The term “nepo baby” has been causing a stir online lately, with some criticizing celebrity children for finding success in the same or related field as their famous parent (or parentss). While it’s important to acknowledge the privilege celebrity children have, it doesn’t mean these “nepo babies” lack talent or refuse to put in the work. The truth is, every business works the same way: knowing the right people can give you a leg up. In any case, not every celebrity’s child ends up following in their parents’ footsteps. One such example is the daughter of “Blue Bloods” star Tom Selleck.
As an actor, Selleck has played many roles. He’s played tough action heroes on the fringes of law enforcement at least three times, for some of his best known roles: as private investigator for a rich author in “Magnum PI,” as police chief of a small town in the “Jesse Stone” series, and currently as New York police commissioner Frank Reagan in “Blue Bloods.” He moonlighted as an ophthalmologist in the recurring role of Dr. Richard Burke, Monica Geller’s much older boyfriend on “Friends.” And he twice played characters named Peter: one was a television journalist in the 1997 comedy “In & Out,” while his Peter on “Three Men & a Baby” was an architect. Yet his real-life daughter Hannah hasn’t held any of these jobs, nor has she worked as an actor like dear, old dad. So, what does Hannah Selleck do for a living?
Hannah Margaret Selleck works with horses
Since Tom Selleck encouraged his children to follow their hearts, his daughter, Hannah Margaret Selleck, has done just that. She’s now an equestrian making her living breeding, training, and competing with horses.
Like many girls, Hannah fell in love with horses very young, at age 4. She trained at a Westlake Village, California equestrian academy called Foxfield Riding School, and started participating in show jumping competitions at 14. Now she wins medals internationally, and when home, she runs Descanso Farm, the boutique horse-breeding and training ranch she founded. She has her parents, Tom and Jillie Mack, to thank for it. “From a young age, they always encouraged me to follow my passion, and my passion is the horses,” she told Palm Beach Illustrated. After graduating from Loyola Marymount University and deciding horses were her passion, “my father said he would help support me but that I had to turn professional, letting go of my amateur status,” she explained. She trained with some of the best athletes in the business. “Now I have my own breeding operation, which my dad encouraged me to start when some of my top mares retired.”
Whether or not “equestrian” can be considered a “totally normal job,” it’s certainly one outside the Hollywood spotlight. But Hannah isn’t completely removed from the bright lights — and not just because she’s Tom’s daughter. She’s also done work as a model, including a cover shoot and a full 10-page spread in Horse & Style Magazine in July 2020.
Tom Selleck also has a side job
It seems likely that Hannah Margaret Selleck developed her love of horses through her father Tom Selleck’s side hustle. That’s right, being a hugely successful Hollywood actor wasn’t quite enough to fulfill Tom, as he also quietly worked a regular job on the side: The 65-acre ranch he’s owned since 1988, the year Hannah was born, included not only a horse corral and a ranch house, but also a 20-acre avocado farm.
“I like to get outside and work on the farm,” he told Good Housekeeping, before a drought caused the farm’s demise. “Sweating outdoors sure beats sitting on a stationary bike staring at my navel.” Now the land serves a different purpose: In 2021, Selleck told Parade, “I’ve dug the holes myself for probably 1,000 native oak trees.” Tom added, “Watching them grow is not something you can do in five minutes in this crazy instant-gratification world, but it’s very gratifying.”
Tom and his wife Jillie Mack always enjoyed living on the ranch and found it a perfect place to raise Hannah. “We both thought it was the best environment for her to grow up,” Mack told People. They still remain very close to their daughter and continue to support Hannah’s equestrian career. “These days, we still see a lot of her, because she continues to be a very accomplished equestrian, and we travel around to attend her competitions,” Tom told GH. “In that world, I’m not the celebrity, she is.”