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Not all child stars follow the same path! Join MsMojo as we examine the unexpected trajectories of young actors whose talents either blossomed or withered with age. From early brilliance that faded to surprising transformations that shocked critics, these performers prove that early success is no guarantee of future stardom.
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00:00This is my age! I'm in the prime of my youth, and I'll only be young once!
00:04Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're looking at five child actors who got worse as they aged,
00:10and five who became much better.
00:16Expect the unexpected.
00:18Became bad, Noah Schnapp.
00:20I tried to make it go away, but it got me, Mom.
00:25Well, what does that mean?
00:28I felt it everywhere.
00:30In Stranger Things 2, Noah Schnapp was arguably the show's strongest child actor.
00:36His portrayal of the possessed Will Byers was terrifyingly raw,
00:40a brilliant technical showpiece of emotional storytelling and intense physical movement.
00:46This dude stood toe-to-toe with Winona Ryder at 12 years old.
00:50It's like, they're growing and spreading.
00:57But that magic seemed to dim as the show progressed.
01:05Critics and fans have noted that as Will matured, Schnapp's portrayal became surprisingly wooden.
01:11In the quiet moments devoid of screaming or crying, his performance often feels stiff,
01:16with some describing it as Disney Channel tear.
01:19The talent gap between him and co-stars like Sadie Sink has noticeably widened,
01:24leaving us utterly perplexed.
01:26How did the kid who played such a convincing demon host seemingly forget how to play a believable human being?
01:33You're trying to say that I'm evil and hell-bent on destroying the world?
01:36Totally.
01:37No.
01:38I'm just saying that, you know, you're like a wizard, like him.
01:40In D&D, Mike.
01:42Not real life.
01:42Well, that was the first time I've done something like that.
01:46I mean, it was so cool.
01:48I know.
01:49Completely.
01:49You sounded like you'd done a lot of scene, too.
01:51Yeah, sure.
01:52My showerhead is very impressive.
01:53For an entire generation, Zac Efron was the poster boy for the manufactured Disney star.
01:59As Troy Bolton in High School Musical, he was polished, shiny, and seemingly made of plastic.
02:05Nobody expected true grit or genuine acting talent from him.
02:09Then came the Iron Claw.
02:11Damn near almost 40 years old, still can't take care of yourself.
02:17I've been through the books.
02:20It doesn't add up.
02:23I didn't make nearly what it says I did.
02:26Efron completely dissolved his vanity to play Kevin Von Erich,
02:30delivering a hulking, physically transformed performance that was heartbreakingly vulnerable.
02:36Even in his Ted Bundy biopic, he weaponized that signature boyish charm to terrifying effect,
02:42winning over the non-believers.
02:44He proved over time that he isn't just a pretty face.
02:47He's actually a daring and strange character actor.
02:51He stopped trying to be a heartthrob and started trying to be an artist.
02:55Is there no work ethic left here in Florida?
02:57You impress me not, sir.
02:59Well, the feeling is mutual, your honor.
03:00I'm sure it is.
03:01Bless your heart.
03:02Became Bad.
03:03Jaden Smith.
03:04Where are we going?
03:09Dad, where are we going?
03:10I don't know.
03:11This entry stings because seven-year-old Jaden Smith was genuinely incredible.
03:16In The Pursuit of Happiness, he held his own against his legendary father
03:20with a tear-jerking naturalism you simply can't teach.
03:23You could say that acting ran in his blood.
03:26Don't ever let somebody tell you you can't do something.
03:31Not even me.
03:35All right?
03:37All right.
03:37Yet, as he hit his teens, that effortless spark seemed to completely evaporate.
03:42By the time the get-down rolled around, his delivery had become famously monotone and
03:47oddly self-serious.
03:49It's a rare, baffling case where an actor seemed to get significantly less comfortable
03:53on camera the more experience they acquired.
03:56He shared the screen with his father again in 2013's After Earth, only this time, the talent
04:01gap was all too obvious.
04:03Something tells us he won't be following in Will's Oscar-winning footsteps.
04:07Yeah, Dad.
04:10Yeah.
04:15That sucked.
04:16That is correct.
04:18Improved.
04:18Kieran Culkin.
04:19Kevin, you walk out of here.
04:20You sleep on the third floor.
