Recent photographs reveal former first son Barron Trump's impressive height

Though he has largely remained out of the public eye in recent years, former first son Barron Trump was recently photographed alongside Melania Trump at his grandmother's funeral in Florida, and observers everywhere were stunned by his impressive stature, as Slate reports.

As the New York Post noted, the 17-year-old son of former President Donald Trump cut an especially striking figure while standing with his mother, father, and grandfather in the doorway of the Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea last month.

Though both of Barron's parents are themselves tall, with Donald Trump reportedly measuring 6'3” and his wife coming in at 5'11”, the teen's height caught many off guard, particularly given the scarcity of recent images capturing his life in Florida.

The family was united in paying tribute to Melania's mother, Amalija Knavs, someone who Donald Trump once joked played a significant role in his son's prolific growth.

“That's how he got so tall, he only ate her food,” Trump told a crowd of supporters earlier this year.

While some might expect that Barron's height would have sent him a particular athletic direction, his father explained that his interests were elsewhere.

“I said, you're gonna be a basketball player,” Donald Trump recalled, but then noted that Barron replied, “well, I like soccer, dad, actually.”

Whether Barron's height will ultimately be a help or a hindrance in his life is the subject of some debate, with essayist Nicholas Russell – who is also quite tall – speculating on the possibilities, as Slate further notes.

“To me, it's pretty apparent that [Barron] is still getting used to it and is not super comfortable,” Russell said. “But that could also be an artifact of just not liking being in front of the cameras and freezing up a little bit.

Even so, Russell opined, “His height is sort of just an added layer of surreality to his existence. He's still Donald Trump's son. He's probably got a very cushy life.”

One thing that remains to be seen, however, is whether Barron Trump has yet reached his full adult height, and according to U.K. professor Tim Cole, his could still have some growing to do.

“Both extremes are possible – that he has already finished growing, and that he will continue to grow – slowly – for several years,” Cole suggested.

Russell opined on the latter possibility, saying, “If he's not done growing, his life is gonna suck. Because I feel like 6'9” is when it sort of becomes untenable and you're truly exceptional in a way that you probably don't want to be.”

With that said, Trump family insiders have recently suggested that young Barron is poised to take a more active role in his father's 2024 presidential campaign than he has done in the past, as the Post noted separately, and his presence in the limelight will assuredly spark a great deal of interest and curiosity.