- 1 hour ago
Hollywood loves to crown new stars, but not every promising talent stays in the spotlight. From breakout TV sensations to film icons, these actors and musicians dazzled audiences before suddenly stepping off the radar. Dive into the stories of fame, fortune, and the choices that led these once-household names to fade from the public eye. Who do you remember most? Share your thoughts below!
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Hey mama, hey mama, look around, everybody's groovin' to a brand new sound.
00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most notable celebrities
00:11who were on the fast track to superstardom, but somehow vanished from Hollywood's spotlight.
00:17Listen to me.
00:19These are my daughters.
00:21Get in the chopper.
00:22John Connick, come with me.
00:26Number 30, Yasmeen Bleeth.
00:29In the 1990s, you couldn't flip past a magazine rack without seeing Yasmeen Bleeth's face.
00:35As Caroline Holden on Baywatch, she became one of the show's most recognizable stars during
00:40its global peak, helping turn slow-motion beach runs into a pop culture phenomenon.
00:49She also headlined the Aaron Spelling drama Titans in 2000, signaling a move beyond the
00:55iconic red swimsuits.
00:57Then, almost as quickly as she rose, she stepped back.
01:00I actually did an audition for the show.
01:02I did a guest spot, and I actually did my audition in full dress.
01:05I had jeans on and a t-shirt.
01:07And then they called about five or six months later and offered me the part, so I never
01:10actually had to show my wares, so to speak.
01:13Following legal troubles related to substance use disorder in the early 2000s,
01:17Bleeth largely withdrew from acting.
01:20While she never formally announced retirement,
01:22she's remained out of the Hollywood spotlight for years.
01:25I'm leaving, Nash.
01:30I'm just, I'm not happy here.
01:32I mean, professionally.
01:34It's, um, it's all the strong personalities I don't know.
01:38Number 29, Phoebe Cates.
01:41Hi, Brad.
01:44You know how cute I always thought you were.
01:46Few 80s stars had a more indelible breakout than Phoebe Cates.
01:50After Fast Times at Ridgemont High made her a teen icon,
01:54Cate solidified her mainstream appeal with Gremlins and its sequel,
01:58balancing charm and sharp comedic timing.
02:01Cate, you haven't seen my new apartment.
02:03I haven't seen your old apartment.
02:05Come on, we're talking cable.
02:08Can we have dinner tomorrow night?
02:11I'm working.
02:12Through the decade, she built a steady resume of studio films,
02:16suggesting she had a long Hollywood run ahead.
02:19Instead, Cates gradually stepped away in the mid-1990s
02:22after marrying actor Kevin Kline and focusing on family life.
02:27She later opened the New York boutique Blue Tree
02:29and has made only rare acting appearances since.
02:33For someone who was once everywhere,
02:35her exit felt surprisingly quiet.
02:37I was thinking about your wife and maybe a dress would be a good idea.
02:41Do you know what size she is?
02:42Size?
02:42Yes.
02:43She's, uh, average, you know, a woman size.
02:47I'm a six.
02:48Number 28.
02:49Clay Aiken.
02:50After Clay Aiken finished as a runner-up on American Idol in 2003,
02:55his debut album Measure of a Man went multi-platinum
02:58and cemented him as one of the show's earliest breakout stars.
03:01If I was invisible,
03:05then I could just watch you in your...
03:09His powerhouse vocals and devoted fan base made him a staple of early 2000s pop culture,
03:15from holiday specials to Broadway's Spamalot.
03:18While he continued releasing music and touring,
03:20his mainstream radio momentum cooled over time.
03:30Aiken later shifted focus towards activism and even ran unsuccessfully for Congress in North Carolina in 2014 and 2022.
03:40He never vanished entirely, but the chart-topping ubiquity of his Idol era proved difficult to sustain.
03:46I wanted to do something that would allow me to be in one place all the time,
03:50and I thought that I could make a difference with that.
03:53Nobody makes a difference with politics.
03:56Number 27.
03:57Lili Sobieski.
03:58Would you like to say hello to Dr. Hartford?
04:03Hello.
04:04Hello.
04:05With her striking resemblance to Helen Hunt and impressive acting chops,
04:09Lili Sobieski seemed destined for Hollywood greatness in the late 90s.
04:14Her performances in Deep Impact, Eyes Wide Shut, and the TV miniseries Joan of Arc,
04:19which earned her Emmy and Golden Globe nominations,
04:22showcased her remarkable range even as a teenager.
04:25I can see by our clothing, sire, that you're a man of substance.
