Justine and Jason Bateman Are Siblings, but Are the Two of Them Close?

While there are plenty of celebrities who lean to the left, there are some in and around Hollywood who were happy that Donald Trump was elected to a second term. Among them is Justine Bateman, a former child star who was on shows like Family Ties and Desperate Housewives. She recently appeared on Fox News to make it clear how happy she was about the election's outcome.

Following that Fox News appearance, which made the rounds on social media, many are wondering whether Justine and her brother Jason Bateman have any sort of relationship. The two of them obviously grew up together, but here's what we know about whether they're close today.

Justine and Jason don't discuss their family life all that often, so it's difficult to say for sure whether the two of them are still close today. Many have speculated that, because Justine is a Trump supporter, she and Jason may not have the best relationship now.

In an interview with Marc Maron from 2017, Jason discussed growing up in show business. His father worked in various industry-adjacent jobs, and his mom was a flight attendant.

"We kind of had a very atypical upbringing, my sister and I," Jason explains on the show. "The dynamic between parents and children was not traditional," he added, explaining that because his father was a bohemian and his mother was a flight attendant, they didn't have a conventional relationship. "There isn't that obligatory draw to call every Sunday, or visit where you live now." Basically, Jason doesn't see his family much.

With reference to his sister, Jason discussed the way he doesn't feel any obligation to be close to her. Instead, he said that both of them have chosen to be as close as they are comfortable being with one another. "You're not handcuffed by blood. You've got to earn it," he explained.

Jason also acknowledged that the two of them live about a mile apart, but don't see each other very regularly anyway.

Although Jason and Justine may have very different political beliefs, that interview makes it clear that the reason the two of them aren't close has less to do with politics and more to do with how they were raised. They were both part of a family where blood bonds weren't all that important, so they have drifted somewhat apart from one another as adults. That doesn't mean they don't get along, they just don't feel any obligation to have a close relationship.

"I could be a better uncle, brother, son, Marc," he finally says as the two of them laugh. Of course, this interview was conducted in a slightly different time, politically, and it's possible that things have changed. What seems clear, though, is that even though Jason and Justine grew up together, they aren't particularly close as adults.