Child Stars You Forgot About Who Grew Up and Stopped Acting
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Being a child star puts young kids in the public eye and under a ton of scrutiny from the press and audiences, that’s even more difficult now in the age of social media. So while some child stars go on to have wildly successful careers like Neil Patrick Harris and Natalie Portman, there are others who either don’t want to deal with the spotlight or find that their passion for acting has waned. Here are 10 child stars who quit the industry and what they are up to today.
Jenette McCurdy
If you tuned into the new iCarly reboot and were confused at the lack of Sam Puckett, its because McCurdy, who played the goofy Sam has quit the acting scene. The young woman has put her talents to use pursuing writing and directing instead.
Amanda Bynes
Technically, Bynes is on an indefinite hiatus, that she’s been on since 2010, when she took a step back from the spotlight to deal with substance abuse and legal issues. Before her break, she starred on the comedy series All That, The Amanda Show, What I Like About You and in the movies Hairspray and She’s the Man. In 2019, she graduated from the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Irvine.
Peter Ostrum
If you watched Charlie Bucket stare in awe at Oompa Loompa’s in the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, you’ve probably wondered where he disappeared to. Turns out the child star has become a veterinarian. He’s the one in the checkered shirt.
Mara Wilson
She charmed audiences with her sweet performances in movies like Mrs. Doubtfire, Matilda and Miracle on 34th Street. And while you might not see the former actress these days, you might hear her on the podcast like Welcome to Night Vale or as a voice on Big Hero 6: The Series. She also wrote a book about her time in Hollywood Where Am I Now? True Stories of Girlhood and Accidental Fame.
Jonathan Taylor Thomas
The Home Improvement star was quite the teen heartthrob in the 90s, and while he’s made a handful of guest appearances, he’s mostly stepped away from the acting world in order to focus on education, graduating from Columbia University in 2010.
Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen
Sister Elizabeth may be starring in some big Marvel blockbusters, but after rising to fame as infants sharing the role of Michelle Tanner on Full House, the twin sisters have retired from acting. The powerhouse duo had a string of TV movies and direct-to-video releases, as well as movies like When in Rome and New York Minute. Now their attention is more on the fashion world, co-founding the luxury fashion brand, The Row, as well as Olsenboy and StyleMint.
Jake Lloyd
It can’t have been easy skyrocketing to fame in one of the biggest movie franchises of all time. As the adorable young Anakin Skywalker, he was one of the highlights of the Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. After the film he retired from acting, and has struggled with legal and mental health issues.
Omri Katz
If you are a fan of the Halloween classic Hocus Pocus, you’ll remember Katz as Max, the the teen who saves the town of Salem from the Sanderson sisters. He also had a role as John Ros Ewing III on the long running series Dallas. But he hung up his acting hat and runs a cannabis apparel store.
Angus T. Jones
The Two and a Half Men star was the highest paid child star in TV in 2010 or his role as Jake Harper on the popular CBS series. But he stepped away from the show when the “half-man” was asked to do more adult storylines.
Shirley Temple
Despite being one of the most popular child stars of all time, Temple quit acting in 1950 at age 22 after a series of subpar film roles. She started acting at the age of 3 with popular movies like Bright Eyes, Curly Top and Heidi.
After her official retirement, she became a diplomat and even represented the United States at a session of the United Nations General Assembly. Before he death she was given a Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award for her work in the film industry.
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