Audrey Hepburn had two sons and five grandchildren. Her first son, Sean Hepburn Ferrer, has three children named Emma Ferrer, Gregorio Ferrer, and Santiago Ferrer. Her second son, Luca Dotti, has two children who live private lives in Rome. Sadly, Audrey Hepburn never met any of her grandchildren. She passed away in January 1993, and her first grandchild was born the following year.

That short answer only tells part of the story. The full picture of the Audrey Hepburn family includes two marriages, two devoted sons, a granddaughter who became a painter, and a humanitarian mission that has now passed through three generations. Here is the complete family legacy of one of Hollywood’s most loved stars.

Quick Facts

Detail	Information
Full Name	Audrey Kathleen Hepburn (born Ruston)
Born	May 4, 1929, in Ixelles, Brussels, Belgium
Died	January 20, 1993, in Tolochenaz, Switzerland (age 63)
Cause of Death	Rare appendiceal cancer
Husbands	Mel Ferrer (1954 to 1968), Andrea Dotti (1969 to 1982)
Children	Sean Hepburn Ferrer (b. 1960), Luca Dotti (b. 1970)
Grandchildren	5, including artist Emma Ferrer
Known For	Roman Holiday, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, UNICEF work
Estimated Net Worth	55 million to 100 million dollars

Who Was Audrey Hepburn?

Before looking at the Audrey Hepburn grandchildren, it helps to understand who she was. Audrey Hepburn was born in Brussels, Belgium, on May 4, 1929. She survived the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands as a teenager, and her family lived through severe hunger during the war. That painful childhood shaped almost everything she did later in life, from her parenting choices to her charity work.

She trained as a ballet dancer before turning to acting. Her breakout role in Roman Holiday (1953) won her the Academy Award for Best Actress in her early twenties. She went on to star in classics like Sabrina, Funny Face, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Charade, My Fair Lady, and Wait Until Dark. Her final screen role was a small part in Steven Spielberg’s Always in 1989.

Acting was never her whole identity. Audrey Hepburn became a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in 1988 and spent her final years traveling to Ethiopia, Somalia, and other crisis zones to help children. In December 1992, one month before her death, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for that work.

Audrey Hepburn’s Marriages and Family Life

Many people searching for the Audrey Hepburn husband history are surprised to learn she married twice. Her first husband was American actor Mel Ferrer, whom she married in 1954 after they met through mutual friend Gregory Peck. They welcomed son Sean Hepburn Ferrer in 1960 and divorced in 1968.

In 1969, she married Italian psychiatrist Andrea Dotti. Their son Luca Dotti was born in 1970. That marriage ended in 1982. In her final years, her companion was Dutch actor Robert Wolders, who stayed by her side until her death, though the two never married.

Family always came before fame for Audrey Hepburn. She was one of the first actresses to earn one million dollars for a film, yet she stepped back from Hollywood at the height of her career to raise her boys in Switzerland. Her granddaughter Emma Ferrer later explained that this choice came from the pain of Audrey’s broken relationship with her own father. She wanted her sons to have the stable home she never had.

How Many Children Did Audrey Hepburn Have?

Audrey Hepburn had two children, both sons. She did not have a daughter, even though searches for an Audrey Hepburn daughter remain common. The confusion likely comes from her granddaughter Emma Ferrer, who is often photographed and compared to her.

Her two sons are:

• Sean Hepburn Ferrer, born in Switzerland on July 17, 1960, from her marriage to Mel Ferrer.
• Luca Dotti, born in Switzerland on February 8, 1970, from her marriage to Andrea Dotti.

She also suffered several miscarriages during her life, which made her two boys even more precious to her. Both sons have said their mother treated motherhood as her most important role.

Sean Hepburn Ferrer

Sean Hepburn Ferrer grew up between Switzerland and film sets, though he chose to work behind the camera in production and marketing rather than acting. After his mother’s death, he became the main public guardian of her legacy. In 1994, he founded the Audrey Hepburn Children’s Fund to continue her mission of helping children in need.

