Child Actors Who Were Never The Same After Their Breakout Role

There are countless stories in the entertainment industry of how people's lives are affected by becoming child stars. It's a no-brainer that certain films and television shows require younger actors to portray appropriately young characters, but oftentimes it comes as a detriment to said younger actor's mental health and ability to live a private life.

While some child actors struggle to outrun their most notable roles, others wouldn't be where they are today without landing one important role early in their career. Sometimes, it's these parts that inspire actors to keep chasing success, or redefine their public perception in ways that they're happy to live with forever. Some are even able to escape from the shadow of the role to find higher success in their adult lives as actors. 

While a lot of child stars wind up with normal jobs as grown-ups, and others end their career after doing one movie, these child actors vary between appreciating the careers they've led after their most memorable role, and growing spiteful of their own celebrity. They may have been one person when they were first cast in an iconic role, but afterwards, these young performers found themselves completely changed. 

Drew Barrymore captured hearts around the world when she starred in "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" at seven years old as Gertie, the little sister of Elliott (Henry Thomas), the boy who discovers the titular alien in his backyard. However, child stardom was rough for the young Barrymore, who grew up in an abusive home before being thrust into the limelight. Not only did she come from a family of famous actors, but there was also a pattern of alcoholism that ran through each generation. Luckily, she had a special relationship with Steven Spielberg on the set of "E.T.," with the director adamant about not robbing Barrymore of her childhood during production of the film.

By her teenage years, however, Barrymore had already been exposed to the world of narcotics and promiscuous Hollywood parties. She was 13 when she first entered rehab for substance abuse, and it wasn't her last. As the actress told The Guardian about this period of her life, she never let go of hope despite all the trauma that came in those later years, saying, "I never went all the way into darkness. There were so many things I could have done that would have pushed me over the edge and I just knew not to go there." Perhaps Gertie kept a few lessons from E.T. in mind after all. 

The world was re-introduced to Ke Huy Quan in 2022 when the actor starred in the Oscar-winning film "Everything Everywhere All at Once." Quan went home with the award for best supporting actor for his role as Waymond, the weak-willed husband of Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh) and father to rebellious daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu). However, most audiences likely remember Quan from one role in his childhood: Short Round, the sidekick of Harrison Ford's iconic title archeologist in 1984's "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom." 

Although some might assume that a memorable role in one of the biggest movie franchises in cinematic history would be enough to fill up an actor's schedule, that didn't happen for Quan. After another successful appearance in 1985's "The Goonies," he struggled to book roles. This was hard on the young Quan, who had fallen in love with acting thanks to "Temple of Doom," telling People, "Never in my wildest imagination did I think I would end up being an actor ... I have such fond memories of working on ['Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom']."

Not everybody in Hollywood forgot about Ke Huy Quan. The actor kept in touch with Steven Spielberg after the production of "Temple of Doom," even receiving annual Christmas presents from the director. And during his journey from out-of-work actor to award winner, Quan found work choreographing fight scenes for movies like "X-Men" and "The One." 

Macaulay Culkin rose to international acclaim as Kevin McCallister in 1990's "Home Alone," starring as a boy forgotten by his parents who gets to spend Christmas by himself, thwarting the schemes of two nitwit burglars. The actor had plenty of other memorable roles in the '90s and even hosted "Saturday Night Live" when he was 11, but nothing was more iconic than the troublesome tyke of this essential holiday classic.

However, Culkin didn't like the attention that followed "Home Alone." In particular, the friendship he forged with Michael Jackson after the movie's release led to speculation of wrongdoing on Jackson's part, which Culkin has denied. As his life became tabloid fodder, Culkin felt overwhelmed enough by the attention that he quit the business, telling Time, "People thought I was doing heroin and spending all of my money, the whole cliche, classic tale of a child star ... But I'm not going to go down that route."

Although he took a step back from acting to go back to school, Culkin seems to be doing just fine today, having made appearances in Season 10 of "American Horror Story" and the movie "Changeland." The latter connected him with future partner Brenda Song, with whom he now has two children.

Many '90s kids likely remember Anna Chlumsky's lead role as Vada in "My Girl," a 1991 drama co-starring Macaulay Culkin and Dan Aykroyd. At 11 years old, Chlumsky's performance in the film (and its sequel in 1994) was memorable, particularly given the gravity of the film's subject matter. However, the child actress didn't remain in the limelight for long, opting to finish high school and pursue higher education rather than chase fame.

Chlumsky ended up taking an office job at a publishing company after graduating college, while keeping acting as a side pursuit and making brief appearances on shows like "30 Rock" and "Law and Order." She gained further recognition as an adult when she was cast in HBO's "Veep" as Amy, a role which earned her six Emmy nominations for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy. 

