Nico Parker says 'The Last of Us' creator messaged her father before she was cast and that famous parents make it 'way easier to get in the room'

The daughter of "Westworld" star Thandiwe Newton and notable movie director Ol Parker weighed in on the "nepo baby" debate.

• Nico Parker's parents are Thandiwe Newton and "Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again" director Ol Parker.
• Speaking with the Cut, "The Last of Us" star said she knows she has more access than most actors.
• "With your parents being prevalent in the industry, it's way easier to get in the room," Parker said.

"The Last of Us" breakout star Nico Parker added her voice to the "nepo baby" conversation in a new interview published Thursday.

"I think it's incredibly important to recognize that with your parents being prevalent in the industry, it's way easier to get in the room," Parker told New York Magazine in a new profile. "It's so important to know how many people would dream of being in that room, and how lucky you are to be there."

Parker, 18, is the daughter of "Westworld" star Thandiwe Newton and Ol Parker, the filmmaker who helmed 2018's "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again."

New York Magazine writer Iana Murray reported that Parker "openly talks about being the daughter of Newton and Parker and the shortcuts such a position has provided her." According to the article, the night before "The Last of Us" creator Craig Mazin decided to cast Parker in the now-hit HBO show, the showrunner sent a direct message to Parker's dad, asking how tall she was. 

"Parker is well aware of the 'nepo baby' debate, noting that she sympathizes with celebrity children who feel the term might be 'minimizing' how hard they work to stay inside the industry once they've stuck a foot in the door," Murray writes before quoting Parker on the importance of understanding nepotism privileges.

"It's so important to know how many people would dream of being in that room, and how lucky you are to be there," Parker said. "Especially when you start, your parents know people, and you've known people since you were small, and they want to give you a chance because they like you. That is a reflection of your parents."

This isn't Parker's first big role in Hollywood, though. She costarred alongside Colin Farrell in Tim Burton's 2019 "Dumbo" remake. Parker and her mother also both appeared in the 2020 movie "Reminiscence."