04:28I implore you then to understand.
04:30I must go to Chénol to see the Dauphin, because he needs me.
04:34Despite continued work in the early 2000s,
04:37Sobieski's star mysteriously dimmed as the decade progressed.
04:41In 2012, she married fashion designer Adam Kimmel,
04:44and officially retired from acting,
04:47stating that she wanted to focus on raising her children.
04:50Sobieski subsequently launched a career as a painter and sculptor
04:54under her married surname, Kimmel.
04:56She has since had exhibitions in New York and London.
04:59He is negotiating with us right now to get the plea down.
05:04I don't believe you.
05:07I love him and he loves me.
05:09Number 26, Emile Hirsch.
05:12Did you like what you saw?
05:14What are you talking about?
05:18Okay, I saw you for like an instant.
05:22An instant?
05:22Yeah.
05:23It was no big deal.
05:25After captivating audiences as a sensitive teenager in The Girl Next Door,
05:29Emile Hirsch seemed poised for A-list status.
05:33His transformative performance as Chris McCandless in Into the Wild
05:36earned critical acclaim and suggested a Leonardo DiCaprio-level career trajectory ahead.
05:42I heard you play your song last night.
05:46I'm terrible.
05:48You are not terrible.
05:50You seem sweet.
05:51However, Hirsch's career took a devastating hit in 2015,
05:55when he assaulted a female studio executive at Sundance Film Festival.
06:00Pleading guilty to misdemeanor assault, he served just 15 days in jail.
06:04But his career was permanently damaged.
06:07While he continued to appear in films like Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,
06:10his momentum evaporated after the incident,
06:13serving as a stark reminder of how personal conduct can derail even the most promising careers.
06:18I'm looking for Terry.
06:20I'm a friend of Terry's and Dennis Wilson's.
06:23Well, Terry and Candy don't live here anymore.
06:25This is the Polanski residence now.
06:27Number 25, Skeet Ulrich.
06:29The mid-90s belonged to Skeet Ulrich.
06:32With his Johnny Depp-esque looks and brooding intensity,
06:36he became the go-to heartthrob in films like Scream and The Craft.
06:40Well, two years ago, we started off hot and heavy.
06:44Nice solid R rating on our way to an NC-17.
06:48And how things have changed.
06:52His role as the charismatic killer Billy Loomis
06:54had teenage girls simultaneously terrified and swooning.
06:58After his impressive run throughout that decade,
07:01Ulrich's film career mysteriously cooled.
07:04He found steady work on television with Jericho
07:06and later recurred as F.P. Jones on Riverdale.
07:09But the leading man's status once predicted for him never fully materialized.
07:13100%.
07:14So I'll think, um, this is about territory.
07:17If there's one thing ghoulies love,
07:19it's their crazy, souped-up retro cars and hearses.
07:22You catch my Riverdale drift, boys?
07:24In recent interviews, Ulrich has acknowledged being selective about roles
07:28and prioritizing fatherhood over career ambitions.
07:32Despite still making occasional appearances on screen,
07:35he remains largely under the radar compared to his 90s heyday.
07:39I wasn't the best father.
07:40I was...
07:43I was obsessed by my work when I was younger
07:46and it eventually cost me everything.
07:50Number 24.
07:52Nikki Blonsky
07:53Nikki Blonsky's film debut was the stuff of Hollywood fantasy.
07:57Cast as Tracy Turnblad in the 2007 adaptation of Hairspray,
08:01she held her own alongside John Travolta and Michelle Pfeiffer,
08:05winning two Critics' Choice Awards and earning a Golden Globe nomination.
08:09Ma, it's changing out there.
08:12You'll like it.
08:13People who are different, their time is coming.
08:17It felt like the launch of a major musical comedy career.
08:20However, substantial follow-up roles didn't materialize at the same scale.
08:24Blonsky appeared in television projects like ABC Family's Huge
08:28and continued working in entertainment.
08:30But the momentum of that breakout performance proved difficult to replicate.
08:34Thank you, thank you, thank you.
08:36It was just there in the lost and found?
08:38Yeah.
08:39I can never thank you enough.
08:42Seriously, dude.
08:43You're the best.
08:44For someone introduced in such a splashy way,
08:47the industry spotlight dimmed surprisingly fast.
08:50I can't do this anymore.
08:52I love the way you make me feel, but...
08:55Just listen.
08:56Just listen to me.
08:57Number 23.
08:58Thora Birch
08:59Thora Birch transitioned from child actor to critical darling with remarkable ease.
