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 / Entertainment

Hilaria Baldwin admits fake Spanish accent, real name in Instagram video

By Jessica Wang
news.com.au·
28 Dec, 2020 04:07 AM6 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

Hilaria Baldwin and Alec Baldwin have five children together. Photo / Getty Images

Hilaria Baldwin and Alec Baldwin have five children together. Photo / Getty Images

In a lengthy seven-minute Instagram video, the fitness expert and podcaster Hilaria (sometimes Hilary) Baldwin hit back at online claims which alleged the 36-year-old has been "faking" a Spanish accent, using a fake name and shared incorrect claims she was born in Mallorca, Spain.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Hilaria Thomas Baldwin (@hilariabaldwin)

Baldwin's post was in response to a now-viral Twitter thread which shared multiple videos of Baldwin speaking in a Spanish accent which conflicted with the American accent she uses in her recent Instagram videos.

"You have to admire Hilaria Baldwin's commitment to her decade long grift where she impersonates a Spanish person," tweeted @lenibriscoe.

You have to admire Hilaria Baldwin’s commitment to her decade long grift where she impersonates a Spanish person

— elena ilana alana alina elana (not) (@lenibriscoe) December 21, 2020
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Among the thousands of responses, some of Baldwin's former classmates claimed the yoga instructor grew up in the US and went by the name Hilary, not Hilaria.

"I went to high school with her. Genuinely lovely person, I recall, but fully a white girl from Cambridge," wrote one user.

"I went to high school with her. She was perfectly nice and serious about ballroom dancing. Her name was indeed Hilary Hayward-Thomas and she did not have her current accent," shared another.

Many posts on Twitter have also expressed confusion, intrigue and anger over the star's changing identity.

"Hilaria Baldwin aka Hilary Thomas is the weirdest story I've heard this year. Faking a whole persona and accent this whole time? Her parents are white and from Boston. There's no way she was born in Spain since her mom (sic) was in med school in Boston in 1984 (graduated in 1986)," wrote one user.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Remember when Hilaria Baldwin (nee Hilary Hayward-Thomas) was like "how you say in English, uh, 'cucumber'"?" shared US-based writer Sophie Ross.

"I'll give Hilaria Baldwin this – when she commits to a con, she COMMITS. She even gave her children Spanish names. Hilaria from Majorca is really Hilary from Boston. You can't make this sh*t up. What's the Hispanic version of blackface?"

watching hilary hayward thomas’s (aka hilaria baldwin) 10-yr long con crumble to pieces

this year really gonna end on a high note for me 🤍🕊 pic.twitter.com/GkdGmKqOGZ

— i hate it here 💕 (@ooh_la_la_kate) December 27, 2020

Their confusion is warranted. Previously it's been reported the mum-of-five and wife of Alec Baldwin grew up in Mallorca, Spain and can be heard speaking with a Spanish accent in several media interviews.

Baldwin herself also claimed on the #mumtruths podcast that she moved to the US when she was 19 to go to New York University.

"My family lives in Spain, they live in Mallorca," she confirmed to the hosts.

Her talent agency bio with the Creative Artists Agency also confirms that Baldwin was "born in Mallorca, Spain and raised in Boston, Massachusetts".

Clarifying the confusion in her Instagram video, however, Baldwin has now confirmed she was born in Boston, Massachusetts and not Mallorca, Spain.

"I was born in Boston and grew up spending time with my family between Massachusetts and Spain. My parents and sibling live in Spain and I chose to live here, in the USA," she wrote in the caption. "We celebrate both cultures in our home – Alec and I are raising our children bilingual, just as I was raised."

She also admitted that being bilingual, her accent does fluctuate.

"I am that person who if I have been speaking a lot of Spanish then I tend to mix them and if I've been speaking a lot of English then I mix up my Spanish," she said. "It's one of those things that I've always been a bit insecure about. When I get nervous or upset then I tend to mix the two.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"It's not something I'm playing at ... I want that to be very, very clear."

Finally, when it came to her name, Baldwin said that while she used the name Hilary in high school, she's known to her family as Hilaria. She later "consolidated" her name as Hilaria as it was administratively easier.

"One of the things I love about what my parents called me, it means happy in both languages, we can all be really clear that it's the same name, it's just a few letters different, we shouldn't be so upset about it," she said.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Hilaria Thomas Baldwin (@hilariabaldwin)

Earlier this week, Baldwin also received criticism over a "post bath" Instagram photo in which she can be seen holding her 3-month-old son in her underwear.

Comedian Amy Schumer re-posted the image in a now-deleted Instagram post, with a tongue-in-cheek caption which read: "Gene [Schumer's baby boy] and I wanted to wish everyone a happy holiday season. Enjoy it with whatever family members are talking to you this year."

Expressing confusion over the post, Baldwin said Schumer's post resulted in many comments which body-shamed her post-birth figure.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Love a good joke – don't think this should have been such a big deal," she said on an Instagram video shared on December 23. "My only concern with it is that it started to spiral out of control ... where we're getting into a place of body shaming.

"The problem is sometimes we put down people's shapes ... If you're doing body inclusivity then that means body inclusivity for all."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by @amyschumer

Baldwin later followed it up with her own joke.

"Looking forward to much positivity in 2021 – like Alec carrying our next child ... thank you @amyschumer for being a part of our pregnancy announcement and convincing me that after five children, I've done enough," she wrote, sharing a photoshopped image of Schumer and herself and Alec.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Entertainment

Entertainment

Watch: The latest highlights from this year's Smokefreerockquest and Showquest

27 Jun 12:42 AM
Entertainment

'Messy, ugly, full of sharp edges': How the world reacted to Lorde's new album

27 Jun 12:14 AM
Entertainment

Lorde threatened with arrest for 'riot incitement'

26 Jun 11:33 PM

Why wallpaper works wonders

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Entertainment

Watch: The latest highlights from this year's Smokefreerockquest and Showquest

Watch: The latest highlights from this year's Smokefreerockquest and Showquest

27 Jun 12:42 AM

More exciting performances from talented up-and-coming musicians around the country.

'Messy, ugly, full of sharp edges': How the world reacted to Lorde's new album

'Messy, ugly, full of sharp edges': How the world reacted to Lorde's new album

27 Jun 12:14 AM
Lorde threatened with arrest for 'riot incitement'

Lorde threatened with arrest for 'riot incitement'

26 Jun 11:33 PM
Premium
'Struggle' - TV series producers on problems filming around Queenstown

'Struggle' - TV series producers on problems filming around Queenstown

26 Jun 11:00 PM
A new care model to put patients first
sponsored

A new care model to put patients first

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