04:22Yeah, with me.
04:24For years, Kieran Culkin was just Macaulay's little brother, or the bedwetter from Home Alone.
04:30He wasn't exactly bad, but he was little more than a background prop.
04:34Who knew he was holding an acting monster inside him?
04:37Kieran improved his craft throughout the 90s and 2000s, but he remained firmly in the
04:42indie sphere.
04:43But as Roman Roy in succession, Culkin unleashed a performance that was slimy, pathetic, hilarious,
04:49and deeply tragic all at once.
04:51Just take a breath.
04:52He possesses a unique ability to break your heart, while simultaneously being the most
05:02annoying person in the room.
05:04It's a level of complexity that makes his child roles look like kindergarten finger paintings.
05:09He successfully and finally stepped out of his big brother's shadow, winning an Emmy
05:14and later an Oscar for a real pain.
05:16Online ads.
05:17Actually, a lot of the websites that you visit for free wouldn't be able to exist.
05:20It's kind of like the lifeblood of the internet.
05:21Yeah, dude, dude, I think they want us to pay attention.
05:25Yeah, no, I just wanted to like finish the story.
05:26It's just kind of rude, man.
05:28Became Bad
05:29Corey Feldman
05:30I know who you are.
05:32You're Teddy Duchamp.
05:34Your dad's a loony.
05:35A loony up in the nuthouse in Togas.
05:37He took your ear and he put it to a stove and he burnt it off.
05:41My father stormed the beach in Normandy.
05:44The 1980s were defined by certain child actors, and Corey Feldman was undeniably one of them.
05:50His portrayal of Teddy Duchamp was fueled by rage, pain, and complex trauma that was light
05:56years beyond his actual age.
05:58He was arguably the most talented kid in that iconic cast, sharing the screen wonderfully
06:03with legends like Will Wheaton and River Phoenix.
06:06Boy, you don't know nothing.
06:08Mighty Mouse is a cartoon.
06:10Superman is a real guy.
06:12No way a cartoon could beat up a real guy.
06:14But as he transitioned to adulthood, that grounded realism was replaced by the eccentric Feldman
06:19persona.
06:20In reality TV and low-budget films, his acting became bizarre and performative, often feeling
06:26like a caricature rather than a human being.
06:29He traded the raw honesty of his youth for a chaotic energy that just doesn't translate
06:34to the screen, leaving us missing the kid who constantly stole the show.
06:38Whoa, hey, okay, slow down there, Cagney.
06:41Just a regular guy here, okay, trying to make a dollar.
06:44That's it.
06:45Play up this whole character thing to get some extra money out of these freaks.
06:49Improved.
06:50Daniel Radcliffe.
06:51I'm Ron, by the way.
06:52Ron Weasley.
06:53I'm Harry.
06:54Harry Potter.
06:54Let's be honest, in the early Potter films, Daniel Radcliffe was often the greenest actor
06:59of the main trio.
07:01He frequently looked like a deer in headlights next to the British theater legends surrounding
07:05him, and he was often overshadowed by Rupert and Emma.
07:09But unlike many child stars who coast, Radcliffe went to the trenches.
07:13Then you're free to check the king.
07:15No.
07:16Ron, no!
07:17What is it?
07:19He's going to sacrifice himself.
07:20He ditched the mainstream fare and embraced the absurd, like playing a farting corpse in
07:26Swiss Army Man, and with surprising tenderness.
07:29He developed impeccable comedic timing and a fearlessness that is unmatched in the industry.
07:35He willed himself from an awkward child actor into a versatile indie darling, even receiving
07:40an Emmy nom for his turn in Weird, The Al Yankovic Story.
07:44He didn't just survive the child curse, he transcended it.
07:50Became Bad
07:59Edward Furlong
08:00I order you not to go, I order you not to go!
08:03This young man's debut as John Connor in Terminator 2 is simply legendary.
08:08With his cracking voice and rebellious attitude, he didn't feel like a Hollywood hire.
08:13He felt like a real kid they found robbing an ATM.
08:15Draw three, zero, zero.
08:18Bucks!
08:19Come on, baby, come on, come on, come on!
08:21Yes!
08:22Hey, it worked!
08:24All right.
08:26Easy money.
08:27Everyone sensed the potential.
08:29It was electric.