09:04After early roles in Hocus Pocus and Now and Then,
09:08she delivered a standout performance in American Beauty,
09:11which earned her a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
09:14Oh my God.
09:15That's the pervert who filmed me last night.
09:17Him?
09:18Jane, no way.
09:19He's a total lunatic.
09:21You know him?
09:22Yeah.
09:22She followed that with a cult classic, Ghost World.
09:25Her portrayal of Enid Coleslaw in the cult classic received critical acclaim
09:30and positioned her as one of Hollywood's most promising young actresses.
09:33I don't know.
09:34I kind of like him.
09:36He's the exact opposite of everything I really hate.
09:39In a way, he's such a clueless dork.
09:42He's almost kind of cool.
09:43Then her screen appearances became increasingly sporadic.
09:47Reports over the years pointed to professional conflicts,
09:49and by the late 2000s, major studio roles had largely dried up.
09:54Birch has since returned to acting in independent projects,
09:57but her early trajectory suggested a far longer reign in prestige cinema.
10:02Do you love it?
10:05It's, I mean, yeah, I'm here.
10:08But do I have to love it?
10:11You don't get to hate it unless you love it.
10:14Number 22, Alex Pettifer.
10:16With chiseled features and British charm,
10:19Alex Pettifer seemed manufactured for stardom.
10:22Studios placed massive bets on him
10:24with lead roles in potential franchises like Beastly and I Am Number 4.
10:29You were saved for a bigger purpose.
10:31I'm not going to let you throw that away for a girl.
10:34She's not just a girl.
10:39I think about leaving her.
10:42But I can't.
10:44And I don't know why.
10:45His performance alongside Channing Tatum and Magic Mike
10:49further suggested he was on the verge of becoming Hollywood's next big thing.
10:53Yet the anticipated blockbuster takeover never arrived.
10:56Sorry, you know what my rules are.
10:58Oh, God, brother.
11:00What?
11:01I also could do some nice, you know, fun.
11:05What?
11:06What?
11:07What'd you say?
11:08What'd you hear?
11:08Though he continues to work in films like The Last Witness
11:11and the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare,
11:14his career never reached the heights once predicted.
11:16Recently directing indie films,
11:18Pettifer represents how quickly Hollywood can cool
11:21on even the most marketable young actors.
11:23Well, what are you going to do with all the explosives you brought, Freddy?
11:27We'll use them to blow the anchor.
11:30We'll rig the S-boats so they can't follow,
11:32rig the fuel reserve that supplies the U-boats,
11:34and then, well, blow the lot up.
11:38Number 21.
11:39Hayden Christensen
11:40Don't get me wrong.
11:42Obi-Wan is a great mentor.
11:45As wise as Master Yoda and as powerful as Master Windu.
11:52I am truly thankful to be his apprentice.
11:55Landing the role of Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels
11:58should have secured Hayden Christensen's place in blockbuster royalty.
12:02In the early 2000s,
12:03he was one of the most recognizable young actors in the world.
12:07He also earned Golden Globe and SAG nominations earlier in his career
12:11for his performance in Life as a House.
12:13After the prequels,
12:15Christensen largely retreated from major productions,
12:18except for the commercially successful but critically panned 2008 film Jumper.
12:23Look, uh,
12:25if you're not the police and
12:28I'm not under arrest,
12:31I think I'd like you to leave.
12:32Since then,
12:33he stepped back from Hollywood for an extended period
12:36and even focused on his farm in Canada.
12:39In 2022,
12:41he returned to the role of Anakin Skywalker
12:43in the Disney Plus series Obi-Wan Kenobi.
12:46I was beginning to think you weren't coming.
12:48Master.
12:49Good.
12:50Then maybe I stand more of a chance this time.
12:55Are you ready?
12:56Number 20.
12:57Misha Barton
12:58Even if you didn't watch The O.C. back in the aughts,
13:01there's a good chance you knew who Misha Barton was.
13:04Hey, you should come by.
13:05Check it out.
13:06If you don't have other plans.
13:08While she'd appeared on screen since the mid-90s,
13:11it was her role as Marissa Cooper on the Fox television show
13:15that made her not only a star,
13:17but the It Girl of 2003,
13:19according to Entertainment Weekly.
13:21Since the end of the 2000s,
13:23Barton has continued to work,
13:25earning praise for her roles in various independent movies,
13:28including 2014's Star-Crossed.
13:31While The O.C. didn't mark the end of Barton's career by any means,
13:35she hasn't really seen the same type of mainstream success
13:38since she left the show after its third season.