Chlumsky shared her candid thoughts on "My Girl" with The Daily Beast, saying, "I think it's a great thing that it was a resonant film and it meant a lot to a lot of people ... But I think when you're constantly identified with something that happened so long ago and that was at an age that is not your age now, it just becomes sort of unfair." Despite that, she credits "My Girl" with inspiring her return to acting as an adult, thanks to a fortune teller who recognized her and advised her to go back to the craft. 

Kirsten Dunst is one of the few actors who's more recognized for her film roles as an adult than her years as a child actress. The New Jersey-born movie star has had major roles in Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" trilogy, Sofia Coppola's "Marie Antoinette," and even nabbed an Oscar nomination for "The Power of the Dog." However, she was also a busy pre-teen, even if many have forgotten about her breakout role in 1994's "Interview with the Vampire."

Dunst played Claudia, the vampire child of Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise's characters, and even performed a scene where she had to lock lips with Pitt. While many actresses would leap at the opportunity, Dunst has acknowledged how weird it was at the time, given that she was 11 and Pitt was 30. She nevertheless alleviated concerns about any foul play on set and noted that she felt she was treated very well by her co-stars, telling British GQ, "I was very protected on set ... I felt like Brad's little sister, and Tom made me feel like a princess." 

Aside from the acclaim that followed her role as Claudia, which included a Golden Globe nomination, Dunst's biggest takeaway from "Interview with the Vampire" was the professionalism it taught her, from staying patient through a long audition process to enduring grueling night shoot schedules. 

Joseph Gordon-Levitt has been around for a long time. He made his screen debut with TV guest roles on "Family Ties" and "Roseanne" before joining the cast of "3rd Rock from the Sun" as Tommy, the teenage son of the Solomons, a family of aliens masquerading as humans on Earth. Gordon-Levitt starred on the show between the ages of 12 and 20, spending the majority of his adolescence in front of TV audiences. 

Gordon-Levitt, thankfully, has a glass-half-full view of his time on "3rd Rock from the Sun," as it allowed him to afford a college education without being overwhelmed with student loan debt. Part of the reason he decided to pursue education is because he felt like he needed a challenge from life that the sitcom wasn't providing, telling The New York Times that he found said challenge through his university professors: "They made me see I wasn't just alive to have fun ... I started to care about the world, and I wanted to somehow connect with it." 

Although Gordon-Levitt started attending Columbia University towards the end of the sitcom's run, he dropped out in pursuit of a full-time acting career. He quickly landed roles in "The Lookout," "500 Days of Summer," and "Inception," turning the former teen alien into a full-fledged movie star. Thankfully, Columbia wasn't for nothing, as he utilized his education in French to play daredevil Philippe Petit in "The Walk."

The role of Harry Potter in a film franchise based on J.K. Rowling's iconic book series was a tough pair of shoes to fill. Luckily, director Chris Columbus found his Boy Who Lived in Daniel Radcliffe, who debuted as the glasses-wearing character in 2001's "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." The role skyrocketed a 12-year-old Radcliffe, as well as co-stars Rupert Grint and Emma Watson, into child stardom.

Radcliffe stuck with Harry Potter for so long – 10 years — out of love for the character, though it took a toll on his personal life as he grew up on-camera. He dealt with the pressure of being the iconic character by drinking, though it wasn't long before the coping mechanism brought some unique downsides. He told BBC Radio (via Men's Health), "If I went out and if I got drunk, I'd suddenly be aware of there being interest in that because it's not just a drunk guy. It's 'Oh, Harry Potter's getting drunk in the bar.'"

Radcliffe got sober in 2013, shortly after the release of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2." He's since had quite the fascinating career, with offbeat appearances in "Swiss Army Man," TBS comedy "Miracle Workers," and a recent Tony-winning run in "Merrily We Roll Along" on Broadway. 

Kristen Stewart is arguably best-known for the "Twilight" franchise, which she began starring in when she was 18 years old. However, the future Oscar-nominated actress first gained recognition years earlier with the David Fincher film "Panic Room," which Stewart filmed when she was 10-11 years old. The film saw Stewart playing Sarah, the diabetic daughter of Meg (Jodie Foster), who are both held hostage in their own home by burglars.

Stewart told Vanity Fair that the experience, despite involving some intense acting, was what made her fall in love with the craft. She recalled, "I never wanted to leave. Every time I had to go home because it had been nine hours, I was like, 'Why? I'm fine. I can kick it, I can hang. I'm not tired.'" She even remarked on how different of an actor she is now, feeling more sensitive to the things she performs compared to how easily she was able to handle it as a child actor.

