Was Paris Hilton cut out from grandfather’s will? What we know as Hilton heiress reportedly draws backlash over “self made” claim 

The New York Post reported that when Barron Hilton died in 2019, 97 percent of his fortune went to the Hilton family foundation. Paris Hilton wasn’t included in that charitable allocation. This followed plans he had made public more than a decade earlier.

A December 2007 story from Reuters noted that Paris Hilton’s possible inheritance fell sharply after Barron Hilton announced he would turn over 97 percent of his $2.3 billion estate to charity. The sum included about $1.2 billion linked to the sale of Hilton Hotels Corp., established in 1919 by Conrad Hilton after he bought a small Texas hotel. The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation confirmed that the money would be placed in a trust, pushing the foundation’s value to roughly $4.5 billion. In its statement, the foundation said he intended “to contribute 97 percent of his entire net worth, estimated today at $2.3 billion, including the created trusts, at whatever value it is at the time of his passing.”

Even so, Paris Hilton made news again after asserting in an interview with The Sunday Times,

“I’m self-made. Like, I’ve done this all on my own. No one’s ever given me anything in my entire life.”

Paris Hilton reflects on family ties and her self-made identity:

Paris Hilton entered life in a world already shaped by wealth, thanks to her great-grandfather, Conrad Hilton, the founder of the Hilton hotel empire. By her late teens, she had started modelling, but it didn’t take long for her to figure out there were bigger opportunities in simply being seen. She became an early example of the modern influencer, charging appearance fees for parties and later taking on paid promotions on social media long before it became standard practice.

In her interview with The Sunday Times, she expanded on how she viewed her rise. She also spoke warmly of her grandfather, recalling,

“We were extremely close and we would always have lunches and dinners, and he would always say to me, ‘Paris, you work harder than any CEO I know.’ And he’s, like, ‘I used to be known as Barron Hilton but now I’m known as Paris Hilton’s grandpa.’ We would always laugh about it.”

Her world growing up had never been ordinary. At the Buckley School in Los Angeles, she had Nicole Richie among her classmates, and when she studied in New York at the Professional Children’s School, she shared classes with Macaulay Culkin. Her mother, Kathy Hilton, was deeply connected in social circles and counted Michael Jackson as her best friend. “He was like an uncle to me,” Paris said.

President Donald Trump was another familiar face from her childhood, as he worked in the same business networks as her father, Richard Hilton. Paris once claimed she voted for him in 2016 but recanted the statement years later in her memoir, saying she had offered it only because of their family ties. She also wrote that Trump, who owned the first modelling agency she signed with, became furious when she moved to another agency and “intimidated the shit out of me on the phone.”

Paris Hilton’s self-made claim stirred a debate about wealth and privilege:

Paris Hilton drew criticism after declaring that she had built her wealth entirely on her own. According to the New York Post, Reddit users pushed back against her “self-made” claim and mocked Paris Hilton for presenting herself that way. “That’s epic narcissism,” one user wrote in a thread reacting to her interview.

Another commenter argued that,

“Even if you didn’t take seed money, handouts, or other direct support, there’s a huge difference between the kinds of risks someone coming from a background of wealth and security can take and someone just trying to keep food on the table can take.”

A third person pointed out,

“If you weren’t a Hilton then you wouldn’t be as big as you are, yes you made a name for yourself but its because you came from wealth and a household name.”

Her business ambitions had long been part of her public image. In a 2012 report from The Standard, Paris Hilton boasted that she would earn £100 million that year through a range of branded products, including hair extensions and a stuffed toy modeled after her dog Tinkerbell.

“I’m developing my own hotels, casinos and clubs and getting into real estate. It’s crazy at such a young age. I’m doing so much,” she said at the time.

In remarks shared by The Times, Paris Hilton noted that people once dismissed her as someone who was “famous for being famous.” That perception shifted as she moved into music, scoring a hit in 2006 with Stars Are Blind, and later into a high-earning DJ career, reportedly bringing in up to $1 million per show.

Her entrepreneurial work expanded into clothing, perfume, skincare, handbags, kitchenware, and even dog-themed Crocs. She launched her entertainment company, 11:11 Media, in 2021. “I’m a multihyphenate,” she told The Times.

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“I get to do everything that I love.”

The company operates from a large office on her property, set between a five-hole golf course, a lagoon pool with a water slide, and a pink tennis court marked with her signature. “Nobody in the world has that,” she shared. Hilton stated that the business, which employs more than 25 people, has been valued at $1 billion.

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