Know how 12 famous child celebrities transformed and went unrecognizable now

Updated on July 20, 2022 10:33 AM by Ella Bina

From the cute innocent faces we saw on television in the late 90s and early 20, not everyone grew prettier or smarter as years passed. They undergo drastic changes physically, socially, and even mentally. For several reasons, some star kids in the limelight disappeared, and only very few ended their careers as massive stars. Others who earned millions and billions as star kids didn't know how to handle their finances and ended up being alcohol abuse or substance issues, and some even landed up in legal troubles. Let's put everything aside and see how12 former child artists have gone beyond being recognized by their fans and who can be identified just by uttering their original names.

Macaulay Culkin

The Home Alone child artist was known for other movies like “Richie Rich” and “Uncle Buck” and who had the chance to appear in one of Michael Jackson's music videos. As he grew older, he was not in the spotlight anymore, and fans were shocked over his transition. His breakout role came in the box office hit “Home Alone” in 1990 as Kevin McCallister, and he returned to his “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York” in 1992, which was a second box office hit, and went on his dramatic role in The Good Son in 1993 where he played as a troubled child.

Susan Olsen

Susan Olsen, who took up the character Cindy Brady in the hit show just being eight, and “the Brady Bunch”, became one of the youngest children in the Brady Family who acted up cute moments. Fans can never forget the little girl with blonde curls who constantly snitched on her siblings, which remains memorable to date. Though the show ended in 1974, her career still grew. Along with acting, she does voice covers, artwork, and even works in animal welfare. She started appearing in several radio talk shows in 1995 and her first show at KSLX, a Los Angeles Radio Station. In 2016 she co-hosted “Two Chicks Talkin' Politics” with Sheena Metal and was fired due to homophobic slurs that she made while confronting one of the show's guests.

Edward Furlong

Edward Furlong attracted a lot of pretty young girls by starring John Connor in the movie “Terminator 2 Judgment Day”, which was released in 1991. Today he looks far unrecognizable as fans thought him to be the same as a child actor, and looking at his recent photos proved it well that he is not the same person anymore. Edward Furlong was in a relationship with his tutor on the sets of “Terminator 2: Judgement Day” while he was just 15. She turned out to be her manager and took no responsibility for driving his career safely. His other commercial movies were a flop as none of them came close to that of “Terminator 2 Judgment Day”. He got engaged with her and split up later, which led her to sue him for money owed to her as a manager all these years and claimed to be physically abusive. Throughout his career, he battled alcoholism and drug addiction. His first visit to rehab was in October 2000, from 22 to 26, as he was a heroin and cocaine addict.

Lindsay Lohan

Lindsay Lohan tops the list of celebrities one couldn't recognize grown up. Fans of her fell in love not only with her talent but also with her adorable nature. In the remake of “The Parents Trap”, her career reached its peak and became a Disney favorite. She took up several other roles, including “Freaky Friday” and “Mean Girls”. Fans expected that she would rise to stardom, but unfortunately, her life fell apart. Even after all these years, she has supporters waiting for her massive comeback. Recently Lindsay Lohan tied the knots with Bader Shammas just hours before the star turned 36. She ruined her career with her bad behavior on offscreen; several arrests for usage of substance abuse and battle with alcohol brought down her fame. And now, she could be seen in her upcoming Netflix projects.

Steven Anthony Lawrence

"Beans," character played by Steven Anthony Lawrence in the Disney Channel's “Even Stevens”, took up the role by dedicating his entire acting skills to the position because of the unique look he possessed and was even addressed as an impressive kid. And in December 2015, he went viral as he was seen working as Santa's Helper at the Sunvalley Shopping Center in Concord, California. Many shoppers found the actor working, clicked some photographs with him, and shared them on their social media.

Brian Bonsall

Well, it's hard to forget the role of Andy, who played the little brother of Michael J. Fox's hit show “Family Ties”, which aired on NBC for seven seasons from 1982-1989. Viewers can remember him as an adorable boy with a bowl-type haircut. He quit acting and went on with his Punk music. In 2010, he was sentenced to two years of probation on charges of assaulting his girlfriend, dodging a police officer for more than a year, attacking his best friend, and also tested positive for marijuana the previous year. He was then given 40 hours of community service and five days in the Boulder County Jail's work-release program. Based on reports, it is claimed that he lives a clean life; well, at last, there is no future in the acting industry.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen

The Olsen twins starred in an American television sitcom that aired on ABC as babies and went on to appear in the same show as teenage girls. The duo went viral and had an outstanding career beyond the show, including their book series and movies. The Olsen twins now look completely different as they have gotten into the fashion industry and are planning to appear in the remake of the “Full House”. Mary-Kate Olsen married Pierre Olivier Sarközy de Nagy-Boca, a French banker in the U.S. His half-brother is Nicolas Sarkozy, the former President of France. And Ashley Olsen has been dating her Boyfriend, Louis Eisner, for years together, who is said to be a businessman.

Dylan and Cole Sprouse

The duo appeared on the “Grace Under Fire” that aired in 1993, and both played Adam Sandler's foster son, Julian, in the 1999 movie “Big Daddy”. And Cole Sprouse played Ben, son of Ross Geller, on “Friends”. Since 2018, Dylan Sprouse has been dating model Barbara Palvin, and they both quarantined during the Covid-19 pandemic. Previously Cole Sprouse was dating Lili Reinhart, the co-star of Riverdale, and they finally separated in 2020.

Ryan Gosling

Ryan Gosling began his acting career at 13 on Disney Channel's “The Mickey Mouse Club”, which aired between 1993 and 1995. Later he was fired from the show due to his attitude issue. Still, he did not stop his acting career and went on to appear in other family entertainment programs, including 1995, “Are you afraid of the Dark?” And “Goosebumps” in 1996 and Went on to become a successful acting career and won the seventh-youngest Academy Award Best Actor nominee at the age of 26.

Haley Joel Osment

Haley Joel Osment appeared as a child actor; Haley Joel Osment’s role in the comedy-drama film “Forrest Gump” won him a Young Artist Award. And later, he took up roles in movies like “Pay It Forward”, “A.I. Artificial Intelligence”, and “The Sixth Sense”. He also got tons of work in other films, plus voiceover work in shows like “Hey Arnold” and walk-on T.V. roles. And in 2006, he received three years probation and must seek alcohol rehabilitation for a vehicle accident in La Cañada Flintridge.

Angus T. Jones

Angus T. Jones was best known for his role in “Two and a Half Men”, where he played Jake Harper. He was once the highest-paid child actor on television, thanks to his role in the sitcom, but that was hardly his only role; and bagged several positions in other popular series like “Hannah Montana”, “CSI”, and “E.R”, but after starring in “Two and a Half Men” alongside Charlie Sheen for so long, he appeared in an episode of Horace and Pete before falling off the career. Angus T. Jones later found God and joined the Seventh-day Adventist Church; the problem was that he started publicly and vehemently slamming his sitcom because of his faith, and because of this, he quit the show “Two and a Half Men” at the end of the season of 10.

Orlando Brown

Orlando Brown is best known for being a Disney Channel star when he played Eddie on “That's So Raven”. And previously, he had recurring roles on sitcoms, including “Family Matters”, “Two of a Kind,” and The Jamie Foxx Show. He even starred alongside Mary-Kate, and Ashley Olsen in It Takes Two and used his voiceover talents for the Disney series “The Proud Family”. Orlando Brown fell into legal trouble and was arrested for possessing crack, battery on his girlfriend, and breaking into a friend's restaurant to change the locks. Well, now he is not doing as well as a teenager.