Reason why you might recognise Netflix's Monsters star Ella Beatty
If you've opened Netflix recently, chances are you've seen Ella Beatty's face.
The 26-year-old actress is currently everywhere thanks to Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, the latest instalment of Ryan Murphy's hit anthology series, in which she takes on the titular role of the suspected murderess.
And while longtime fans of Beatty will be aware that she's been making a name for herself in the entertainment industry for the past couple of years, this is undoubtedly her biggest role yet.
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Before landing the part of Lizzie, Beatty made her screen debut as Kerry O'Shea in Feud: Capote vs. The Swans in 2024. She also made her Broadway debut that same year in Appropriate, starring alongside Sarah Paulson - a role which became something of a turning point for the rising star.
She has since appeared in the A24 film If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, as well as taking on another major stage role opposite Hugh Jackman.
But if you think you recognise Beatty without having seen any of those projects, there’s another pretty major reason why her face might look familiar.
Because she doesn’t have one famous parent - she has two.
That's right - if you hadn't yet put two and two together, Beatty is the youngest child of Hollywood heavyweights Annette Bening and Warren Beatty, who have been married since 1992 and share four children.
As a reminder, Annette Bening is an acclaimed actress whose career spans decades, with roles in films including American Beauty, Being Julia, The Kids Are All Right and Nyad.
The 68-year-old has received multiple Oscar nominations and is one of Hollywood's most respected leading actresses.
Beatty's dad, meanwhile, is none other than Warren Beatty - the legendary actor, filmmaker and director behind films including Bonnie and Clyde, Reds, Dick Tracy and Heaven Can Wait.
Like Bening, the 89-year-old has also received multiple Academy Award nominations across acting, directing, writing and producing.
So, basically, Beatty was raised in the middle of Hollywood royalty.
But despite having two incredibly famous parents, Beatty has been pretty open about wanting to forge her own path.
Speaking to Interview Magazine in 2025, she admitted that she feels a responsibility towards her family's artistic legacy, but said she wants her own work to stand apart.
"I do feel a kind of responsibility towards an artistic legacy that I don’t feel ashamed of," she confessed. "I would hope that my work would be powerful enough to offer something specific.
"I’d hope that my work would be enough to make me separate, but I also understand why people do that."
Interestingly, her Appropriate co-star Sarah Paulson said she actually had 'no idea' who Beatty's parents were when they first met.
"My interest in you, my estimation of you as a performer, had nothing to do with that," American Horror Story star Paulson told her. "Your father was a great movie star, but in terms of the current knowledge that some young people have today, your name might not be synonymous immediately with one of the most important actors and directors to ever walk the planet."
Beatty has also previously accepted the obvious privilege that comes with being the daughter of two hugely recognisable actors.
"I totally acknowledge that there is an inherent privilege and exposure that comes from having well-known actors as parents," she once told Vogue. "And I really hope that I can offer something meaningful."
And, unsurprisingly, having two Hollywood veterans for parents has also meant having access to some pretty valuable career advice.
According to Beatty, one of the biggest lessons she took from them was simply to listen.
"As an actor in a scene - always being more curious about what the other person is doing," she told E! News. "Get interested rather than be interesting, but also to listen and observe and watch more generally.
"You never want to be the smartest person in the room. Just really listening is what I learned most from them."
As for her mum, Beatty has previously described Annette as her 'favourite actress in the world, hero and best friend'.
And while Monster may be the project that has officially put Ella Beatty on everyone's radar, it sounds like acting was always going to be her thing.
"Playing pretend, make-believe, that was the way that I contextualised the world," she told Interview. "I didn’t work professionally at all until I graduated from acting school, but I knew that that was who I was before I knew it was going to be my profession."
Topics: Celebrity, Netflix, Entertainment, US News, TV And Film
Rhianna Benson