NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Business

Billionaire media tycoon Kerry Packer too hard on son James, say mates

news.com.au
19 Nov, 2018 10:21 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Kerry Packer (left) pictured with his son, James, in 2004. Photo / AP

Kerry Packer (left) pictured with his son, James, in 2004. Photo / AP

He was born into a life of unimaginable wealth and privilege, once describing himself as "without doubt, the luckiest guy around".

But according to friends of billionaire James Packer, it was a gift that came with enormous pressure to succeed, costing him his marriages and affecting his mental health.

Packer, his mates say, was determined to cast off the shadow of his late father Kerry and build his own empire.

Former Labor powerbroker Graham Richardson, one of Kerry Packer's closest friends, told A Current Affair: "I think he was always trying to be Kerry and he shouldn't have been, because he's not Kerry.

"I think that by doing so he placed way too much pressure on himself and it came down to how much money he was worth."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Richardson said Kerry Packer was relentlessly tough on his only son, describing James as "a very, very bright guy".

"You couldn't characterise it as your average father-son relationship, there was nothing like it," he told ACA.

Packer with his mother Ros and sister Gretel in 2001. Photo / Supplied
Packer with his mother Ros and sister Gretel in 2001. Photo / Supplied

"So Kerry, I think, was too hard on (James) at times," he said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"And being tough physically was very important to the Packers, quite apart from being tough mentally."

Richardson told ACA he saw Kerry Packer "be pretty hard on James in front of others".

"He chose quite often to do it in front of others. I saw it myself three or four times, which wasn't overly pleasant."

News Corp journalist Damon Kitney, the author of The Price of Fortune – The Untold Story of Being James Packer, told ACA James believed his father did not realise the impact he was having on his son.

Discover more

Business

A2 Milk profit rockets in first four months

19 Nov 07:56 PM
Construction

Fletcher downgrades earnings forecast by 10%

19 Nov 08:01 PM
Business

Steel & Tube, ComCom appeal record mesh fine

19 Nov 08:38 PM
Construction

Ihumātao protesters gather outside Fletcher AGM

19 Nov 09:33 PM

"I do think there were probably times in James's life when Kerry was too hard on James," he told ACA.

"But I think sometimes – and James makes this point himself – Kerry probably didn't realise the impact he was having on his son."

After the shocking 2001 collapse of OneTel, the telecommunications company that Packer had backed, the billionaire spent a lot of time in the US.

He became involved in Scientology and developed a close friendship with Tom Cruise.

More recently, Packer became particularly close to Hollywood legend Warren Beatty.

Beatty acted as a mentor to the troubled Packer, letting him live in the guesthouse of his sprawling Hollywood compound.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Mariah Carey, former fiancee of Packer's, was described as "a difficult personality". Photo / Getty Images
Mariah Carey, former fiancee of Packer's, was described as "a difficult personality". Photo / Getty Images

"I think the most important thing Warren did for James, and it's documented amazingly, is that he drove him to psychiatrist offices in LA when James was at his lowest point, when he was really hitting the booze hard," Kitney told ACA.

Ironically, it was the big-budget flop of Beatty's film Rules Don't Apply that prompted Packer to pull his money from the production company RatPac, which he had formed with director Brett Ratner.

William D. Cohen, a special correspondent for Vanity Fair, said the collapse of RatPac was a case of "dumb money".

"In Hollywood, unfortunately, there's this whole idea of 'dumb money'. People with a lot of money decide they're going to come to Hollywood, invest in movies, be part of the fast crowd in Hollywood, hang out with movie stars and inevitably the smart money takes the dumb money."

Cohen was equally scathing when it came to Packer's former fiancee, Mariah Carey.

"She's a very difficult personality," he told ACA. "She's a notorious diva, she's very hard on the people who work for her."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Packer and Carey became engaged, but James's friend Kerry Stokes has admitted he thought the relationship was not what James needed and decided to intervene.

Stokes, the owner of Seven West Media, sent Packer to Israel to give him some space from the ongoing drama, leading to the end of the billionare's relationship with the singer.

Despite Packer's resignation from the board of Crown Resorts earlier this year, Kitney told ACA the billionaire was now in "a much better place" mentally.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Business

Business

'Terrific outcome': 189 staff from New World destroyed by fire learn of new job options

09 Jul 06:43 AM
Premium
Shares

Market close: NZ sharemarket dips as Reserve Bank holds OCR steady

09 Jul 06:28 AM
Premium
Official Cash Rate

Rates on hold: What the Reserve Bank's decision means for Kiwis

09 Jul 06:00 AM

Audi offers a sporty spin on city driving with the A3 Sportback and S3 Sportback

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Business

'Terrific outcome': 189 staff from New World destroyed by fire learn of new job options

'Terrific outcome': 189 staff from New World destroyed by fire learn of new job options

09 Jul 06:43 AM

New World at Auckland's Victoria Park burned down on June 17. All its stock was ruined.

Premium
Market close: NZ sharemarket dips as Reserve Bank holds OCR steady

Market close: NZ sharemarket dips as Reserve Bank holds OCR steady

09 Jul 06:28 AM
Premium
Rates on hold: What the Reserve Bank's decision means for Kiwis

Rates on hold: What the Reserve Bank's decision means for Kiwis

09 Jul 06:00 AM
Premium
British, Asian, Kiwis inquire about buying Cardrona Hotel

British, Asian, Kiwis inquire about buying Cardrona Hotel

09 Jul 05:00 AM
Gold demand soars amid global turmoil
sponsored

Gold demand soars amid global turmoil

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP