Latest news with #childstardom
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
19 Child Stars Who Disappeared From Fame Before The Age Of 25
Child stardom is a tricky beast — while a rare few manage to transition to on-camera careers as adults, most actually retire from acting before they've even hit their 20s (sometimes, for good reason). Here's a look at some of the most iconic child stars who low-key disappeared once they reached adulthood... Taylor Thomas was a huge star as a kid, with roles in Home Improvement, The Lion King, The Adventures of Pinocchio, Man of the House, I'll Be Home for Christmas and much, much more. Although he's had intermittent guest roles as an adult, he's largely stopped acting, focusing on his education and working behind the scenes in film. Jeff Kravitz / FilmMagic, Inc, Craig Sjodin / Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images Related: Richards was iconic in the role of Lex in Jurassic Park. She had some other acting roles as a kid and teen, but nothing quite so memorable, and as an adult she's focused on her art career. Ambin Entertainment, Albert L. Ortega / Getty Images a young actor, Charlie Korsmo had several huge roles, most notably in Hook and Can't Hardly Wait, and as an adult he studied at MIT and Yale and is now a professor of corporate law and finance. Amblin Entertainment, Facebook / Buzzn The Tower / Via Facebook: reel Hammond had the memorable role of Thud Butt in Hook. He doesn't seem to have acted professionally onscreen as an adult, but he describes himself on Instagram as an "international actor, producer, director, screenplay writer, and illusionist". Amblin Entertainment, Instagram / @raushanhammondofficial / Via Matthews, aka Liesel Pritzker Simmons, is best known as Sara Crewe in 1995's A Little Princess, but she's actually an heiress in real life. She appeared in two more movies, including Air Force One, but as an adult has focused on impact investing and whatever else heiresses do. Warner Bros, Vaughn Ridley / Sportsfile via Getty Images Hughes was a central part of any movie and TV-watching '90s kid's childhood, starring in Pet Sematary, Kindergarten Cop, and Full House, amongst other roles. He still seems to work in entertainment, now in the camera department. Imagine Entertainment, Instagram / @woeismiko / Via Related: Rose Karr was another staple of '90s kids entertainment, with roles in Kindergarten Cop, Father of the Bride, and the Beethoven series. She retired from acting at age 10 and is now extremely private, although according to Reddit sleuths, she allegedly works as a psychologist. Cooper and his iconic '90s bowl cut/mullet are probably best remembered for his role as Jim Carrey's son in Liar Liar, but he also had a bunch of other roles, mostly in TV shows like Boy Meets World and Brother's Keeper. He stopped acting before adulthood and is now a radio producer. Universal Pictures, X / @uhbroncofan / Via Jakub had a pretty prolific acting career as a kid and teen, starring in movies like Mrs. Doubtfire, Independence Day, and The Beautician and the Beast. She retired from acting in her early 20s and now works as a writer and yoga teacher. 20th Century Fox, Bobby Bank / Getty Images Related: Leopardi starred as Squints in The Sandlot and had a bunch of other more minor roles, most notably in Freaks and Geeks and Gilmore Girls. He now runs a cannabis business. 20th Century Fox, YouTube / First Smoke of the Day / Via Bagley famously played Buckwheat in 1994's The Little Rascals and Nicky in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and although he did go on to do several more roles, he said in 2020 he left Hollywood because he wanted a more "normal" life. NBC, Shirlaine Forrest / WireImage Jamal Woods starred as Stymie in The Little Rascals and also had a role in Blossom. As an adult he appears to work mostly in non-entertainment jobs, but he does pursue music under the name The Brazz Kru. Amblin Entertainment, YouTube / The Brazz Kru / Via McIver Ewing played villain Waldo in The Little Rascals as well as Michelle's friend Derek on Full House, and now describes himself as a "recovering child actor" who works as a vocal coach and personal trainer. Amblin Entertainment, Instagram / @blackmciver / Via Gamble is most known for his first role as the titular Dennis in 1993's Dennis the Menace, although he had several more, including one in Rushmore. He now appears to be a PhD student at the UCLA Institute of Environment and Sustainability. Warner Bros, David Livingston / Getty Images Related: Davael most famously played Lavender in Matilda, and now works as an acting teacher and writer. Tristar Pictures, Instafgram / @officialkiamidavael / Via James Richter played the main (human) character Jesse across three movies in the blockbuster '90s kids franchise Free Willy. He took a long hiatus from acting before returning to it in more recent years. Warner Bros, Albert L. Ortega / Getty Images Eisenberg was famous as the "Pepsi Girl" in a series of Pepsi ads, and she also starred in movies like Paulie and Bicentennial Man. She stopped acting to focus on college in her late teens, and now she's perhaps most known as the sister of Jesse Eisenberg (yes, that one). DreamWorks, Walter McBride / Corbis via Getty Images O'Brien had a number of roles that were a key part of '90s childhood, including in Last Action Hero, My Girl 2, and The Baby-Sitters Club. He now works as a photographer and seems pretty private. Harris is best known for starring in Crooklyn and The Baby-Sitters Club. She now works as a singer and teacher. Ron Galella / Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images, Charley Gallay / Getty Images for TCM Did we miss any '90s child stars? Let us know in the comments! Also in Celebrity: Also in Celebrity: Also in Celebrity:
News.com.au
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
NEWS OF THE WEEK: Jenna Ortega found comfort in talking to former child stars
The Wednesday star began her acting career at just six years old, landing her first leading role at age 10 in the Disney Channel series Stuck in the Middle. In a recent interview with Harper's Bazaar, Ortega opened up about connecting with other women who grew up in the spotlight and how they helped her navigate the transition from child stardom to adult fame. In recent years, the 22-year-old has formed close bonds with fellow former child stars Winona Ryder, Natalie Portman, and Natasha Lyonne.
News.com.au
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Jenna Ortega found comfort in talking to former child stars
The Wednesday star began her acting career at just six years old, landing her first leading role at age 10 in the Disney Channel series Stuck in the Middle. In a recent interview with Harper's Bazaar, Ortega opened up about connecting with other women who grew up in the spotlight and how they helped her navigate the transition from child stardom to adult fame. In recent years, the 22-year-old has formed close bonds with fellow former child stars Winona Ryder, Natalie Portman, and Natasha Lyonne.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jenna Ortega found comfort in talking to former child stars
The Wednesday star began her acting career at just six years old, landing her first leading role at age 10 in the Disney Channel series Stuck in the Middle. In a recent interview with Harper's Bazaar, Ortega opened up about connecting with other women who grew up in the spotlight and how they helped her navigate the transition from child stardom to adult fame. In recent years, the 22-year-old has formed close bonds with fellow former child stars Winona Ryder, Natalie Portman, and Natasha Lyonne.
News.com.au
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Painful story behind the new Harry Potter series
In any given week there are any number of images that are likely to elicit an Edvard Munch-y Scream but this week there was one photo, shot in a green and pleasant bit of England which could have doubled as a Wind In the Willows set, that should have set your hair on fire. In the image, three tweens crouch, broadly grinning for the camera, the trio having beaten out tens of thousands of other 9-11-year-olds to nab the lead roles in the New HBO remake of Harry Potter. Ohgodisthisagoodideareallyummmm…. Dominic McLaughlin, Alastair Stout and Arabella Stanton have been cast, respectively, as the Harry and his sidekicks Ron and Hermione, guaranteeing them fortunes, fame and never having to sit through year ten modern history should they not fancy. That day, they just might be in Cannes doing a quick red carpet or in Prague shooting Darron Aronofksy's newie. Ciao darling. I'm sure that for McLaughlin, Stout and Stanton it's a dream come true. They feel like golden ticket winners, the envy of kids the world over and are about to embark on an incredible adventure. But boring adult me looks at this publicity shot and wants to do some Munch-ing. Child stardom, historically, has a helluva chequered record. The announcement of McLaughlin, Stout and Stanton as the new faces of Harry Potter feels like the most double edged of swords going outside of a Roman military museum. On one hand, what child's dream would not be to get to skive off school to pretend to be a wizard all day while earning squillions? On the other hand, youthful fame is notorious for wreaking havoc and often coming with an extraordinarily high, lifelong cost. The most obvious casualties: Drew Barrymore, Cory Haim, Cory