The Untold Truth Of Kate Hudson
It's hard not to love Kate Hudson. The human equivalent of sunshine is an actor, businesswoman, author, and one of the coolest celebrity moms out there. Unlike most of us, Hudson never struggled with the dreadful angst of not knowing what to do with her life — she just knew she was born to be famous. People close to her noticed that bright spark from early on. "There was no knowing with Kate, it just was. She came out of the womb performing. Song and dance and you know, 'Hey! Look at me...,'" her brother Oliver Hudson told Ellen DeGeneres about his sister's larger than life personality.
Movies such as "Almost Famous," "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days," "Bride Wars," and "Raising Helen" secured Hudson a respectable place on Hollywood's pecking order. She even won a Golden Globe for her engrossing performance as Penny Lane in "Almost Famous." Her life behind the camera is just as fulfilling. When she is not promoting her many brands on Instagram, Hudson shares the cutest pictures with her daughter, Rani Rose, and snaps of fun vacations with her family. Besides Rani Rose, she has two sons: she welcomed her firstborn, Ryder Robinson, with The Black Crowes singer Chris Robinson, and her second son, Bingham Bellamy, was born out of her relationship with English rock band Muse's leading man, Matthew Bellamy.
Hudson has lived her whole life in the spotlight, but there are a few things you might not know about her.
Kate Hudson's parents taught her to recognize her privileges
When netizens coined the phrase "nepo baby" after realizing that "Euphoria" star Maude Apatow hails from a celebrity lineage (she is the daughter of Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann), Kate Hudson's name was quickly thrown into a slew of articles listing out stars who only found fame because of their Hollywood stalwart parents. Hudson was born to the iconic "The First Wives Club" star Goldie Hawn, who raised her with her longtime partner Kurt Russell, another Tinseltown gem.
Opportunities abound for children of the famous, but it's Hudson's undeniable talent and drive that keep her relevant. Besides, not all nepo babies are as successful as Hudson. Thanks to Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, she grew up recognizing her privileges and staying grounded.
"It was like, 'Hey kids, none of this belongs to you. You didn't earn any of this. You were just born into it.' So at a really young age, our parents were all about work ethic," she told CNBC. Hudson leveraged the means at her disposal to become her own person and has passed on those values to her children. When Health asked her about her parenting style, she admitted to being a lenient parent, adding, "As far as I'm concerned, there's what you're entitled to and then there's your privileges. The only things you're entitled to are a roof over your head, food, and my love. Everything else is a privilege, and I'll take it away in a heartbeat if you're not respecting our home's moral compass."
She was a tomboy when she was young
Kate Hudson is known for many things, including her ever-changing style. The way she effortlessly flip-flops from boho-chic to red carpet diva and everything in between, Hudson cannot fit into a box when it comes to fashion. Her personality is quite distinctive, too. "I was a tomboy. I had three brothers. I was the girl with the dress on who always came back in the house filthy with scrapes and bruises. But I was always very girly. I had to be able to twirl so that my underwear showed," she once told People.
Hudson is adamant about letting her children express their individuality and doesn't subscribe to gender-stereotyped parenting. Talking to AOL about her approach to raising her daughter, she said, "We still don't know what she's going to identify as. I will say that, right now, she is incredibly feminine in her energy, her sounds, and her way." After raising two boys before welcoming Rani Rose, Hudson did not need any advice on how to raise a daughter, and she found the experience was more fun in some ways.
Hudson's progressiveness is not everyone's cup of tea. Some even misunderstood her gender-neutral parenting approach and said she was raising Rani in a "genderless" fashion. She set the record straight in an Instagram post, writing, "Me saying a 'genderless approach' was a way of re-focusing the conversation in a direction that could exist outside of the female stereotype."
A mostly male household made her fiercely independent
Besides full sibling Oliver Hudson, Kate Hudson has a bunch of half-siblings. Her father Bill Hudson had three children — Emily, Zachary, and Lalania — after his divorce from Goldie Hawn. Hawn and partner Kurt Russell have a son, Wyatt. Russell has a son, Boston, from a previous relationship.