13:41Shut up.
13:43I'm getting out of here.
13:44No, I am.
13:45Enjoy the party.
13:46Number 19.
13:48Jane Child
13:49If your first thought was,
13:51Jane who?
13:52You surely aren't alone.
13:53It's easy to ignore and hide your head and...
14:00Back in 1989,
14:02the thought that Jane Child would be pretty much forgotten
14:05seemed almost impossible
14:06after the release of her self-titled debut album,
14:10an album that spent 22 weeks on the Billboard 200,
14:14an album on which she wrote and produced every song
14:16and played almost every instrument.
14:19This feat earned her the title of the female prince.
14:22Do you fight on your hands?
14:25I fall to my baby breast
14:27Welcome to the moon
14:29With her signature nose-chain piercing
14:32and a number two hit single on the Billboard Hot 100,
14:35the music world appeared to be Child's melodic oyster.
14:38However, she only managed to put out two unsuccessful efforts after that,
14:43the last one being all the way back in 2002.
14:45I don't know why I don't care
14:48I leave it sitting there
14:52Number 18.
14:54Pauly Shore
14:54These days, it seems like a Herculean task coming across Pauly Shore,
15:00but back in the 90s, it was almost impossible to avoid him.
15:03This could mean fame or money or popularity.
15:09Far too much responsibility for me anyways.
15:11I'm already popular.
15:12Shore was one of the biggest MTV VJs of the decade
15:16and starred in a slew of mindless comedies from Encino Man to In the Army Now to Jury Duty.
15:23None of these were massive hits, and yet they kept making them,
15:26at least until the critically bashed box office disappointment Biodome.
15:31What do you boys want out of life?
15:33To die and come back as a leotard?
15:35The 1996 stoner comedy flick sure felt like the beginning of Shore's fall off the map.
15:40A fall so steep that he co-wrote, produced, directed, and starred in a 2003 mockumentary
15:46about his fictional attempt to fake his own death just to reboot his career.
15:51Why should I do that?
15:52You go down as a genius who died before his time.
15:54Like me!
15:55Or Belushi!
15:57Which would you rather be?
15:58A dead genius or a living idiot?
16:00You idiot!
16:01Number 17.
16:03Macaulay Culkin
16:04Falls off the map are obviously relative,
16:07but few people on this list started theirs from a greater height than Macaulay Culkin.
16:12I'm up here! Come and get me!
16:14Following the uber-success of Home Alone in 1990,
16:18Culkin saw his star skyrocket to a level few child actors have ever reached.
16:22In 1992, he was paid $4.5 million for Home Alone 2,
16:27and made five more films in the following two years.
16:31VH1 called him the second greatest kid star of all time.
16:35First capital appreciation is all well and good,
16:38but not without a sound gross strategy.
16:40Well, I've got only one word to say to you.
16:42Pork bellies.
16:44So what do you think, Rich?
16:45I think all we ever talk about is money.
16:48We should be having fun.
16:49Culkin took a break from acting between 1994 and 2003,
16:53and has appeared in a few movies and TV shows since,
16:57including a well-received turn in Season 10 of American Horror Story.
17:01So while Culkin might still be on a map,
17:04it's decidedly a much, much smaller one.
17:07Hey Google, what's on my calendar today?
17:08You have one event called House to Yourself.
17:11Oh yeah.
17:12Number 16.
17:13Piper Parabo
17:14In 1999,
17:16Piper Parabo was a struggling actress earning a living as a waitress in New York.
17:20Then in 2000, she starred in Coyote Ugly,
17:23and everything changed.
17:25Where are you going?
17:26I don't know.
17:27I gotta walk or celebrate her.
17:30Pass out or something.
17:33Hey ladies and gent,
17:35how about a big round of applause for the singing coyote from Jersey?
17:39Critics might not have liked the film,
17:41but with its over $110 million gross at the box office,
17:45it's clear audiences disagreed with them.
17:47Coyote Ugly made Parabo a star,
17:50but instead of riding that wave to superstardom,
17:53the Texas-born actress turned to indie films.
17:56How you holding up?
17:58Good.
18:00You good?
18:02Yeah.
18:04I'm proud of you.
18:06Notwithstanding,
18:07she's found consistent work,
18:09appearing in The Prestige
18:10and starring in USA Network's Covert Affairs in the early 2010s.
18:14Despite this,
18:16her star has never shined brighter than it did in 2000.
18:27Number 15.
18:28Shannon Elizabeth.
18:29Did you know that Shannon Elizabeth was a very active poker player in the second half of the 2000s?
