For many, Queen Elizabeth II is the biggest celebrity there is. So, it should be no surprise then that many of her distant relatives are celebrities in their own right. She comes from a long, complicated line of royal blood and a family that spread far and wide.
No wonder a hop, skip and a jump away, her distant cousins are shining stars in the United States. While some are quite far down the line in relatedness, there is one celebrity who is said to be the "most royal" star of them all.
Scroll through to see the bonus connection that no one was expecting!
Tom Hanks
Through his father's family, Tom Hanks is a descendent of King John of England. The Monarch reigned from 1199 to 1216 and, yes, he is the inspiration for the evil king from the Robin Hood stories.
Hanks is also the 24th cousin of Queen Elizabeth II.
Uma Thurman
Is anyone else not surprised by this one? I mean, just look at her, she's clearly descended of royalty. Uma Thurman is directly descended from Edward Longshanks, King Edward I of England, who ruled from 1272 to 1307.
Like most rulers back then, he wasn't a very nice dude either. He was known as the "Hammer of the Scots" because he so brutally treated the Scottish people. Longshanks fathered many children in his day and it is through them, that Uma is also a 21st cousin, once removed, of Queen Elizabeth II.
Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal
This dazzling family duo are related to Edward III, King of England from 1327 to his death in 1377. Edward III is responsible for transforming England into one of the most formidable European military powers.
The siblings are 19th cousins to Queen Elizabeth II and also descendants of Swedish royalty, the house Gyllenhaal.
Hugh Grant
Another celebrity with several royal connections: King James IV of Scotland and King Henry VII of England, who was also the grandfather of Queen Elizabeth I.
Paris Hilton
She is a 20th cousin of Queen Elizabeth II through her father's family. Their shared ancestor is King Henry II.
See five more royal-blooded celebrities, including one is is the most closely related to Queen Elizabeth II on the next page!
You might have noticed that many celebrities are related to Queen Elizabeth II through King Edward III of England.
That's because he had eight legitimate sons whose children went on to form royal families such as the Tudors, the Lancasters and the Yorks.
His six daughters also all married into other rich and royal families, spreading the bloodline far and wide. Who knows - you might even be related to some of these celebrities and this king!
Brooke Shields
She is the second-most-related celebrity to the Queen of England and one of the most royally-related people in Hollywood.
She is 18th cousin, once removed, of Queen Elizabeth II as a direct descendant of King Henry IV of France. Her ancestor, Blanche was the French wife of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster and son of England's King Edward III.
She may even be related to Catherine de Medici and Lucrezia Borgia.
Ellen DeGeneres
Not only is she a 15th cousin to Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, but she is related to her through being the direct descendant of King Edward III of England. Ellen is also a 19th cousin , twice removed, of Queen Elizabeth II.
Michael Douglas
He too, is a 19th cousin of Queen Elizabeth (once removed) through King Edward III of England.
Johnny Depp
He is a descendant of Sir William Gascoigne and Margaret Percy, who was the daughter of the 3rd Earl of Northumberland, a direct descendant of King Edward III.
Hilary Duff
She is the current Queen of England's most closely related Hollywood celebrity relative. Hilary Duff is the monarch's 18th cousin.
They are related through Alexander Spotswood, an officer of the British Army, a Lieutenant Governor of Virginia and 10th great-grandson of Edward III.
She is also a descendant of Catherine Car, a woman believed to be the illegitimate daughter of Henry VIII.
Wondering about that bonus royal connection? Turn to the next page to find out who it is!
Believe it or not, George Washington and Queen Elizabeth II share an ancestor, an English lady by the name of Henrietta Mildred Hodgson.
Her daughter married Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, making her a great-grandmother of Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon and great-great-grandmother of Queen Elizabeth II.
As far as Washington's connection:
Henrietta Mildred Hodgson was the granddaughter of Mildred Porteus. Porteus was the daughter of Mary Smith, who was the sister of Mildred Warner (married to Lawrence Washington) and the grandmother of the first US President, George Washington.
Oh boy, confused yet? It's safe to say that the British Monarchy reaches farther than we know!
Did you know about this connection? Are you related to any of these celebrities in some way?
