The insane family tree of Legally Blonde’s Dorky David, and his epic new job you will recognise

Remember Dorky David from Legally Blonde? Well, he might have out-nepo-babied the likes of Lily-Rose Depp, Dakota Johnson, Zoë Kravitz, and even Kate Hudson.

Osgood Perkins was the actor who played Dorky David Kidney in Legally Blonde alongside Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Coolidge, and Selma Blair. He was the quintessential nerd type, whom Elle Woods helped by pretending they were romantically involved. Outside of Legally Blonde, he also starred in Nope, Not Another Teen Movie, Six Degrees of Separation, Electric Slide, and a few other projects in minor roles.

It was only thanks to a recent viral TikTok that I learned Osgood Perkins’ insane ancestry, and how he had a hand in some of the biggest horror flicks of the modern era.

Credit: MGM Studios

Right, let’s start with Osgood Perkins’ recent work

Though he will forever be known as Dorky David from Legally Blonde, you’ve proboably watched Osgood Perkins’ recent work without even realising it. In the last few years alone, he’s written, directed, and produced some of the biggest horror films.

The first big one was 2015’s The Blackcoat’s Daughter, starring Emma Roberts and Kiernan Shipka. He also wrote and directed Netflix’s I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House, and 2020’s Gretel & Hansel.

His most successful projects have undoubtedly been Longlegs, which has 86 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes, and The Monkey starring Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Elijah Wood, and Adam Scott. The Monkey recieved rave reviews this year, debuting with 96 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes before falling to 77 per cent.

He’s currently working on The Young People, starring Lola Tung, Nico Parker, Brendan Hines, Tatiana Maslany, and Johnny Knoxville.

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You’re never going to clock who he is related to

Credit: Netflix

Nepo babies and Hollywood are ever-present features in modern times, but Osgood Perkins has seemingly flown under the radar whilst Dakota Johnson gets questioned about her parentage at every available opportunity.

Osgood Perkins is actually the son of Anthony Perkins, the legendary Hollywood actor who played Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, Psycho II, and Psycho 3. We recently saw a portrayal of Anthony in Monster: The Ed Gein Story, but his son did not enjoy it.

He said he “wouldn’t watch it with a 10-foot-pole”, and that modern culture had changed true crime stories into something “increasingly devoid of context and that the Netflix-ization of real pain.” Ouch!

But it doesn’t stop there. Osgood Perkins is also the great-grandson of Elsa Schiaparelli, the matron of the iconic fashion house, Schiaparelli. His maternal grandfather was also an actor, his aunt is actress and model, Marisa Berenson, and his mother was the late actress, Berry Berenson.

Talk about a lineage of Hollywood royalty.

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Featured image credit: MGM Studios and Jay L. Clendenin/Shutterstock for Neon