Growing up in a predominantly male household had its challenges. "I felt that I had to prove myself or live up to something so that the boys would include me in whatever journeys they were going on," Kate told CNBC. And then there was her biological dad, who was pretty much out of the picture. Kate doesn't have much of a relationship with Bill's children, other than Oliver. The circumstances pushed the star to work extra hard to find her place: "I can't rely on anybody, so I'm going to rely on myself. And I'm going to succeed and I'm going to work my butt off." In her interview with AOL, the actor shared how people assume she must have felt protected with three brothers. "And I'm like, 'They threw me right into the fire!'" she jested.
Hudson has always been surrounded by so much love, but sometimes she wishes she could mend relationships with her estranged siblings. "I've been thinking about our sisters that we don't spend any time with and our brother — brothers. We've got four siblings we don't spend any time with," she lamented during an episode of her podcast "Sibling Revelry."
She's close with her mom Goldie Hawn
Kate Hudson struggled as the only girl child in the family, but there was one person who always had her back: her mother and biggest role model Goldie Hawn. Hudson and her mother share a famously close bond that has aged like fine wine. Being raised by a mother as joyful and positive as Hawn led Hudson to make optimism her default mode, and while she has admitted that it's a little excessive sometimes, she is forever grateful.
Hudson can barely go without talking to her mom. "I can't really go a week. I've gone a week, but it's super rare," she once told PopSugar. Hawn believes that women should stick together, so she taught her daughter the value of fostering a good relationship with her female pals. "My mom once said something so poignant to me: 'Honor your female friendships, because men can come and go, but when we nurture our relationships with women, they can be forever,'" Hudson told Self.
Girl power aside, Hudson and her mother are so close that they talk about everything, even sex. Hudson has learned a lot about the subject from Hawn, who once revealed to People how she talked to her daughter about it, saying, "I said, 'I want you to understand something about Mommy. I'm not a prude. I love sex.'" Hawn went on to tell her, "But it's better when it's with one person." "And that was a good lesson," Hudson recalled.
Kate Hudson's biological father disowned her
After his divorce from Goldie Hawn, Bill Hudson's presence in their children's lives became scarce. While his narrative of how the rift came to be stands in stark contrast to that of Hawn's, the damage it caused to his relationship with Kate and Oliver Hudson is undeniable. For years, the story of their broken family had been a subject of curiosity, and unfortunately, things got progressively worse, so much so that Bill disowned his two children.
In 2015, Oliver shared a photo of himself with Kate and Bill on Instagram to mark Father's Day, but with a caption that made it go viral. "Happy abandonment day...," he wrote, and tagged Kate. A few days later, Bill responded to that post in a candid interview with the Daily Mail, saying, "I say to them now, 'I set you free.' I had five birth children but I now consider myself a father of three. I no longer recognize Oliver and Kate as my own." He was also upset by the fact that Kate and Oliver still used the Hudson name when they consider Kurt Russell their "Pa."
Kate and Oliver have a special relationship with Russell, who has been a part of their lives since he started dating their mother in 1983. They never shy away from showing their love and appreciation for him on social media. On Father's Day 2022, Kate took to Instagram to share an adorable photo with Russell to dote on him. The stepdad was moved to tears by her gesture, as Hawn revealed in the comments.
Her self-esteem issues inspired her to write a book
Celebrities, like others, can sometimes have a love-hate relationship with themselves. Kate Hudson, too, has struggled with self-esteem, but she found a way to morph that into something positive. In 2016, she released a book titled "Pretty Happy: Healthy Ways to Love Your Body" to share how she got over her insecurities and embraced a connected lifestyle.
Speaking with the Independent, the actor claimed that females inherently deal with self-image issues. "And I think that's because we're so highly scrutinized — our image, our beauty or the idea of beauty — whatever that is, because I believe it's subjective." Her mom inspired her to cultivate positivity surrounding the body and aging. "...so I want to encourage girls to feel good about themselves, no matter what their sizes are, and to feel motivated to be healthy and strong," Hudson said.