Feldman, Edward Furlong, Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears, Tatum O'Neil, Macaulay Culkin, and Amanda Bynes. We could also probably add in Justin Bieber considering he seems to really be going through something right now. Hello, stints in rehab, reality TV, and even court, with the occasional caught-by-the-paps, head-shaving breakdown thrown in there too. For decades it has been clear that childhood stardom both arrests and speeds up the normal sort of emotional, psychological and social development that you are meant to go through as you leave childhood and awkwardly galumph into adulthood. We've known all of this since Ronald Reagan was eating all the red jelly beans out of his Oval Office jar and yet every generation there are new fresh-faced enthusiastic pre-teens who don't, who can't, quite realise what they are about to sacrifice. Look no further than the original Potter stars, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. They have all made clear that the actual acting on the eight original movies – the larking about on sets and the creative aspect of it all – was a real joy but that tremendous, global fame that came with it deeply affected them. Radcliffe, Watson and Grint might never have to worry about mortgage payments or how they can afford that ice cream truck they always wanted (Grint) but the life-altering reverberations of being cast in Potter are clear to this day. Radcliffe has, on a number of occasions, talked about how he started drinking heavily as a teenager to cope with it all. 'The quickest way to forget about the fact that you're being watched is to get very drunk,' he told Off Camera With Sam Jones in 2019. 'I was a recluse at 20. It was pathetic,' he told Shortlist in 2012. 'I'd stay in my apartment for days and drink alone.' During a Newsweek interview in 2022 he was clear: 'I wouldn't want fame for my kid.' Speaking to The Times in 2021, Grint said: 'I found it hard to deal with the fame side of things. If I ever do see Dan [Radcliffe] or Emma [Watson], fame is the one thing we never talk about.' Wade into the myriad of interviews Radcliffe, Watson and Grint have given over the years and the words they use to describe becoming global megastars so young are ones like 'scary', 'dehumanising', 'surreal and odd', 'weird' and 'vulnerable'. They have talked about feeling 'detached' from other teenagers. Grint said in 2018, when he would go back to his old school and see his peers, 'We had very little in common, which is quite isolating in a way.' Radcliffe, Watson and Grint won their roles in 2000 and yet here we are, 25 years later, and their careers and public identities are still indelibly shaped by a movie they started shooting a full year before 9/11 even happened. Smartphones didn't exist yet. Instagram had barely been invented when the final Potter movie came out. So, what will the future be like for McLaughlin, Stout and Stanton? They are about to embark on a project that will make them some of the most instantly recognisable teenagers in a world saturated by social media. How will they get through this unscathed? I'm sure their parents, HBO and every producer involved will do absolutely everything in their power to look after them; that they will all take every precaution and hire every child psychologist and adolescent specialist and on-set advocate to try and protect McLaughlin, Stout and Stanton as much as possible. But surely there is only so far a well-meaning studio and the most thoughtful and best of parents can go to shield them from real world consequences of their roles. Just think about what lies ahead. McLaughlin, Stout and Stanton will have to go through the profound, innate awkwardness of adolescence – the hormones, the physical and emotional changes – with People keeping a around-the-clock watch. Their faces will be on screens the world over. For a new generation, they will be Harry, Hermione and Ron. They will become immutable parts of the cultural furniture and nothing can ever change that. There will be no going back. They are making what could be a lifelong choice at 11. There will be at least one season per book, with the first out in 2026 meaning that, assuming there is one series per year, the final one could be screening in 2034. McLaughlin as the titular Harry will be 19-years-old by then. How will they be on the other side of this? I hope that what lies ahead for McLaughlin, Stout and Stanton is all the joy and fun and magic of bringing these characters to life. I hope against hope that they can somehow dodge having to walk the tough path that many other child stars have over the years. I hope. I so very dearly hope. And if all else fails, they can buy themselves an ice cream van I suppose.
