Whatever happened to…? How child stars of Hollywood look now
WHILE some former child movie stars thrive in Hollywood as adults, many fall off the radar after their early success.
Ethan Hawke, Natalie Portman, Jodie Foster, Leonardo DiCaprio, Scarlett Johansson and Drew Barrymore are just a few of the A-list names who have
made the tricky transition.
Then you’ve got the likes of Home Alone star Macaulay Culkin, Lindsay Lohan and Terminator 2 actor Edward Furlong, who remain in the public consciousness thanks to their troubled private lives.
However, these 14 actors below are easily identifiable by their childhood film characters — but you wouldn’t bat an eyelid if you walked past them on the street today.
Here’s how they appear today and what they’ve been up to in the intervening years...
Mara Wilson (1996 movie Matilda)
Mara, 33, appeared in a string of box office hits in the Nineties – including Mrs Doubtfire, Miracle On 34th Street and Matilda.
Following her role in 2000 flick Thomas And The Magic Railroad, she quit acting to focus on school.
Explaining her decision in 2012, she said: “Film acting is not very fun. Doing the same thing over and over again until, in the director's eyes, you 'get it right', does not allow for very much creative freedom.”
Mara now wants to break into writing novels for young adults and has written an off-Broadway play called Sheeple.
Jeff Cohen (1985 film The Goonies)
Jeff, 39, will never be forgotten for his portrayal of portly Chunk in the 1980s adventure classic.
He bears little resemblance to the "truffle-shuffling" motormouth from that film, cutting a much slimmer – and balder – figure these days.
The actor retired from movies soon after The Goonies, attending the University of California in the early 1990s and earning a degree in business administration.
He went on to study law, became a powerful entertainment attorney and co-founded the Cohen & Gardner firm in 2002.
Joey Cramer (1986 sci-fi hit Flight Of The Navigator)
Joey, 47, gained widespread popularity courtesy of his starring role as a boy who travels eight years into the future in an alien spacecraft.
Aside from brief appearances in Murder, She Wrote and a couple of TV movies, the actor has disappeared from the public eye altogether.
However, hiis mugshot popped up on the web in 2011 when he was a wanted fugitive suspected of committing a spree of cheque and fraud-related crimes.
He’s been in frequent trouble with the law since 2005, spending several spells in jail, and was last year given a violation ticket in Canada for boozing in public.
Henry Thomas (1982 classic ET)
Henry, 49, shot to worldwide fame when he played ET's schoolboy buddy Elliott in Steven Spielberg’s classic.
While his co-star Drew Barrymore has gone from strength to strength on the big screen, Henry has not fared so well.
He continues to ply his trade in Hollywood, enjoying fleeting moments of success in such films as All The Pretty Horses and Gangs Of New York.
Henry has most recently been seen in US TV drama series Betrayal.
Joseph Mazzello (1993 adventure Jurassic Park)
Joseph, 37, was thrust into the spotlight when he starred as Tim Murphy in Spielberg’s dinosaur epic.
He went on to enrol at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts in 2001.
He’s still plying his trade in movies, notably playing Dustin Moskovitz — one of the co-founders of Facebook — in 2010 film The Social Network.
Joseph made his directorial debut with 2007 flick Matters Of Life And Death, in which he also starred alongside David Strathairn and Rachel Leigh Cook.
Ariana Richards (also in Jurassic Park)
Like co-star Joseph Mazzello, Ariana, 40, got an early taste of international stardom thanks to Jurassic Park.
She has had limited appearances on screen in recent years, having forged a career as a successful artist.
Ariana has also had a crack at music, releasing her debut album in 1993 and recording a cover of David Foster’s The Prayer in 2008.
Barret Oliver (1984's The NeverEnding Story)
When it comes to incredible child star-to-adult transformations, Barret, 46, wins hands down.
The cute kid from family fantasy The NeverEnding Story now sports a huge beard and dreadlocks.
