Hudson grew up on a ranch in Colorado and credits her famous parents, Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, for instilling important values in the family.
“The work ethic in our family is really huge,” Hudson tells ABC News’ Rebecca Jarvis on her podcast No Limits with Rebecca Jarvis. “They definitely instilled that in all of their kids … It was just basically do your job [and] do it the best you can.”
“I think I had probably more of a traditional childhood than people would probably think,” she says. “Obviously as you get older you start to realize that people see your parents differently but to us, they’re our parents, and we had a great childhood because there was so much love … they were very present parents, surprisingly for how big their careers were.”
Hudson says she had a passion for performing from a young age. She was accepted into the prestigious NYU Tisch School of the Arts for college but opted to defer for a year to travel and to pursue her budding acting career.
She was cast in her first film in 1998 in the independent Desert Blue, alongside up-and-comers Casey Affleck and Christina Ricci. Then, two years later, she found herself nominated for an Academy Award for her performance as Penny Lane in Almost Famous. She never did make it to NYU.
“As much as I now wish that I did have the NYU experience, you know life presents itself timing wise the way it’s supposed to I guess and so I have no regrets,” she says.
Despite winning the Golden Globe award for the her role in Almost Famous, she didn’t bring home the Oscar. While some may look at that as a letdown, Hudson was able to turn the experience into a valuable opportunity thanks to some advice from her father, Kurt Russell.
“Something Kurt said to me at the Oscars … after I lost: ‘Congratulations, you can now go have your career.’ [That] was like such a great thing to say because it’s just starting, I was 21, so it was kind of amazing to have that so young and then just start working and having that kind of demand at a young age is just incredible,” she said.
In the years that followed, Hudson has been a regular on the big screen, staring in big budget films like How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days and Bride Wars. She also teamed up with her brother Oliver Hudson and their parents to create a production company, Cosmic Entertainment.
Most recently, she has been pursuing a passion for health and wellness with the creation of her activewear brand, Fabletics. The brand offers a “flexible membership” concept where being a VIP member gives you access to new merchandise, savings and digital workouts free of charge. Customers have the option to buy suggested items each month but there is no automatic reoccurring subscription.
“There’s something with Fabletics I’m doing pretty much every day,” Hudson says of her involvement. “It’s anything from looking at budgeting, from marketing and how we’re utilizing our budgets, to design, if things are going the way that I’m happy with or maybe certain things need some changes.”
In a retail market where many brands are struggling, Fabletics continues to grow, boasting 46 percent global growth in 2016. So how does it manage to standout in a saturated market?
“I think it’s an authentic voice,” Hudson says. “I really do. At the end of the day, I think that it has to be something that you really believe in and I think that goes with anything.”
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