What The Cast Of Big Time Rush Looks Like Today

Back in 2009, the boy band Big Time Rush had it all: a record deal, close friendships with their bandmates, their own television show on Nickelodeon, and catchy tunes — including like their eponymous hit single "Big Time Rush" (ostensibly named after a hockey term, as the show's characters all had Minnesotan hockey roots). Nickelodeon's Big Time Rush followed fictional versions of the real band members as they got up to all sorts of adventures. The series aired until 2013, and Big Time Rush continued to tour until 2014. 

Luckily for fans of the band and the show, Big Time Rush was made available to stream on Netflix in late March 2021, causing everyone to get nostalgic and wonder what Kendall Schmidt, James Maslow, Carlos PenaVega (né Peña Jr.), and Logan Henderson are up to these days. After all, the young men were all about 19 or 20 years old when the TV series began airing in 2009. It's been about seven years since Big Time Rush ended as a band, and the group all range around 30 years old as of 2021.

Fortunately for fans, the guys from BTR have stayed active on social media and in the public eye, reuniting in April 2020 (virtually, of course) with a COVID-19 message and then a few times more in 2020 with a surprise acoustic cover of their old hit "Worldwide," followed by a Christmas song late in the year. So, where are they now and what do they look like? Let's dive in.

James Maslow made his acting debut on iCarly before becoming James Diamond on Big Time Rush. The character was angled as the "untalented and "vain" pretty boy driven by fame. You might recognize him as the one with the comb, who sang the "turd" song at his audition in the pilot episode. His hair's quite different now.

Straight out of Big Time Rush, Maslow did a stint on the 18th season Dancing with the Stars, which aired in 2014. Although he and partner Peta Murgatroyd were eliminated in the first night of the finales, he said that the show would help him "get to start [his] life as an individual" (via The Hollywood Reporter).

Since then, Maslow has had a few small roles in TV shows and movies, and he's put out some singles and music videos. He was also on Celebrity Big Brother in 2018 and was reported to be a supporting cast member of the CW's Katy Keene before it was cancelled. In January 2021, Maslow's rom-com Stars Fell on Alabama launched on digital platforms. As of April 2021, he has three upcoming movies in the works, including Wolf Hound and Black Skies.

Maslow is also a DJ — a profession he can't really enjoy during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Venice-Beach-based performer has spent plenty of time with his girlfriend, model Caitlin Shey Spears, and his rescue pup Posey throughout 2020 and 2021. Beyond his careers as an actor and a DJ, Maslow has paid influencer partnerships with companies like Reign Body Fuel, and he even founded a clothing line for explorers called Vacation Club Clothing.

Carlos Peña Jr. played Big Time Rush's Carlos Garcia, known for being immature and superstitious and wearing his hockey helmet all the time. The actor got his start before the show with guest gigs on ER and Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide. After Big Time Rush, he followed Maslow to Dancing with the Stars, making an appearance as a contestant during the show's 21st season with his wife, actress Alexa Vega. (They were the first married couple to be on the show, though they didn't dance together.)

Today, the performer goes by Carlos PenaVega, as he and his wife combined their last names upon their marriage in 2014. After additional TV guest appearances, PenaVega made a high-profile turn as Kenickie in Grease: Live! in 2016, and has continued his acting career on the small screen over the past few years. He starred as Detective Sam Acosta in several of Hallmark's Picture Perfect Mysteries, and in other roles various Hallmark Channel TV movies like Enchanted Christmas and A Midnight Kiss. He's also been a regular on Nickelodeon's The Loud House and its spinoff The Casagrandes. In 2021, PenaVega hosted The Loud House Mega Music Countdown. 

A devout Christian, PenaVega is the father of two young boys, who figure prominently on his Instagram account. In a music video Big Time Rush put together in late 2020 called "Beautiful Christmas," which features all the band members and their families, PenaVega revealed that his Maui-Hawaii-based family is expecting another addition in 2021.

On Big Time Rush, Logan Henderson played Logan Mitchell, the down-to-earth, super-smart one who always got the band out of trouble but panicked in the meantime. In different episodes, Logan claims he wants to be a doctor and even has a favorite mathematician.

The actor took a break from the spotlight following the end of Big Time Rush. "It was a blast, we did it all," Henderson said of the experience during a 2017 interview with the Zach Sang Show. "We were going, going. There was no stop." Since his BTR days came to a close, Henderson has still released music (as they all have, although some more than others). In 2018, he put out the first installment of a two-part album in the "dark grunge pop" vein, and has had more recent singles, including a 2019 cover of Elton John's "Rocketman." Hopefully, the second part of his two-part album drops soon.

On the personal front, Henderson appears to really love dogs. On his social media, he's posted images of himself with a number of different, beautiful canines, large and small. As for who he's dating, he appears frequently on the Instagram feed of Jazzy ML, a plant-based content creator who shares Henderson's love of dogs. The pups all appear in Big Time Rush's "Beautiful Christmas" video, too. As of 2021, Henderson lives in Las Vegas, Nevada, according to the acoustic "Worldwide" video.

Last but not least, there's Kendall Schmidt. On Big Time Rush, he played the band's charismatic leader Kendall Knight, who was instrumental in keeping the band together; he wouldn't agree to become a performer unless he could take his friends with him. Over the course of the TV series, he showed himself to be the most responsible of the group. 

Prior to Big Time Rush, Schmidt started his career at age five and enjoyed guest spots in series like ER, The Ghost Whisperer, CSI: Miami, Phil of the Future, and Gilmore Girls. Afterward, his most regular acting gig was a recurring role in Nickelodeon's School of Rock. He also played a main role in the YouTube series Are You There, God? It's Me, Margot. 

On the music side of things, after Big Time Rush ended, Schmidt rejoined his old duo Heffron Drive, releasing singles and music videos and winning the iHeart Radio Music Festival's Rising Star Competition in 2018. However, they haven't released anything since then. 

These days, Schmidt looks very different from the blonde guy he played in 2013: He's got dark hair, and some of it's on his face. As of April 2021, Schmidt is living in Sherman Oaks, California and is dating fitness trainer Mica Chu, according to Instagram. In 2020, he released a vocal pack with the musical collaboration platform Splice, offering up sound samples to its users.