And then she figured out the mind and body connection — Hudson believes that no one can truly feel good about themselves if their mind is not nourished. For her, it is her family and friendships that provide that emotional boost. "I have a whole chapter in my book about how it takes a village; your support group is huge," she told Self. As for everything else that doesn't feel right, Hudson likes to maintain a journal and trace her patterns to figure things out. It is also a way for her to acknowledge and express gratitude for the good things in life.
Kate Hudson knows her way around money
If it wasn't obvious enough by the way Kate Hudson has established successful businesses, Celebrity Net Worth confirms that Hudson has a hefty bank balance — $80 million, approximately. Speaking of her business savvy, Hudson joined forces with Adam Goldenberg and Don Ressler in 2013 to create Fabletics, an uber-successful athleisure brand. According to the Los Angeles Business Journal, the brand generated a whopping $650 million in annual revenue as of 2021. That's not all.
Hudson subsequently launched King St. Vodka, her craft vodka line, in 2019. Her reason for it was simple. "Look at the alcohol industry — it's a 'man's business.' Having the business really believe in women is something that's brand new. When someone kind of tells you that something's not possible, then I always feel like, 'Ooh, that feels exciting,'" she told CNBC. Hudson's love of holistic living then inspired her to launch INBLOOM, a plant-based supplement line, in 2020.
Surprisingly enough, the mother-of-three doesn't like to run businesses. "I'm not really interested in being in front of the business as the face all of the time," she told Inc. Instead, she works with people who are more equipped to handle business operations. Hudson makes enough money to live like royalty, but she is a wise spender. In 2013, she wasn't even shopping high-fashion. "People think we own all these dresses but we borrow them! I can't afford to buy that stuff," she told Harpers Bazaar at the time.
The fitness nut used to be a smoker
Believe it or not, Kate Hudson used to be a smoker. It wasn't until she had her son, Ryder, that she gave up smoking for good. But quitting had its downsides, and for Hudson, it was the weight gain that came with nicotine withdrawal. She eventually lost weight with a combination of workouts and healthy eating. "When I'm working, I give myself one day a week to splurge, usually Friday night. Otherwise I just try to stay away from wheat, dairy and white flour," she told People.
Even though Hudson claimed she had quit cigarettes, some outlets reported rude rumors that she went back to being a smoker again to drop the weight she gained after giving birth (via People). She doesn't smoke cigarettes now, but she's not opposed to smoking weed. In fact, she told Ellen DeGeneres that she has smoked the green with her parents. We wish she had elaborated more on the story!
Kate Hudson has a good relationship with all of her children's fathers
As we mentioned before, Kate Hudson has three children with three different men. She is currently raising her daughter, Rani Rose, with her fiance, Danny Fujikawa. While her situation has its challenges, Hudson has been lucky enough to be in a fairly conflict-free co-parenting arrangement. Speaking to Laura Wasser on her podcast "Divorce Sucks!" (via People), the actor spilled the beans on what makes her arrangement with exes Matthew Bellamy and Chris Robinson unique. "I do not rely on my partners for any financial stability. I think that allowed me a little bit of freedom ... [for it] to be a little bit easier for me to walk away from certain relationships and maintain a good relationship with my partners."
What's more, Hudson's three baby daddies get along just fine. "It's funny and we laugh about it. I never thought my life would look like that, but it is what it is," the actor said. In a separate interview, she revealed how her relationship with Bellamy, to whom she was once engaged, has only become stronger in the process of raising their son together. "One thing that Matt said to me, which I loved, is, 'I just want to make sure that Bing feels like he's gaining something, not losing something,” she told Women's Health. Because they trust each other so much, the experience has been rewarding rather than chaotic. How cool is that!
Dancing makes her happy
Kate Hudson is always on the move. Or moving. If you have ever locked the door and danced your heart out with moves so wild you dare not show anyone, you'll understand. Dancing is a way for her to unwind, an antidote to stress and anxiety. "It's a great way to let loose and feel great," she told E! News about busting a move, which also happens to be a part of her fitness routine. And when she is not dancing, she will run on the treadmill or break a sweat with a hot yoga session.
