Why does everyone have a nepo-friend?

A look at how celebrity friendships became the fastest route to real fame.

Once upon a time, fame came from a famous dad.

These days, it can come from your group chat. In a digital landscape ruled by relatability and TikTok virality, the influencer's inner circle is no longer just set dressing, it's a marketing strategy.

Enter the nepo-friend: not a nepo-baby with a famous last name, but a friend with a famous bestie. They may not have grown up on red carpets, but they appear on your For You Page often enough to feel just as familiar. Whether they’re tagged in a viral vlog, featured in a podcast, or casually popping up on someone’s Instagram Story, these friends-turned-faces are building a brand off proximity. And it works.

Credit: Getty Images

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Influencer stardom has always had a ripple effect.

Think of YouTube collectives like Jake Paul’s Team 10, which functioned as fame factories by association. As AJ Mitchell, a Team 10 recruit, told The New York Times,

"If you got tagged in one of Jake’s YouTube videos, you could get 50,000 followers."

While the content house era has largely fizzled out (RIP Hype House), the idea of viral osmosis lives on. Today’s nepo-friends are often introduced to audiences through group content, Instagram tags, or sidekick-style appearances. They become recurring characters, slowly developing their own fan bases.

Take Julia Mervis, for example. Known to many as the ride-or-die best friend of comedian and content creator Jake Shane, she’s become a staple of his online universe and a familiar voice on his podcast Therapuss. But she’s also carved out a platform of her own. With over 76,000 TikTok followers and a fast-growing profile, Mervis just recently wrapped a gig as ELLE’s official correspondent at the Miami Grand Prix. She’s proof that in 2025, you don’t have to go viral alone. Sometimes, clout is contagious, and can lead to some big-name opportunities.

There’s also Owen Thiele, who quite literally called himself a “nepo-friend” in his Vulture profile. The actor and comedian’s rise was paved with strategic hangouts and undeniable charm: he popped up in Cazzie David’s web series, filmed TikToks and a podcast episode with Emma Chamberlain, got cast in a Taylor Swift music video through mutual friends, and ended up with a podcast on Alex Cooper’s Unwell network.

He’s parlayed visibility into acting roles (Overcompensating, Adults), brand deals, and a new show based on his life. And he did it all by being, in his words,"the funniest person in the friend group."

Photo Credit: Vogue

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Of course, this concept isn’t new—it’s just optimized.

Before TikTok, we had Paris and Nicole on The Simple Life, Adrienne Bailon vacationing with the Kardashians, and the bro-fantasy of Entourage. The celebrity best friend has always been part of the fame industrial complex: a backstage pass turned plot point. But rarely did the sidekick have this much leverage.

These days, managers and brand teams aren’t just scouting individuals, they’re looking for creators with what I like to call clout clusters. A charismatic best friend? That’s a podcast guest, a taggable cameo, a potential campaign duo. Together, they form a content flywheel: more faces for the feed, more narrative hooks for fans to latch onto, and more opportunities for a passing tag to turn into a follow.

Agencies like UTA, WME, and newer creator-first firms like Whalar, Digital Brand Architects, and Viral Nation often scout creators who show strong engagement in collaborative content. Creators with existing chemistry—whether it’s a bestie, a roommate, or a recurring guest—are more attractive because they offer scalable content ecosystems. Think of it like hiring one actor who comes with their own supporting cast.