While most 26-year-olds are scraping together rent money and building their careers from the ground up, Malia Obama is trying to convince Americans she’s “just like everyone else” — by dropping the last name that catapulted her into Hollywood in the first place.
Yes, the eldest daughter of Barack and Michelle Obama is now going by “Malia Ann” in her professional endeavors. According to her mother, it’s all part of an effort to “earn” her success without relying on the weight of the Obama name. But let’s be honest: no one’s fooled.
Michelle Obama appeared on the “Sibling Revelry” podcast this week to spin her daughter’s name change as a bold act of independence. She claimed Malia is simply trying to be her own person, saying, *“It is very important for my kids to feel like they’ve earned what they are getting in the world… They want to be their own people.”*
The former First Lady framed the decision as admirable — an attempt by Malia to carve out a career on merit alone. But with a resume that includes internships with Lena Dunham and a writers’ room stint on Amazon’s *Swarm* — both doors likely opened by powerful connections — the idea that Malia is just another struggling young filmmaker rings hollow.
Let’s be clear: No Hollywood producer or Sundance official is mistaking “Malia Ann” for someone off the street. This is not a self-made artist rising from obscurity — this is the daughter of a two-term president who remains a Democratic icon, and she’s been nurtured in elite circles from the moment she left the White House.
And while Michelle insists the name change is a tribute to Malia’s late grandmother, Ann Dunham, even she admits the move is symbolic at best. *“We were like, they’re still going to know it’s you, Malia,”* Michelle admitted with a laugh. Exactly.
Barack Obama also weighed in during an earlier appearance on *The Pivot Podcast*, saying his daughter didn’t want audiences to associate her art with her last name — though he openly admitted that hiding her identity would be nearly impossible. *“You do know they’ll know who you are,”* he recalled telling her.
Of course, the real privilege here isn’t the name — it’s the access, the opportunities, and the insulation from failure that the Obama daughters enjoy. Dropping “Obama” from a movie credit doesn’t erase the fact that Malia’s creative career began in the rarified air of Hollywood’s elite, not the local film school.
This entire exercise — rebranding as “Malia Ann” — feels more like a PR maneuver than a genuine separation from privilege. And it’s hard not to notice the irony: for all the progressive rhetoric about “equity” and “fairness,” the Obamas’ own daughters are gliding through industries where ordinary Americans can barely get a foot in the door.
So while the media fawns over Malia’s “authenticity,” average Americans can see what’s really going on: yet another example of liberal elites pretending their kids face the same obstacles as everyone else — all while quietly benefiting from a last name that opens every door.