Hudson declared, "I think 2022 I meet up with my dancing heart again," in an Instagram video showing off an effortless routine. In 2013, she and "Dancing with the Stars" veteran Derek Hough randomly broke into an impressive dance at a restaurant in Hollywood. Hough had been training Hudson for months at that point. Given her dancing skills, it's a mystery why we haven't seen her on "DWTS" yet. A year prior to the impromptu public performance, Hudson appeared in Season 4 of "Glee" as the sexy but stingy dance instructor Cassandra July. Speaking to ET about the gig, the actor said the experience was fun, albeit challenging. "It was really hard. You move so fast. You have six hours of rehearsal...and they put you out there and you just sort of make it happen." These days, Hudson's dance partner is her daughter, Rani, and they put on a show every now and then.
She once admitted she can 'see dead people'
We bet you didn't see this one coming! Kate Hudson once admitted that she and her mother Goldie Hawn can sense the supernatural. Instagram followers have seen Hudson chanting and meditating, but this goes a bit beyond her yoga practice...
During an appearance on Alan Carr's "Chatty Man Show" in 2014, Hudson revealed that she and her mother have a keen sense of energy and are able to sense the "fifth energy." "It is not really seeing, it is feeling a spirit. A fifth energy. I believe in energy. I believe our brains can manifest into visual things," Hudson told Carr (via the Daily Mail). She later added, "When your brain is freaking out on you, you may have to remind it. Why is it being dead funny?"
In case you were wondering how Hudson and Hawn deal with the energies, Hudson said they simply tell the beings that they aren't part of this realm. Reminding them what year it is also helps (Take notes, Ghostbusters). During her interview, Hudson further revealed that she once saw a ghost of a faceless woman. Eek!
Kate Hudson's best and worst on-screen kisses
Kate Hudson has worked in many movies and smooched a bunch of lucky co-stars in the process. Some experiences were good, some were okay, and some were downright weird. Speaking of good memories, Hudson fondly remembers the time she starred in "Four Feathers" alongside late actor Heath Ledger in 2002. On "Watch What Happens Live," she told host Andy Cohen that her favorite on-screen kiss was with Ledger, saying, "He was just so beautiful and sweet and gentle. ... He was lovely." Ledger tragically passed away on January 22, 2008, following an accidental drug overdose. He was 28.
While Ledger was a delight, Hudson's experience hasn't been the same with other actors. As much as we hate to break it to you, her worst on-screen kiss was with her "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" co-star Matthew McConaughey. "The thing is, every time I kiss McConaughey ... there's just something happening and there's, like, snot or wind," she told Gwyneth Paltrow during the host's Goop podcast in 2020. She went on to reveal that McConaughey "had snot all over his face" during the last scene of "Fool's Gold." In his defense, McConaughey said the conditions were never right when they had to smooch for the cameras, and retakes in the face of fatigue didn't help at all. "So there were always, like, elements made it harder... We never got to have our nice romantic kiss yet," he told Yahoo! Entertainment.
Kate Hudson's fiance Danny Fujikawa treats her like a queen
Kate Hudson and musician Danny Fujikawa have been together for years now. The duo was first spotted together in March 2017 and made their relationship red carpet official in May of that year. Interestingly, Hudson and Fujikawa go way back. According to Hudson, she and his stepsisters, Sara and Erin Foster, have been friends for over a decade. Although they were all a part of the same circle, it wasn't until 2016 that Fujikawa asked Hudson to go on a hike together, and it somehow ended up being their first date. "No moves were made on this first date. In fact, it took months for him to make a first move!" Hudson revealed in an Instagram post.
Together, Hudson and Fujikawa have created a beautiful family. They welcomed their daughter, Rani Rose, on October 2, 2018. The couple named her after Fujikawa's grandfather, Ron Fujikawa. On September 14, 2021, Hudson shared a sweet picture of herself and Fujikawa as she showed off her engagement ring on Instagram. She had previously told ET that she wasn't ready to marry Fujikawa. "Oh god! I'm not thinking about that. Yeah, especially after one wedding, you're like, 'Whew!' It's a lot of work but yeah, not anytime soon but I love the man!"
Hudson adores Fujikawa to no end. Speaking with Women's Health in 2019, she gushed, "It's the first time I feel like I have a real teammate in this. We're able to pick up where the other one has to leave off."