18:35That she had four cashes at the World Series of Poker,
18:38and was hailed as, quote,
18:40one of the leading celebrity poker players?
18:42I mean,
18:43I've been working really hard and practicing,
18:44but one of the biggest things,
18:46like a change that I've been making just in my overall life,
18:48is the law of attraction and positive energy,
18:52and really trying to picture the cards I need,
18:56and not the picture of the cards I don't want.
18:57Did you also know that she's an environmentalist and activist
19:01who has spent decades fighting for animal protection and conservation?
19:04Though impressive,
19:06none of that comes close to making a dent in pop culture,
19:09like her appearance in 1999's American Pie.
19:12You have seen me.
19:14Now it's my turn to see you.
19:17Elizabeth bared it all,
19:18or almost all,
19:20for her role as foreign exchange student Nadia,
19:22and became a teen comedy legend.
19:25While she might have fallen off the map,
19:27we think the one she's on now is still pretty important.
19:30I love animals,
19:31and there's just something about them needing us,
19:35and all of the problems that they're having right now
19:37are because of us.
19:38It's not nature.
19:40Their issues are not each other.
19:42It's us.
19:43So if we got them into this,
19:44we have to get them out.
19:45Number 14.
19:47Josh Hartnett.
19:48From his 1998 film debut in Halloween H20 20 years later,
19:53Josh Hartnett was on the fast track to Hollywood stardom.
19:56Look, Mom, help me out here.
19:58I need a little more open air.
19:59I've earned it.
20:00Over the next five years,
20:02he appeared in Teen People magazine's
20:0421 Hottest Stars Under 21,
20:06and 25 Hottest Stars Under 25.
20:09The late 90s and aught saw Hartnett in huge blockbusters,
20:14including Black Hawk Down and Pearl Harbor,
20:17as well as smaller dramas like The Virgin Suicides.
20:20Try to understand.
20:23Try, try, try to understand.
20:26He's a magic man, mama.
20:29Since 2010, Hartnett has done good work in TV shows
20:33like Penny Dreadful,
20:34but he's nowhere near the huge star he was back in the day.
20:37However, he seems very happy about it,
20:40saying in regards to his fame,
20:42quote,
20:42I knew that it wasn't healthy at the time,
20:48and I wanted to be around people that I cared about,
20:51and I knew cared about me,
20:52and I had no doubts about that.
20:55So the best thing for me to do
20:56was to take a step back and kind of reassess my life.
20:59Number 13.
21:01Alicia Silverstone
21:02As endearing as Paul Rudd and Brittany Murphy were in Clueless,
21:06it was Alicia Silverstone who became a household name
21:09after the film's 1995 release.
21:12Totally based on my powers of persuasion.
21:14You proud?
21:15Honey, I couldn't be happier than if they were based on real grades.
21:19Clueless was so popular
21:20that it got Silverstone a multi-million dollar deal
21:23with Columbia TriStar,
21:25and landed her the role of Batgirl
21:27in 1997's Batman and Robin.
21:30Unfortunately, the movie was a critical disaster
21:32and earned Silverstone the Razzie Award
21:35for Worst Supporting Actress.
21:37It doesn't matter
21:37because I've already won all the money I need
21:39to do what I've always dreamed.
21:40Well, just don't tell me you want to run off
21:42and join the circus.
21:43As the 21st century rolled around,
21:45Silverstone slowly transitioned from leading lady
21:47able to open a film on her own
21:49to overlooked supporting actress.
21:52Regardless, she still allows herself
21:54to have a little fun revisiting her clueless days
21:56in commercials and lip-sync battles.
22:03Number 12, Freddie Prince Jr.
22:06If you were a teen girl in the late 90s and early 2000s,
22:09there's a good chance you had a picture
22:11of Freddie Prince Jr. hanging in your locker
22:13or taped inside your trapper keeper.
22:16Art.
22:16Art?
22:18You don't take art.
22:19How do you know?
22:20From She's All That
22:22to the I Know What You Did Last Summer franchise,
22:24plus a couple Scooby-Doo flicks,
22:26Prince Jr. was a mainstay teen dream of that era.
22:29He even got his own eponymous sitcom in 2005,
22:32which lasted one season.
22:34They haven't taken everything.
22:36I still have my wine room and my pool table.
22:39Had he been heard in a Star Wars movie back then,
22:42it would have been big news.
22:43But in 2019, his voice cameo as Kanan Jarrus
22:47in Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker
22:49probably went unnoticed by half the audience.
