Malia Obama has come a long way since growing up in the White House and has managed to step out of her parents' shadows and carve a career for herself as a screenwriter.
The 25-year-old daughter of Barack and Michelle Obama was only 10 when her dad was elected as the 44th President of the United States and she was plunged into the spotlight as one of the most famous daughters in the world, alongside her sister Sasha, 23.
But in the years since leaving Washington, D.C. Malia has matured into a beautiful young woman who lives independently from her parents.
She has undergone a style evolution too. She's gone from a shy, little girl wearing dresses and bows and clinging onto her father's hand to an adult, who now rocks waist-length hair, washboard abs, and is comfortable in her own eclectic and casual style.
But that's not all as over the years, Malia has taken strides to develop her own identity – including dropping her famous surname.
Name change
Despite having one of the most recognizable surnames, Malia appears to want to distance herself from it as she forges her career.
When she debuted her short film, The Heart – about the relationship between a mother and her son – at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah on January 18, the Harvard graduate dropped 'Obama' from her last name in favor of a different stage moniker.
During the Sundance Institute's Meet the Artist spotlight video, and in the credits of the film, it was revealed that Malia is using her middle name as she was referred to as 'Malia Ann'.
Sundance Film Festival
The Heart was Malia's first film to appear at Sundance after it was chosen to premiere in the acclaimed festival, which sees over 14,000 filmmakers submit their work but only around 100 are selected.
Speaking about the project, Malia described it as "an odd little story, somewhat a fable, about a man grieving the death of his mother after she leaves him an unusual request".
She continued: "The film is about lost objects and lonely people and forgiveness and regret, but I also think it works hard to uncover where tenderness and closeness can exist in those things."
Malia added: "We hope it makes you feel a bit less lonely or at least reminds you not to forget about the people who are. The folks who came together to make this film have my heart, pun intended!"
Career
Malia is proving herself in the entertainment industry after interning on HBO's Girls and at Harvey Weinstein's production company.
She also worked as a staff writer on Donald Glover's Amazon Prime series Swarm, and he had nothing but good things to say about her work ethic.
"Her writing style is great," he told Vanity Fair in 2022: "She's just like, an amazingly talented person. She's really focused, and she's working really hard."
He added: "I feel like she’s just somebody who's gonna have really good things coming soon."
Donald wasn't the only one who saw her talent either. His brother, Steven Glover, who often collaborates with his sibling, had plenty of praise for Malia too.
"Donald always says perspective is important," he revealed during the same interview. "And people with different perspectives are important for a writer's room.
"And for sure, she definitely has a unique perspective on everything. So, we wanted to hear her stories and have her work with us. Listening to her stories and having her involved really gave us a lot of good ideas."
Steven also joked that "we can't be easy on her just because she's the [former] president's daughter."
Sibling bond
Malia and Sasha have an incredibly close and live together in LA after Sasha moved from Michigan to California. The young women both relocated and now live in Brentwood near the USC campus where Sasha was a student until recently.
In order to pursue a profession as a screenwriter, Malia moved to CA in 2021 after receiving her degree from Harvard and her younger sibling couldn't wait to join her.
Boyfriends
Malia has never commented on her romantic relationships, but her mother previously admitted that she brought men home to meet her and her husband.
Joking about her daughters' love lives to Ellen DeGeneres in 2014, Michelle said: "Now, they're bringing grown men home. Before it was just a pop band, now they have boyfriends and real lives and all that stuff. They have grown up right before our very eyes, and they're doing well."
In 2017, Malia was linked to British law student, Rory Farquharson after they were seen kissing at one of Harvard's football games.
In 2022, she was reported to be dating Ethiopian producer Dawit Eklund, and in late 2023, she was pictured enjoying a sushi date in Los Angeles with rapper Aminé, although she has never confirmed any relationships.
Parents' approval
Barack and Michelle are full of praise when it comes to their daughters, with the former First Lady branding them "amazing young women".
Michelle is proud of what her daughters are becoming and previously said on The Ellen DeGeneres Show: "I listened to what my mother said when she was raising us.
"She said, 'I'm not raising babies, I'm raising real people to be out in the world.' And I kept that in mind with the girls."
She concluded: "I mean, they wouldn't always be in that bubble of the White House, so they had to learn to make their beds. They had to learn how to drive.
"They had to learn how to be compassionate, independent, responsible people so that they entered the world as responsible, compassionate, capable people. And I think they are amazing young women because of that."