Highlights
- Leni Klum has had her fair share of challenges, including her parents' divorce and years without her biological father in her life.
- Leni Klum's biological father is Flavio Briatore, an Italian business leader who has overcome controversies to amass a $400 million fortune.
- Despite the divorce, Leni Klum maintains a strong relationship with her adoptive father, Seal, who has been a constant presence in her life since birth.
From the outside looking in, it certainly seems like Leni Klum has had an extremely easy life. Born to one of the '90s biggest models, Leni Klum has followed in her famous mother's footsteps which has forced her to address the nepo baby controversy.
While Leni Klum was fortunate in many ways, she has gone through some tough times too. Most notably, Heidi Klum and Seal getting divorced amid rumors would have been very hard on Leni Klum. On top of that, Leni Klum sadly went years without her biological father in her life.
Is Leni Klum Close With Her Biological Father, Flavio Briatore?
Easily one of the most famous models of all time, Heidi Klum has led her life in the public for decades now. The epitome of a supermodel, Heidi Klum's superstar status has resulted in the press regularly reporting on her private life.
Since the media often pays attention to Heidi Klum's personal life, it is well known that she is a mother of four. It also is known that Heidi Klum's ex-husband Seal is a father to all four of her children, Leni, Henry, Johan, and Lou.
However, unlike her younger siblings, Leni Klum's biological father isn't the pop star Seal. Instead, Leni Klum's biological father is a man that most people haven't heard of even though he is very accomplished and controversial, Flavio Briatore.
An Italian business leader, Briatore began his career as a restaurant manager and an insurance salesman. After going through some tough times including being charged with fraud and sentenced to prison, Briatore turned his life around.
When he was still a fugitive from the law, Briatore opened several Benetton franchise locations that became successful. After eventually having his convictions "extinguished", Briatore wound up being appointed to manage the Benetton Formula One racing team by company owner Luciano Benetton.
In the years since that promotion, Briatore enjoyed a lot of success, weathered several controversies, and amassed an incredible fortune. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Briatore has a $400 million fortune as of this writing.
Before Heidi Klum got involved with her current husband Tom Kaulitz or her ex-husband Seal, she dated Flavio Briatore in the early-2000s. By the time Heidi Klum and Briatore broke up, Heidi Klum was pregnant with their daughter, Leni Klum.
In 2016, Briatore was interviewed and asked about his relationship with his daughter, Leni Klum. During that interview, Briatore was very open about having no relationship with Leni Klum at that time. As Briatore explained, not only was his daughter not part of his life, but he didn't even miss her since they hadn't been in contact for some time at that point.
While that may seem like a harsh thing for any father to say, Briatore didn't seem like he intended his comments to be mean. Instead, he just seemed to be honest about the situation and he seemed very happy that Leni Klum still had a father in her life.
"It's hard to miss a baby that you never see. But I know that Leni is not an abandoned child. Leni is part of Seal's family and Nathan is part of mine."
According to Daily Mail's 2016 report about Briatore and Leni Klum's relationship, there was a time when he had more of a connection with his daughter.
"Leni was born when Heidi and I had already spilt. Heidi was living in Los Angeles and I was in London, the distance between us was unbridgeable. We used to speak on the phone two hours a day, but it wasn't enough. She needed to stay with her mum."
Later in 2018, TMZ reported on the fact that Briatore's relationship with his daughter was starting to change. After several years apart, Leni Klum and Briatore reunited at the Cala di Volpe hotel in Porto Cervo that year.
At the time of Briatore and Leni Klum's reunion, it was reported that they weren't alone. Instead, the father and daughter reportedly were accompanied by Heidi Klum and the supermodel's three other children.
As of now, there is no way to know who made the first contact that led to Briatore and Leni Klum reuniting. What is clear, however, is that they have rebuilt their relationship since then and see each other somewhat regularly.
On Briatore's Instagram account, there are several photos of him with Leni Klum and his son Nathan Briatore. On top of that, the paparazzi have captured photos of Briatore and Leni Klum on family vacations together since they became part of each other's lives again.
Is Leni Klum Still Close With Her Father, Seal?
When Leni Klum was born, Seal was there to witness her enter the world. After that, Seal adopted Leni Klum and has been part of her life ever since. Whether people describe Seal as Leni Klum's adoptive dad or just call say he is her dad, the fact is that he is her father in every way aside from genetics.
After many years together, Seal and Heidi Klum broke up to the surprise of many observers. Ultimately, Seal and Heidi Klum finalized their divorce in 2014. At that time, some observers wondered if the divorce may ruin Seal and Leni Klum's relationship.
Fortunately for Seal and Leni Klum, it seems very clear that they continue to have a great father-and-daughter relationship. Despite the divorce and Leni Klum reuniting with her biological father, she has still accompanied Seal at red carpet events for example.
In 2021, Seal and Leni Klum attended the premiere of the movie The Harder They Fall together. At that event, Seal was asked about his relationship with Leni Klum, and he spoke about how long he has adored his eldest daughter.
"It's always been like this, from the day I met your mother. She [Heidi] was two weeks pregnant with this beautiful woman. We have always had this bond."