Barret is now a successful printer and photographer whose work has been exhibited in museums and galleries.
He bowed out of acting in the 1980s, last starring in 1988's Cocoon: The Return.
Aileen Quinn (1982 movie Annie)
Aileen, 48, was perfectly cast as cheeky tearaway Annie in the popular musical thanks to her ginger curls, freckled face and mischievous smile.
Amazingly, Annie is one of only five credits on her film CV – and she’s made just two appearances on screen since 1986.
She earns her crust these days as a theatre professor at Monmouth University in New Jersey.
Aileen also used to front an LA-based rockabilly band called The Leapin’ Lizards.
Tami Erin (1988 flick The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking)
Tami, 45, is still best known for her portrayal of pigtailed Pippi Longstocking in the 1988 reboot.
However, her profile was briefly given a boost last year when she sold a sex tape starring herself to a porn company because she was unable to stop a
former boyfriend from releasing it.
Other than making kids’ flicks and X-rated home movies, Tami has made occasional movie appearances and served as a Unicef ambassador.
The devoted philanthropist also heads the Pippi Clothing brand and has just become a spokeswoman for the I Heart Change campaign – an eco-fashion brand featuring 2,000 designers who recycle clothes and accessories for six international charities.
Jonathan Lipnicki (1996 smash-hit Jerry Maguire)
Jonathan, 23, won the hearts of cinema-goers the world over as bespectacled Ray opposite Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger.
He went on to ride the Jerry Maguire wave for several subsequent years, bagging lead roles in such movies as Stuart Little, Doctor Dolittle and Like Mike.
However, he has been unable to find the same success as an adult, making fleeting appearances on the big screen and the box.
Jonathan dedicates much of his time to charitable causes, speaking at events for Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Starlight Children's Foundation and NBA's Read to Achieve.
The owner of four dogs, he’s also involved in animal rights groups Pets &
Their Stars and Nuts For Mutts.
Anna Chlumsky (1991 movie My Girl)
Anna, 39, caused many movie fans to shed a tear when her My Girl character Vada broke down at the funeral of her young on-screen love, played by
Macaulay Culkin.
She reappeared in flop sequel My Girl 2 but failed to sustain the momentum of her early career.
However, she remains a working actress in Hollywood, regularly cropping up in US TV shows and low-budget movies.
And last year when she was nominated for an Emmy Award for her role in HBO comedy series Veep.
Danny Lloyd (1980 chiller The Shining)
Who could forget the sinister, croaky “Redrum” warnings of Danny’s character in Stanley Kubrick’s chiller?
Starring alongside film titans Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall, Danny – whose alter-ego went by the same name – more than held his own.
However, his movie career was extremely short-lived. He made just one more appearance on screen, in 1982, before turning his back on Hollywood.
In 2007, Danny, 41, became a biology professor at a community college in Kentucky, US, and currently works as a science teacher in Missouri.
Miko Hughes (1989 horror Pet Sematary)
Miko caused spines to tingle when he came back from the dead in the horror flick based on Stephen King’s book.
His versatile performance was duly rewarded, landing him roles in Kindergarten Cop, Apollo 13 and Mercury Rising, alongside Bruce Willis.
His acting career has tailed off in adulthood, prompting him to pursue other avenues such as music.
Last year, Miko, 28, stepped behind the camera to direct a segment in horror anthology film Chilling Visions: 5 Senses Of Fear.
Robin Weisman (1990 comedy 3 Men And A Little Lady)
Robin, 29, ran Tom Selleck, Ted Danson and Steve Guttenberg ragged in her guise as adorable Mary.
Despite lighting up the screen, Robin stepped away from acting just four years later following her role alongside Hulk Hogan in Thunder In Paradise.
She went on to gain a degree in business studies at the University of Florida and currently works in marketing.
In other news, we revealed where Emmerdale’s child stars are now.
And do you remember the child stars from Matilda? They all look very different now.