22:52In the heart of a Jedi lies her strength.
22:56Number 11, Tara Reid.
22:58Hollywood will always have room
23:00for a pretty blue-eyed blondie.
23:02And in the late 1990s and early 2000s,
23:05Tara Reid rose above the rest.
23:07Such a perfect evening.
23:09I mean, that's how you've always pictured it, isn't it?
23:12American Pie, Van Wilder, and Josie and the Pussycats
23:16fit her talents to a T.
23:17There was a section of the public so interested in her
23:20that in 2005,
23:22E! gave her her own reality travel show called Tara Dice.
23:25But while she was a definite it girl,
23:28she was never really respected as an actress by the media.
23:31What's the matter, Snuggle Bunny?
23:33Finally realizing the world isn't all sunshine and rainbows?
23:37Stop it.
23:38Not everyone gets a happy ending, Muffin.
23:41Stop it.
23:42She also had to deal with some botched plastic surgery
23:44and a barrage of negative comments about her body
23:47by the tabloid press and fans.
23:49She did do six Sharknado movies, though,
23:52so that ought to count for something.
23:54You can't destroy this Sharknado.
23:57This is our future.
23:58This is our destiny.
24:00Number 10, Jonathan Taylor Thomas.
24:03He went from being a bowl-cut babe to a tiger-beat king
24:07before he was old enough to drive.
24:09In the 1990s, JTT was a walking and talking teen dream.
24:14What makes you say that?
24:16Because ever since you came out back,
24:19she's been staring at you.
24:23He starred on one of the decade's most popular TV shows, Home Improvement,
24:27lent his voice to one of the most iconic animated movies of all time
24:30when he played Simba in The Lion King,
24:32and his photo was plastered on the walls of countless bedrooms.
24:36What more could someone want?
24:38There's more to being king than getting your way all the time.
24:41There's more?
24:42The answer was to trade the spotlight for his studies.
24:46At the height of his fame,
24:47Thomas left Home Improvement to hit the books,
24:49openly expressing his desire to attend college.
24:52I like being at school.
24:53I like being at school,
24:54and, you know, I definitely want to go to college.
24:56Today, the rarely photographed Thomas continues to live away from the spotlight,
25:01though he has continued to act periodically.
25:03You know, a lot of times that middle child ends up being
25:06the funny one because he wants the attention.
25:08Number 9. Jamie Walters
25:10He had boyish good looks,
25:12a bit of a mysterious streak,
25:14and Donna Martin's eye.
25:15What more could Jamie Walters want?
25:18When it's all too much,
25:21you need some human touch
25:25to see it's really not so rare.
25:29Lots of teen idols from the 90s have strong name recognition,
25:33and, in some cases, a decades-long career.
25:36But the pinnacle of Jamie Walters' success
25:38occurred during the decade of plaid.
25:41Walters achieved peak popularity between 1992 and 1994
25:45after starring in two drama series,
25:47The Heights,
25:48and the smash hit Beverly Hills' 90210,
25:51and scoring a number one hit with the former's theme song,
25:54How Do You Talk to an Angel?
26:01He wasn't able to match his career success
26:03in the years that followed, however,
26:05so Walters left the entertainment business
26:07and traded fame for fanning out flames as a firefighter.
26:11He enjoys the balance he has created in his life
26:13and remembers the musical heights he scaled fondly.
26:15Number 8. Stacy Keenan
26:17If you were channel surfing during the 80s or 90s,
26:21there was a very good chance you would have come across Stacy Keenan,
26:24who was a then-teen queen,
26:26or soon-to-be-one, of the small screen.
26:28It takes a lot of planning on our parts, you know,
26:31to make sure that your life is, uh, what's the word?
26:33Perfect.
26:34Perfect.
26:34She starred in two back-to-back television success stories,
26:38My Two Dads and Step by Step,
26:40and a few guest appearances on TV shows and a handful of films.
26:43But the actress gradually disappeared
26:45from the entertainment circuit by the 2010s.
26:48Dana, I could use you in the other room.
26:50For what?
26:51Right now, the only thing I can think of is a piñata.
26:53Not only did Keenan completely fall off the map,
26:56she decided to embark on an entirely different career trajectory.
27:00She now spends her time away from the spotlight,
27:03channeling her passion for education into teaching,
27:05while also exploring the world of law
27:07through working as a district attorney.
27:10What about intellectual stimulation?
27:11A love of learning?
27:13A thirst for knowledge?
27:16Wow.
27:18You mean I'm finally getting through to you?
27:19Number 7.