08:30Unfortunately, that lightning-in-a-bottle quality didn't last, as it so often doesn't.
08:35As Furlong took on adult roles in films like The Crow, Wicked Prayer, that rough-around-the-edges
08:40charm curdled into lethargy.
08:43Without the shield of youth, his lack of technical training was exposed, leading to performances
08:48that felt uninspired and bored.
08:50It's the classic example of relying entirely on youthful energy, only to find that energy
08:55fades as you grow.
08:57The raw nerve he exposed as a child simply calloused over.
09:01He owes me two lifetimes and a set of perfect blue eyes.
09:05Improved, Ryan Gosling.
09:06How about this?
09:08Shut your mouth, or I'll kick your teeth down your throat and I'll shut it for you.
09:13Before he was the definition of Hollywood cool, Ryan Gosling was, well, let's be honest,
09:18a total dork.
09:19If you look back at his run on The Mickey Mouse Club or his starring role in Young Hercules,
09:24you'll see a scrawny kid leaning way too hard into cheesy, frantic 90s acting.
09:29You know, there's still a lot of work left to do.
09:31I could, uh...
09:32How do you think I get by when you're off at the academy?
09:34I don't know.
09:36I know Zeus doesn't help.
09:37He was the classic look-at-me child performer.
09:40But somewhere along the line, he underwent a radical transformation.
09:44He mastered the art of minimalism, learning to convey volumes with a simple stare.
09:49Whether he's being terrifyingly stoic in Drive, stunningly cool in Crazy Stupid Love,
09:55or surprisingly hilarious in Barbie, Gosling proved that the hammy kid from Canada
10:00had the range to become one of the finest actors of his generation.
10:03You just hold on for one second.
10:05Oh, okay.
10:12Sublime!
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10:28Became Bad
10:29Lindsay Lohan
10:30You want to know the real difference between us?
10:33Let me see.
10:34I know how to fence and you don't.
10:37Or I have class and you don't.
10:39Take your pick.
10:40This is arguably the steepest fall on this list.
10:43Lindsay Lohan wasn't just a cute kid.
10:46She was a heavyweight, a genuine talent.
10:48Her dual performance in The Parent Trap is a technical marvel of accent work and timing.
10:54And she carried movies like Freaky Friday and Mean Girls with the charisma of a seasoned pro.
10:59Home schooled.
11:00That's really interesting.
11:02Thanks.
11:03You're like really pretty.
11:06So you agree?
11:07What?
11:08You think you're really pretty?
11:10Oh, I don't know.
11:11But in her adult years, personal lives seemingly interfered with her professional work.
11:16The work dried up, and what little work she has received, like her recent Netflix rom-coms,
11:22has been plagued by rigid and raspy performances.
11:25She lost that natural fluidity that made her a superstar.
11:29Watching her now is a harsh reminder that being a generational talent is just that.
11:34Generational.
11:34The light that once lit up the screen has unfortunately flickered out.
11:38What brings you to Ireland?
11:39A wedding.
11:40Now, congratulations.
11:41Oh no, it's not mine.
11:44It's my friend's.
11:44Maybe you'll be lucky enough to catch the bouquet.
11:47What makes you think I want to get married?
11:49Improved.
11:50Robert Pattinson.
11:51So you're worried?
11:52Not because you'll be in a house full of vampires, but because you think they want to prove you.
11:58I'm glad I amuse you.
11:59Sometimes, it really is just the writing and directing.
12:02Kristen Stewart has been on a huge talent upswing since Twilight ended.
12:06But we have to give this spot to Robert Pattinson.
12:09As the brooding vampire Edward Cullen, he was the very face of bad teen acting.
12:14Angsty, monotone, and painfully one note.
12:17I've killed people before.
12:19But Pattinson played the long game.
12:31He teamed up with auteur directors after leaving Twilight and unleashed a hidden chaotic energy in films like The Lighthouse and Good Time.
12:39And who can forget that changing voice in Mickey 17?
12:43He didn't just improve as a technical actor.
12:45He reinvented himself as an art house talent, proving that the wooden vampire was actually just a bored genius waiting for the right script.
12:53Who could have seen this coming back in 2008?
12:55Did we miss anyone who got noticeably better or worse?
13:07Let us know in the comments.
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