents who gave them everything,” she said. “And I had the opposite parents.”

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“I think maybe because we grew up — they moved us to Colorado when we were really young,” Hudson continued. “And that being said, it wasn’t like we were in, you know, the Colorado backcountry. We were right outside of Aspen, Colorado.”  

“We were clearly privileged kids,” she admitted. “But I do think that my parents were so adamant about how none of it belonged to us, like that we didn’t earn it, that in order to get a life like the one we were living, we had to earn it ourselves. That it would never be available to us unless we had the same kind of work ethic.”

After spending much of her early childhood and adolescence in Colorado, Hudson recalled that she had an eye-opening experience when she returned to L.A., where she attended the exclusive Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences in Santa Monica.

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Oliver and Hudson are the children of Goldie Hawn and her ex-husband, Bill Hudson but they were raised primarily by their mother and her partner of over 40 years, Kurt Russell.  (Vince Bucci)

“I think in school, when you grow up in an L.A. private school environment, you really do look around, and you’re like, ‘Wow,’” she said. “I was very aware of the privilege just based on how adamant my parents were, right?'”

The “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” star recalled being struck by the contrast between her parents’ approach and the lavish gifts some of her classmates received.

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“You grow up, and you see kids get cars that you’re like, whoa. We were the kids — and we’re privileged — and we’re like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe their parents bought them a new car,'” she remembered. “My parents just raised us the opposite, like how they were raised.”

Hudson said that she was determined “never to rely” on her parents when she started her acting career. (Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)

Hudson and Oliver both eventually followed in their parents’ footsteps and pursued acting careers. However, Hudson said she internalized her parents’ message early on and was determined to forge her own path in Hollywood.

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“For me, I really took that to heart. I was like, ‘No, I can’t — I will never rely on my parents,'” she remembered thinking at the time. “And that was my big thing. I will never take a job because of them. I won’t. I don’t want anybody knowing they’re my parents. When I first started, I was so happy my last name was Hudson. It was really, really important to me.”

Hudson said that she was raised “the opposite” of her peers in L.A.  (Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)

Hudson explained that the work ethic that her parents instilled in her was intense, but it fueled her drive to succeed on her own terms and stay focused on her craft.

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“it was almost like it was beat into us that if you really want to do this, if you really want to act, you have to put in the discipline,” she said. “And I loved it and wanted to do it so much that I was just very, very, very disciplined, which when you’re young, I don’t think kids really like that. You’re not considered the cool one, you know, because you’re always doing things. You’re so active and doing things all the time.”

Last month, Hudson received a best actress Oscar nomination for her critically acclaimed performance in the 2025 biographical musical drama “Song Sung Blue.” Hudson was first nominated for a best supporting actress Academy Award in 2001 after making her breakthrough in the 2000 comedy drama “Almost Famous.”