27:20Angus T. Jones
27:22Compared to the whirlwind lifestyle of his Two and a Half Men co-star Charlie Sheen,
27:27Angus T. Jones' life after finding career-defining success followed a completely opposite path.
27:32Known for playing the half-portion of the show's titular men,
27:36Jones underwent a profound religious experience.
27:39As co-star John Cryer later described,
27:41That has changed who he feels he is,
27:44and you know, it's his choice to participate or not.
27:47We love him.
27:47He also began to publicly analyze the show's conflicts with his newfound religion,
27:52later describing its contents as, quote,
27:55filth.
27:55Jones fueled his distaste for the series further by calling himself a, quote,
28:00paid hypocrite for staying on despite his hesitation.
28:03The 19-year-old star of Two and a Half Men shocking everyone by publicly dissing the show,
28:09pleading with people not to watch.
28:11While he apologized for his comments and even appeared in the series finale,
28:15Jones rarely makes public appearances these days.
28:18And he appeared in only a handful of productions in the late 2010s after his departure from the show.
28:23That's it? You're leaving?
28:25Nothing personal?
28:26I just gotta get back to Japan and tell my wife and kids that we're rich.
28:28Number 6.
28:30Mara Wilson
28:30Life certainly turned out to imitate art for Mara Wilson.
28:34I'm telling you, six hours a day at school is not enough.
28:38I'll say.
28:39The young actress, who was a silver screen staple in the early 90s,
28:43landed her breakout role in the 1996 adaptation of Ruol Dahl's Matilda,
28:48capturing audiences' hearts with her big eyes and an even bigger sense of self-awareness.
28:54Following Matilda's massive success,
28:57Wilson was acutely aware of the way she related to her newfound fame
29:00telling CBC's Q in 2016,
29:03It was, and I think it was hard too because, yeah,
29:07it felt like everybody liked her more than they liked me and everybody knew her.
29:11The bookish beauty later learned she would rather live a life away from the spotlight,
29:15later describing its effects as,
29:17It was a lifestyle that I couldn't really deal with.
29:20And, you know, I like to consider it a mutual breakup.
29:23Hollywood wasn't that interested in me anymore.
29:25And I wasn't that interested in it.
29:27Today, Mara pursues her true passion as a full-time writer,
29:31though she's done some brief acting and some voice work in the 2010s.
29:35Number 5.
29:36Orlando Brown
29:37By 2005,
29:39Orlando Brown had appeared in multiple successful Disney Channel shows,
29:43from a guest spot on Lizzie McGuire,
29:45to starring roles in The Proud Family and That's So Raven.
29:49I'm guaranteed to make the nation wanna follow me.
29:51I got the ladies like,
29:52Oh, shout, I need to breathe now.
29:54Watch Eddie as I hold it steady.
29:56I'm undercover superstar, but y'all ain't ready.
29:58However, even Raven Baxter's psychic powers couldn't possibly predict Brown's downfall a decade later.
30:04The actor gradually fell off the map,
30:06appearing in very few notable projects between 2005 and 2012,
30:11and had his first drug-related arrest in 2016.
30:15Brown is being charged with misdemeanor domestic battery,
30:18obstruction of justice, and two felonies.
30:21After two more arrests,
30:22the stark reality of Orlando's downfall was shown to the public
30:25when he appeared on an episode of Dr. Phil in 2018.
30:29The actor incorrectly answered Dr. Phil's questions,
30:32while also refusing his invitation for further medical intervention.
30:36I can't dedicate another 90 days of being monitored all my life.
30:41I don't need that crap like other people.
30:43It's a slap in the face to people that actually need it.
30:46Number 4.
30:47Lelaine
30:48She was a fierce fashionista and always game for a trip to the mall.
30:52Could there be a cooler best friend than Miranda Sanchez?
30:55The character of Miranda from the quintessential Disney Channel show Lizzie McGuire
30:59put Lelaine on the map,
31:01and made people everywhere strive for a friendship like Lizzie and Miranda's.
31:06If you have a problem, I'll be here for you
31:09Cause girls will always know that
31:12It's us against the world
31:15Like many Disney divas of the 2000s,
31:17Lelaine's cool girl next door demeanor drew massive attention to the then-teenager,
31:22making fame difficult for Lelaine to deal with.
31:25I'm strong and annoying,
31:27so I don't see me feeling in your world
31:31Opening up to fellow Disney diva Christy Carlson Romano,
31:35she explained her younger self wasn't mentally prepared for the reality of being a role model.
