During SXSW celebs are all over Austin, but in 2023, it seems like we’re noticing more and more famous movie stars, athletes, authors and musicians who have decided to settle into the area as their ideal place to call home. Much like we did, celebrity parents heard the news that the Austin metro area is a fantastic place to raise a family!
Our friends at Do512 shared an article about famous Austin residents, which sparked our curiosity about notable celebrity moms and dads of the area that we might potentially run into at the park, on the sidelines of a soccer game, or out at a PTA meeting. You just never know!
There was the time Sandra Bullock was shopping right next to us with her son in Whole Foods which was pretty exciting. And another encounter of a very famous Austin family shopping for kids’ clothes at Old Navy, which is perfectly alright, alright, alright. There’s something so silly and surprising when you get a peek at a famous person out doing regular everyday tasks.
Here are some of the many famous parents (and some grandparents) to keep an eye out for while you’re around town with your kids…
Willie Nelson
Musician, Texan Icon
Matthew McConaughey & Camila Alves McConaughey
Movie Star, Texan Icon/ UT Professor: How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Dazed and Confused
Model, also known for her lifestyle website, Women of Today
Jamie Lynn Sigler
Actor, currently starring in Big Sky, formerly starred on The Sopranos
Paul Simon
Iconic musician known for: Bridge Over Troubled Water, Still Crazy After All These Years, and Graceland
Gary Clark Jr. & Nicole Trunfio
Grammy Award-winning musician known for: Bright Lights, This Land, Please Come Home, Ain’t Messin’ ’Round
Model, Jewelry designer, and Chef
Andy Roddick & Brooklyn Decker
Tennis Star
Actor/Model known for: Grace and Frankie
Jared Padalecki & Genevieve Padalecki
Actor known for: Gilmore Girls, Supernatural, Walker etc.
Actor known for: Wildfire, Supernatural, Walker etc.
Haylie Duff
Actor known for: Seventh Heaven, Lizzie McGuire, Napoleon Dynamite, Love Takes Wing, Love Finds A Home
Photo from Genevieve Padalecki’s Facebook page
Elon Musk
CEO of SpaceX & Tesla
Grimes
Musician known for: Oblivion, Delete Forever, etc.
James Marsden
Actor known for: Enchanted, X-Men, 27 Dresses, Dead to Me, etc.
Jensen Ackles & Danneel Ackles
Actor known for: Supernatural, Smallville, Days of Our Lives, etc.
Actor known for: One Tree Hill, Friends with Benefits, etc.
Kyle Chandler
Actor known for: Friday Night Lights, Bloodline, Wolf of Wall St, etc.
James Van der Beek
Actor known for: Dawson’s Creek, Varsity Blues, etc.
Photo from James Van Der Beek’s Facebook page
Chris Harrison
Former Reality TV Host known for: The Bachelor
Chris Bosh
Former NBA Player for the Miami Heat
Connie Britton
Actor, singer and producer known for: White Lotus, Friday Night Lights, The Last Winter, American Horror Story, Nashville, etc.
Sandra Bullock
Actor/Producer: Speed, The Proposal, Ocean’s 8, The Blind Side, Bird Box, Gravity, etc.
Owner of Walton’s Fancy & Staple and Bess Bistro
Kirsten Dunst & Jesse Plemons
Actor known for: Interview With the Vampire, Jumanji, Bring it On, Hidden Figures, etc.
Actor known for: Friday Night Lights, Breaking Bad, Fargo, Black Mirror, etc.
Dave Annable & Odette Annable
Actor (Dave) known for: Brothers & Sisters, 666 Park Avenue, Heartbeat
Actor and Model (Odette) known for: House, Cloverfield, October Road, Supergirl, Banshee
Odette Annable & Dave Annable during Austin’s 2021 snowstorm. Photo from Odette Annable’s Instagram.
Jenna Elfman
Actor known for: Dharma & Greg, Damages, Fear the Walking Dead, Keeping the Faith, Friends With Benefits, etc.
Lane Garrison
Actor known for: Prison Break, Camp X-Ray
Robert Rodriguez
Filmmaker known for: Spy Kids, From Dusk Till Dawn, Once Upon a Time in Mexico
Rachel Hollis
Author & motivational speaker known for: Girl, Wash Your Face & Girl, Stop Apologizing
Photo from Rachel Hollis’s Facebook page
Zane Holtz
Actor know for: Katy Keene, Hunter Killer, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, From Dusk to Dawn: The Series
Richard Linklater
Film Director known for: Boyhood, Dazed and Confused, School of Rock, Slacker, Before Trilogy
J.R. Martinez
Actor known for: All My Children
Nancy McKeon
Actor known for: The Facts of Life, The Division
Kathy Valentine
Musician known for: The Go-Go’s
Joe Rogan
Comedian, podcast host, and mixed martial arts commentator: Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Fear Factor, The Joe Rogan Experience
Christy Carlson Romano
Actor known for: Even Stevens, voicing the character from Kim Possible
Photo from Christy Carlson Romano’s Facebook page
Theo Rossi
Actor known for: Sons of Anarchy, Luke Cage
Mark Henry
Weightlifter: Olympic weightlifter, retired professional wrestler, WWE,
Mark Calaway
Professional Wrestler: formerly known as The Undertaker (WWE)
Jep Robertson
Reality Star known for: Duck Dynasty
Know of other famous Austin moms & dads? Feel free to tell us who else belongs on this list in the comments below.