He is also an author. His book Audrey Hepburn, An Elegant Spirit (2003) became a New York Times bestseller and shared nearly 300 family photographs, many never published before. In 2020, he released a children’s book called Little Audrey’s Daydream with his wife Karin Ferrer, written to introduce his mother’s story to a new generation.

Sean Hepburn Ferrer has three children. His daughter Emma Ferrer was born in 1994 to his former wife Leila Flannigan. His two sons, Gregorio Ferrer and Santiago Ferrer, stay completely out of the public eye, and little verified information about them is available.

Luca Dotti

Luca Dotti took a much quieter path than his older brother. He trained as a graphic designer and built his life in Rome with his wife Domitilla Bertusi and their two children. He has said he did not even realize his mother was famous while growing up. Movie stars like Julie Andrews visited the house, but to him they were simply his mother’s friends.

Instead of acting, Luca Dotti chose books as his way of honoring his mother. He has written three of them: Audrey in Rome, Audrey at Home: Memories from My Mother’s Kitchen, and Audrey mia madre. Audrey at Home is especially personal, as it shares her private recipes and shows the simple domestic life she loved far away from Hollywood.

His two children are among the five Audrey Hepburn grandchildren, but the family keeps their names and details private. No confirmed public information is available about them, and that privacy appears to be a deliberate family choice.

Who Are Audrey Hepburn’s Grandchildren?

Audrey Hepburn has five grandchildren in total, three through Sean Hepburn Ferrer and two through Luca Dotti:

• Emma Ferrer (born 1994), a painter and former model, and the only grandchild in the public eye.
• Gregorio Ferrer, son of Sean, who lives a private life.
• Santiago Ferrer, son of Sean, who also stays out of the spotlight.
• Two children of Luca Dotti, raised privately in Rome.

The contrast within this family is striking. One grandchild carries the Hepburn name into galleries and humanitarian campaigns, while the other four live almost invisibly. That balance reflects how Audrey Hepburn raised her own sons, shielding them from fame as much as possible.

As for Audrey Hepburn great grandchildren, no confirmed public information is available. The family has never publicly announced a fourth generation.

Who Is Emma Ferrer?

Emma Ferrer, full name Emma Kathleen Hepburn Ferrer, was born in Switzerland in 1994, one year after her grandmother’s death. She spent her early childhood near the family estate before moving to Los Angeles and later to Florence, Italy, where she studied classical painting.

She first made headlines in 2014 when she appeared on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar at age 20. Fashion insiders expected a modeling career, especially with campaigns linked to Givenchy and Tiffany & Co., two brands forever tied to her grandmother. Instead, she stepped away from fashion to become a working artist. The New York Post once called her the “anti Kardashian” because she avoids celebrity culture, and she has described herself as an introvert who is not a party person.

Her art career is now the real story. In 2025, she held her debut solo exhibition, The Scapegoat, at Sapar Contemporary gallery in New York. Her first institutional solo show in the United States followed at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth from November 2025 to January 2026. She also continues her grandmother’s humanitarian work as a collaborator with UNICEF and UNHCR, visiting refugee camps in Greece and packing aid kits for children in crisis zones. She has said this work lets her feel a connection to the grandmother she never met.

Did Audrey Hepburn Ever Meet Her Grandchildren?

No. Audrey Hepburn died on January 20, 1993, and her first grandchild, Emma Ferrer, was born in 1994. This is one of the most touching facts about the family. A woman who devoted her life to children around the world never got to hold her own grandchildren.

Emma Ferrer has spoken openly about this loss. She says she came to know her grandmother in two ways: through the movies and photos the whole world shares, and through the private stories her father tells her. Those stories describe a woman who cooked lunch for film crews, brought guests breakfast in bed, and always arrived with flowers. Emma still keeps Audrey’s old linen teddy bear on her bed.

Do Audrey Hepburn’s Sons Get Along?

