Child stars who quit fame – from ‘off-grid’ Malcolm in the Middle kid to Fresh Prince tot’s VERY drastic career change
MANY kids around the world dream of one day making it in Hollywood as an A-list actor.
But for some child actors, who got famous at an early age, the pressures of fame became unbearable, causing them to retreat from the limelight.
One who seemed to drop off the face of the earth was Erik Per Sullivan, who starred in Malcolm in the Middle as Dewey.
For years, fans of the sitcom had been wondering what happened to the actor after the show ended in 2006.
And now actress Jane Kaczmarek, who played his mother Lois in the show, has revealed his whereabouts.
She said: “He’s well, he’s very, very well.
“He did Malcolm for seven years, he started at seven, he ended at 14. He wasn’t interested in acting, at all.
“He goes to school at a very prestigious American university that he’s asked us all to be quiet about and he loves Charles Dickens.
“He’s doing graduate work in Victorian literature. I admire it because so many people think being in show business is the greatest thing in the world, it’s not for everyone.”
A couple of years ago, Frankie Muniz, who played Malcolm, said he no longer keeps in touch with Erik and didn’t know what he was doing these days.
He explained: ” But one thing I know, some actors or some people just got to do it when they were a kid and then they wanted to experience other things and kind of live a more normal life out of the spotlight. I think that’s what he wanted to do so good for him.”
And Erik is not the only child star who made the decision to shun Hollywood at the height of their fame.
Ariana Richards
Ariana had starred in several movies before landing her breakthrough role as Lex Murphy in 1993’s Jurassic Park.
Four years later, the now-44-year-old made a cameo in the second instalment of the film before retreating from the limelight in 2001.
Since then, she has become a successful painter. In 2005, her work won first place in the National Professional Oil Painting Competition.
In 2013, she married her husband, Mark Bolton. The couple live in Oregon with their child.
Roy Snart
Roy Snart is best known for playing Paul Rawlins in the 1971 musical fantasy film Bedknobs and Broomsticks.
He was just a toddler when he starred in the movie and retreated from the limelight after its release. But he found huge success as a businessman.
It has been reported that he is the head of an IT company called First Choice Software.
In 2016, Roy, 62, and other cast members of the movie had a brief reunion on The One Show.
His co-star Ian Weighill, who played Charlie, also shunned the spotlight and is now believed to be a train driver for South West Trains.
Ross Bagley
Ross, 35, appeared in 46 episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air alongside Will Smith.
He played Nicky, the youngest member of the Banks family, who often outwitted his older cousin and his siblings.
In 1996, Will brought him along to play his stepson in the blockbuster Independence Day.
After a few appearances in TV shows, Ross quit acting and studied at the California State University, Northridge.
He then became a real estate agent.
Lisa and Louise Burns
Their haunting line, “Come play with us, Danny,” has been responsible for the nightmares of millions around the globe and has inspired countless Halloween costumes.
However, Lisa and Louise Burns, 56, decided to quit acting after starring in the horror film The Shining as the terrifying Grady Twins.
A couple of years ago, they spoke about how they delivered their iconic lines saying: “We’re naturally spooky. But we did practice our timing – saying things in unison – and we worked on saying our lines in a hollow, other-worldly kind of way a number of times.”
After studying at university, Lisa became a lawyer, while Louise embarked on a career as a microbiologist.
They also make appearances, signing posters from the film for fans.
Peter Ostrum
At 12 years old, Peter Ostrum, 66, starred as sweet-toothed youngster Charlie Bucket in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory opposite Gene Wilder.
He was given the role after producers caught wind of his acting skills in theatre productions in Ohio. He started filming the movie in Munich just before starting the seventh grade (year 10) in 1970.
After the movie, Peter left Hollywood and opted instead for a career as a veterinarian, saying the industry was not for him.
He only thought about going back to acting once.
In an interview, he said: “The only time I ever considered it again was when I heard they were holding auditions to replace Peter Firth in Equus on Broadway.”
When he didn’t get the part, he decided to continue with his education and went on to become a veterinarian.
Peter married his wife, Loretta Lepkowski, in 1987 and welcomed two children, Helenka and Leif.
Jaimee Foxworth
For four seasons, Jaimee Foxworth, 44, played Judy Winslow on Family Matters, the youngest member of the show’s iconic clan.
But things began to go downhill for her as popularity for the character Steve Urkel, played by Jaleel White, grew.
The show became so much about the character that producers decided to axe other characters who they didn’t as clear storylines for.
Unable to land any other role, Jaimee quit fame and, in a drastic U-turn, later became a pornstar.
Jaimee, who has now left the adult industry, revealed to Oprah Winfrey in an interview that she had become desperate.
She said: “It was, to me, the quickest money. I was so naïve, and I was drinking.”
She added: “I couldn’t hold my head high.
“I couldn’t walk around and say, ‘My name is Jaimee Foxworth’ without someone saying, ‘Ew,’ or, ‘We heard about you’.
“That’s the most degrading part. I lost all my confidence. I lost all my self-esteem. I lost friends. I lost some family members.”
In 2009, she gave birth to a boy called Michael Douglas Shaw, Jr.
Paul Terry
Out of hundreds of child actors, Paul Terry, 38, was chosen to play the lead role in James and the Giant Peach Tree in 1996.
For his role, he earned a nomination for Best Performance in a Voiceover at the Young Artist Award.
After that, he starred in 26 episodes of Microsoap and was a bass guitar player in a band before quitting showbiz.
He pursued his education and got a master’s degree in civil engineering at Cardiff University.
In 2007, it was reported that he was working as a maths teacher and lives in County Durham.
Jeff Cohen
Jeff Cohen, 50, left fans in stitches with his truffle shuffle dance in the 1985 adventure film The Goonies.
He played clumsy Lawrence “Chunk” Cohen.
Before filming, he contracted chicken pox but was so afraid he would be recast that he kept it a secret from producers.
He soon became typecast and ended his film and TV career in 1991.
In 2000, he earned a law degree from UCLA School of Law and became an entertainment lawyer.
Two years later, he founded the Cohen & Gardner firm in Los Angeles and has received many accolades for his work in law.
Speaking about why acting jobs dried out for him, he said: “There were basically about four fat kids in town, so every time there was a fat kid role, you saw the same people at the audition.
“It was survival of the fattest. But when I hit puberty, it was a career-ender for me. I was transforming from Chunk to hunk and I couldn’t get roles any more.”
Charlie Korsmo
Although Charlie Korsmo, 46, was already a child star in his own right, his big break came when he starred as Jack Banning in the 1991 film Hook.
While he was nominated for several awards and became a big star, seven years passed before he starred in his next movie, Can’t Wait.
After that, he earned a physics degree from MIT and even worked for the Republican Party in the House of Representatives.
He received a law degree from Yale and became a professor of corporate law and finance.
He now has a wife and two kids.
When asked about why he left the film industry, he said: “I think I managed the trick of leaving voluntarily just about the time I would have been thrown out anyway.”
Ross Malinger
Ross Malinger, 40, shot to fame as Jonah Balwin, the son of Tom Hanks’ character in Sleepless in Seattle. He was just eight years old when he landed the role.
He later starred in the Disney comedy Toothless and appeared in an episode of Seinfeld before ditching acting in 2006.
Ross later pursued a career as a car salesman and worked in several car leadership companies.
According to his LinkedIn page, he has been the finance manager at Keyes Automotive Group since December 2020.