31:39I don't think you truly under-
31:41Well, I didn't truly understand what that meant.
31:44No matter what, you have that kid mentality and that kid brain, so-
31:47You're still a child.
31:47Yeah, exactly.
31:48Today, Lelaine, who struggled with substance use disorder in 2007,
31:53lives life mostly away from the spotlight,
31:55though the musician connects with fans on social media.
31:58Number 3. Frankie Muniz
32:01Aspiring actors typically do whatever they can to reach superstardom,
32:05but this stereotypical plan wasn't Frankie Muniz's course of action.
32:09What's this?
32:10A study of irrigation techniques of pre-Roman society
32:12and how they led to the advancement of Western civilization.
32:14I thought we were just studying Mesopotamian farming techniques.
32:18We were.
32:19I just used that as a jumping off point.
32:21The Malcolm in the Middle star added a few film roles to his name
32:23during the seven years he played Malcolm,
32:25but his behind-the-scenes passions were what captured his attention.
32:29Like, I want to own an accounting firm.
32:30Like, that's, that's, that's what is my, my dream.
32:33Like, I like-
32:33Frankie, that is every child's dream.
32:35Instead of falling off the map for any of the cliche reasons,
32:39teen actors do,
32:40things slowed down on the acting front following the sitcom's end.
32:43While he had some big and small screen roles,
32:46he also suffered from two mini-strokes in less than a year
32:49and began struggling with memory loss in the 2010s.
32:53However, Muniz doesn't view his experience as a struggle.
32:57With his now-wife Paige's guidance as she records memories
33:00for him to look back on through journaling,
33:02Muniz is able to fully concentrate and thrive with passion projects.
33:07I love to be able to look back,
33:08and she's, she's a writer too,
33:10so she's really, she is amazing in detail with the way she writes,
33:14so it really does help bring me back.
33:16Number 2.
33:16Taylor Lautner
33:17Between playing a werewolf by day
33:20and dating outrageously popular superstars by night,
33:23the late 2000s and early 2010s
33:26were the peak period for breakout star Taylor Lautner.
33:29Are you crashing the prom or something?
33:30Did you come to the date?
33:31Not sure.
33:32No.
33:33Uh, my dad paid me to come talk to you.
33:40Lautner became a teen idol practically overnight
33:42by playing beloved werewolf Jacob Black
33:45in the blockbuster Twilight franchise,
33:48and was consistently featured as a cover boy
33:50on countless teen magazines between 2008 and 2012.
33:55Let's face it, I am hotter than you.
33:58Lautner's career had big leading man potential
34:01after the series' final film was released in 2012,
34:03but the subsequent roles the actor chose
34:06were much less popular with audiences
34:08compared to the cultural phenomenon that was Twilight.
34:13You have a problem.
34:14Lautner's pivot to roles that shared few similarities
34:17to his werewolf gig was intentional,
34:19as he once explained to GMA.
34:22Do you ever get concerned that a role as successful as that
34:25could potentially pigeonhole you as an actor moving forward?
34:28That's kind of why I want to choose things that are different.
34:32Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel
34:35and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos.
34:38You have the option to be notified for occasional videos
34:41or all of them.
34:42If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings
34:44and switch on notifications.
34:48Number 1. Amanda Bynes
34:50It didn't matter if you asked Ashley or your friend down the street,
34:54Amanda Bynes was the new kid on the comedy block
34:56everyone wanted to watch back in the mid-90s and beyond.
34:59Come real close to the TV, Alex.
35:02Closer, closer, closer.
35:06Sarah don't like you!
35:08This funny gal made audiences giggle
35:11with her precocious comedic timing
35:12as a cast member on Nickelodeon's All That
35:15and later as the host of her own variety show.
35:18I need to play this place!
35:19I'm the number 1 fan!
35:21Bynes' continued success during the aughts
35:24made her one of that era's most promising teen queens.
35:26But unfortunately, a string of worrisome incidents
35:30led to her professional downfall
35:31and pushed her off the map.
35:33The once fresh-faced Hollywood starlet
35:35seen with a sheared haircut in her latest mugshot
35:37has emerged from her apartment
35:39to reportedly shop for a brand new wig
35:41and despite her turbulent week,
35:43denied anything was wrong.
35:45These personal issues were shocking
35:46due to her reputation of appearing more put together
35:49than some of her Hollywood peers,
35:51causing lots of intense media scrutiny
35:53that she has never really recovered from.
35:55Did we miss any shooting stars
35:57who fizzled out too soon?
35:59Let us know in the comments!
Comments