Years later, Stewart and Foster reunited when the latter was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, with Stewart crediting the "Silence of the Lambs" star for being a role model to her younger self.

Not every actor had a positive experience with their roles as a child actor, which happens to be the case for Tyler James Williams. After working as an extra on "Saturday Night Live" and "Sesame Street," the actor was cast as a young Chris Rock on "Everybody Hates Chris" in 2005 for four seasons. At 12 years old, such a role should have led to a slam dunk of a career for Williams, but luck wasn't on his side.

As Williams told GQ, the pressure of having to carry a sitcom on his own was hard, especially coinciding with his awkward teenage years: "Every time someone comes up to me, regardless of what it is they recognize me for, what that says to me in the moment is that I'm seen," he said. "I have to be on, immediately, because someone's watching." By the end of the show, Williams was allegedly told by one of the producers that he would never work again. 

Luckily, Williams didn't let the comment get the best of him, and took a step away from acting to study the craft before landing roles in "The Walking Dead" and "Dear White People." Eventually, he had a second breakthrough by joining the cast of "Abbott Elementary," but this time, the actor walked away with three Emmy nominations for his role on the show. 

It's hard to find somebody who isn't aware of how much Miley Cyrus' career has changed since her Disney Channel days. The future Grammy winner and daughter of country star Billy Ray Cyrus gained recognition with her own TV show, "Hannah Montana," in which she played an average teenage girl who moonlights as a blonde-haired pop star. Cyrus was only 13 when she began starring in "Hannah Montana," simultaneously leading a solo pop career with hits like "Party in the U.S.A." and "The Climb." 

The years after "Hannah Montana" ended were rife with controversy for the young star, from provocative dances at the Video Music Awards to self-objectifying music videos. Cyrus later attributed the behavior to a rebellion against her years as a Disney icon, reflecting to British Vogue, "I was creating attention for myself because I was dividing myself from a character I had played. Anyone, when you're 20 or 21, you have more to prove. 'I'm not my parents.' 'I am who I am.'"

As she grew older, Cyrus doesn't look back fondly on those wild years of hers, but at least she has the music industry credibility and success to prove it doesn't define her. Still, it wouldn't be a stretch to say that Hannah Montana is a role that Miley Cyrus regrets taking, despite it paving the way for her successful career today.

There are countless examples of actors who struggled because of their roles on "Game of Thrones," from health issues that Emilia Clarke thought would get her fired to Kit Harington's sabbatical following the show's ending. However, life has been especially rough for Sophie Turner, who was cast as Ned Stark's eldest daughter, Sansa, in the show's first season when she was 14. 

As Turner revealed years later, the pressures of being on a show like "Game of Thrones" as a teenager took a toll on her mental health, resulting in eating disorders, body dysmorphia, and severe anxiety. In an interview with Dr. Phil (via Grazia), she said, "I used to get a lot of comments about my skin and my weight and how I wasn't a good actress. I would just believe it." The actress ended up seeking therapy, at once point even enlisting a live-in counselor to help her manage her eating habits. 

Though she's admitted that she'll likely spend the rest of her life dealing with the trauma of living through "Game of Thrones," Turner has a much more balanced life now, having experienced motherhood, marriage, and further success with roles in "Do Revenge" and "The Staircase." 

Olivia Rodrigo is probably the best-case scenario for a Disney star transitioning to a music career. Before she was selling out Madison Square Garden, Rodrigo got her start on the Disney Channel show "Bizaardvark," and gained even more recognition at 16 with her role as Nini in "High School Musical: The Musical: The Series." The actress was always an aspiring songwriter, though she didn't get her big break until the Disney+ show's producers asked her to pen an original song for her character to sing in the first season.

That song was "All I Want," Rodrigo's debut on the Billboard Hot 100, which launched her into mainstream success. Eventually, Rodrigo released her debut single as a solo artist, "Driver's License," inspired by her on-set romance with her "HSMTMTS" co-star Joshua Bassett, which became a record-breaking No. 1 single. The success was as much of a surprise to the music industry as it was to Rodrigo, who told The Guardian, "It's not like I was like: 'In order to have a sustainable career, I'm gonna roll it out slowly and this and that.' I kind of had overnight success."

Rodrigo ended up leaving "High School Musical: The Musical: The Series" in its third season to focus on her music career, which is probably for the best considering she won three Grammys for her debut album. Time will only tell if the pop star looks back fondly on her Disney years. 

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, may be the victim of child abuse, or needs help with mental health, contact the relevant resources below:

• The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

• The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.

• The Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.