Jenny McCarthy and Melissa McCarthy Share a Last Name –– Are They Related?

When people think of Jenny McCarthy, they think of the blonde bombshell who made a name for herself in the Hollywood industry in the early 90s. She’s a well-known model, actress, and TV personality.

When people think of Melissa McCarthy, they know her for being one of the funniest comedic actresses of this generation. Since Jenny and Melissa share a last name, a lot of people are curious to know if they are related in any way. Here’s the truth.

Jenny and Melissa share a bloodline connection. It turns out that Melissa is Jenny's older cousin. Plenty of fans were shocked by this information when Jenny made it absolutely public in 2015. She posted a picture on Instagram from her childhood. In the picture, little Jenny is standing with her sister and her cousin.

The cousin she’s next to in the picture is indeed Melissa! In the past, they’ve been quick to stand up for each other in the press. Jenny clapped back against a harsh reviewer from the New York Observer, who trashed Melissa's role in a movie called Identity Thief from 2013.

The movie reviewer called Melissa a “gimmick comedian who has devoted her short career to being obese and obnoxious with equal success.” Jenny was so disgusted by what she read that she told E! News, “I don't have the whole story, but I do know that after being in this business 20 years, it's really crummy that you get attacked in your personal life in general."

She continued by saying it was obnoxious "for anyone to attack like that, it's just wrong and hurtful, and it doesn't do anyone any good…” It’s nice to know they have each other‘s back when it counts.

Jenna Perusich is an HGTV star who made a name for herself after collaborating with the Property Brothers. These days, she is co-hosting her own home makeover show alongside Melissa.

It turns out, they are also cousins! Jenna spoke to HGTV about their exciting new show and what it's like working alongside Melissa saying, “After redesigning my parents’ house on Celebrity IOU, Melissa and I were inspired to combine our desire to help others with our love of renovation."

She continued, "The show is really a seamless transition to what we’ve been doing for years, only now we get the chance to push boundaries and learn new things while being fortunate enough to have a front-row seat to changing lives.” Melissa usually signs onto projects that include scripts that must be memorized.

At this point, she’s diving headfirst into the reality TV game. The purpose of the show is to help people remodel and renovate their living spaces. Interestingly enough, there’s an 18-year age gap between Melissa and Jenna which means they didn’t create a close-knit friendship or familial bond with each other until they reached their adulthoods.