Do you think your little one has star potential? We do too! In fact, it seems rare for a child to be a star and still have a lucrative career with a healthy adult life. However, we know of lots of household names who have done just that! Let’s talk about famous adult celebrities that you may have forgotten had equal star power in their younger years.
Anna Paquin
You may know her from her recent six-year run as the main character Sookie Stackhouse on television’s True Blood or Nancy Montgomery on Netflix’s Alias Grace, but this actress has some impressive titles under her belt. At nine years old she was the first Millenial to be nominated for an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actress in her debut film, The Piano, in 1993. Not only that, but the same year she won the Academy Award, making her the second youngest nominee to ever win. Originally she tried to stay out of acting but eventually felt the pull too strongly and continued to work seriously in the industry at the young age of 12. Since then she has starred as the critical characters in hit movies, television, and theatre.
Jason Bateman
One of the greatest “straight men” of our time, Jason Bateman also got his start acting at a young age. Before he became well known for his iconic ability to play the “straight man” role against a “funny man” in the classic Double Act genre of comedy, his serious stage presence started him in much
less comedic pieces. At 12, he got his big break as little orphan boy James Cooper Ingalls on Little House On The Prairie and continued on to play Derek Taylor in the hit series, Silver Spoons and Matthew Burton on It’s Your Move within four years of each other. Talk about dedication! He went on to garner fame as an adult with his role of Michael Bluth in the deadpan sitcom Arrested Development. Since then he has starred in timeless movies like Juno, Horrible Bosses, Couples Retreat, and Zootopia. He has also become a well-liked director in his own right with impressive projects, including Ozarks on Netflix.
Johnny Galecki
The short but powerful Big Bang Belgian is currently the world’s second highest-paid television actor by Forbes, earning 25 million dollars a year. Between the years of 2017 – 2019, Galecki was paid $900,000 per episode of Big Bang Theory! You may not remember but he starred as Chevy Chase’s son in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and went on to play David Healy on the culture changing television show Roseanne for five years.
Mayim Bialik
Alongside her Big Bang Theory costar, Galecki, Mayim Bialik is a lucrative actress and scientist in her own right. You may be surprised but like her beloved character Amy Farrah Fowler, Bialik herself has a PhD in neuroscience! What was she doing before pursuing higher education? Acting of course! She had a smattering of pieces in television and theater before landing her big break, starring as the hilarious character of Blossom for four years in a series of the same name.
Kenan Thompson
The longest running cast member of Saturday Night Live didn’t get his start in sketch comedy with the late night live series in New York City. Rather, he began his comedy acting career in Nickelodeon’s own sketch comedy series All That when he was a little over the age of 15. True fans would argue that his first recognized television appearance goes as far back as when he was an entertainment reporter for CNN’s segment, “Real News For Kids,” before going on to act for Nickelodeon. This lead to a four-year stint in a show of his own named Kenan & Kel. Since childhood, he has acted/voiced a variety of movie and television roles as well as working as a regular on Saturday Night Live and winning an award for his original lyrics performed in some of the skits. He has the luxury of choosing when and what projects he wants to be involved in, a type of work we’d all enjoy!
Scarlett Johansson
It’s an urban myth that Scarlett Johansson was supposedly discovered at a baseball game when a talent agent saw her on the jumbotron and hunted her down. Rather, she comes from a family of creatives and screenwriters. She and her siblings all acted as children, mostly in commercial and off-Broadway plays. Her first role was actually alongside her brother in the movie Manny & Lo in 1996. After a small handful of other movies, she took on her first adult roles with the famous movies: Lost in Translation and Girl with a Pearl Earring when she was only 19. Dubbed a young Lauren Bacall, she continued on to work with famous stars, acted with well-known directors, and take on beloved characters as both new and reprisal roles. Additionally, she sings, works for several charities, and gets political speaking at the Women’s March On Washington and fundraising for presidential campaigns and Planned Parenthood.
Troye Sivan
A rising star in his own right, Troye Sivan Mellet is still young but has quite the career resume. A queer icon and international pop star at the age of 24 — some of his best-known bops and collaborations in the US are called “Youth,” “Dance To This,” “i’m so tired…,” and “There For You” — he got his start in the entertainment industry with acting. When he was 14, he played a young Wolverine in X-men Origins: Wolverine before going on to star alongside John Cleese in popular South African trilogy “Spud” that next year. He then continued soaring in popularity through Youtube vlogging, joining big names like Tyler Oakley, Conor Franta, and Zoe Suggs, in pioneering fame and discovery through the world wide web. Since leaving Youtube in 2014, he has gone on to
- star in movies alongside Nicole Kidman
- write and perform songs on soundtracks for blockbusters like Love, Simon and Boy Erased
- has been nominated for a Golden Globe
- released two studio albums and several EPs
- has won 20 awards including the GLAAD Stephen F. Kolzak Award in 2017
In the coming months, he’s on his way back home to Australia on tour for his latest album, Bloom, but has recently announced that he is in the process of writing new music while touring. Considering his young age, we’re excited to see what comes next for him!
Did you see any of these names and the thought crossed your mind that your child could definitely do that too? We believe you and want to help! At Star Kids Chicago, we want your child’s name to be a list like this in the next 10 or 12 years too. Contact us today if you have any questions or get started right away and enter your little one in one of our talent contests.