This question comes up often, and the honest answer is that the brothers went through a painful public dispute before resolving it. Audrey Hepburn left her belongings to both sons in her will but did not divide the items, trusting them to agree between themselves.

For years they managed together, but between 2015 and 2017, Sean Hepburn Ferrer and Luca Dotti ended up in a Los Angeles court over a storage locker filled with their mother’s dresses, scripts, posters, and awards. The case was settled in 2017. The brothers signed an agreement dividing the memorabilia, and some items were sold at a Christie’s auction with the proceeds split equally. There were also earlier disagreements connected to the Audrey Hepburn Children’s Fund and the use of her image.

Both men have continued to honor their mother in their own ways since the settlement. Beyond the resolved legal matters, no confirmed public information is available about their current personal relationship.

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Audrey Hepburn Net Worth and Estate

At the time of her death, the Audrey Hepburn net worth was substantial. According to several sources, estimates range from about 55 million to 100 million dollars, based on publicly available information. These figures are estimates and vary between outlets, since her estate was never publicly audited.

Her wealth came from film salaries, residuals from studios like Paramount and Warner Bros., image licensing, and her beloved Swiss farmhouse, La Paisible, in the village of Tolochenaz. She lived there from 1963 until her death and chose it precisely because it was quiet and far from Hollywood. Her estate passed to her two sons, and the value of her image and memorabilia has only grown. A single Christie’s auction of her personal items in 2017 drew worldwide attention and bids far above estimates.

Humanitarian Legacy Passed Through Her Family

The most lasting part of the Audrey Hepburn legacy may not be her films but her charity work, and it now runs through three generations. Audrey herself credited her survival of wartime hunger, when she lived on nettles and tulip bulbs, for her devotion to UNICEF. She often said she knew exactly what a starving child felt like.

Her sons carried that mission forward. Sean Hepburn Ferrer founded the Audrey Hepburn Children’s Fund in 1994. Luca Dotti has served as an ambassador for causes connected to his mother’s memory and preserved her human side through his books. Now Emma Ferrer works with UNICEF and UNHCR in the field, from refugee camps in Greece to aid drives in the United States.

Emma has pointed out something easy to forget today. Before her grandmother, it was rare for a star of that size to attach herself so completely to a humanitarian cause. Audrey Hepburn helped invent the model of the celebrity ambassador that the world now takes for granted.

Conclusion

The story of the Audrey Hepburn grandchildren is really the story of a family that chose substance over spotlight. Two sons who protect their mother’s memory through books and charity. Four grandchildren who live quietly, and one, Emma Ferrer, who carries the family name into art galleries and refugee camps rather than red carpets. Audrey never met any of them, yet her values clearly reached everyone.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many grandchildren does Audrey Hepburn have? 

Audrey Hepburn has five grandchildren. Three are children of Sean Hepburn Ferrer, named Emma Ferrer, Gregorio Ferrer, and Santiago Ferrer. The other two are the private children of Luca Dotti.

Did Audrey Hepburn have a daughter? 

No. Audrey Hepburn had two sons and no daughters. Her granddaughter Emma Ferrer is sometimes mistaken for a daughter because of their strong resemblance.

Did Audrey Hepburn have any great grandchildren? 

No confirmed public information is available about any Audrey Hepburn great grandchildren. The family has not announced a fourth generation.

What was Audrey Hepburn’s cause of death? 

Audrey Hepburn died of a rare appendiceal cancer on January 20, 1993, at her home in Tolochenaz, Switzerland. She was 63 years old.

What was Audrey Hepburn’s last public appearance? 

Her final months came after her 1992 UNICEF trip to Somalia. Her last screen role was a cameo in the 1989 film Always, and she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in December 1992, shortly before her death.

Is Emma Ferrer an actress?

No. Emma Ferrer is a painter and former model. She held her first solo art exhibition in New York in 2025 and works with UNICEF and UNHCR on humanitarian projects.

This article has been fact-checked by Richard Dennis, CelebsAmerica’s founder and lead editorial voice. We verify every claim, every source, and every story we put our name on.