The Reel Shit Behind Childhood Acting Careers

Let’s be REEL here, folks. As kids, and some of us still as adults, dreamed of being famous. The idea of being on a Disney Channel show was the peak of possibility. To this day, I am still upset that I never got even a guest star role on Lizzie McGuire or Hannah Montana. In actuality, my dream was to be the Pink Power Ranger, but that’s a discussion for another time.

But... something we never knew about our childhood idols was that the vast majority of them went through some pretty horrific things during their time on television.

Now, there are a good number of childhood actors who went on to create huge names for themselves. Some stayed in the film industry, while some moved to music, fashion, beauty, modeling, or a combination. Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, and many others are still household names. But there are many that we’ve forgotten about since those golden days ended. Many of these characters we loved ended up in normal careers or have suffered fates much worse than fading into normalcy. 

Pictured: (left) Jennifer Stone as Harper Finkle and (right) Selena Gomez as Alex Russo (Wizards of Waverly Place 2007)

Let’s break down this iconic television duo. Selena Gomez’s Alex Russo and Jennifer Stone’s Harper Finkle were the inspirational best friends at the forefront of Disney Channel’s hit series Wizards of Waverly Place. In their own ways, both of these queens went on to be extremely successful. Selena Gomez has won a plethora of awards between her acting and music careers, runs Rare Beauty, and serves as an advocate for people suffering from lupus and other autoimmune disorders. Jennifer Stone took a different route. While she may not be in the same tax bracket as Selena anymore, she lives a beautiful life. Jennifer left acting in the past and finished her degree in nursing, and regained the spotlight when she shared her experiences as an emergency room nurse during the COVID-19 lockdown. She’s been very active on social media since then, giving people a glimpse of what normalcy looks like after fame subsides. However, it was announced that Jennifer will return to acting, specifically in a reprise of her role as Harper, in the finale series of the show’s sequel series, Wizards Beyond Waverly Place. Two incredible childhood actresses. Two incredible women. Two very different lives.

But not everyone was as lucky as Selena and Jennifer were. For many childhood actors, those experiences were ultimately very life-altering in the worst ways possible. Many experienced drug and alcohol abuse, harassment, criminal activities, and/or died tragically young. Some were so scarred by their time in the spotlight that they now do everything they can to avoid it.

Judith Barsi, who voiced Ducky in The Land Before Time, was murdered by her father just a few years after the film’s release.

Judy Garland, famous for the role of Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz, was fueled with drugs and other substances from the age of 16 onward by her leadership team to maintain her young appearance.

These are the people the industry does not want people to forget but doesn’t want the full story to be remembered. Keep the art and their work; forget their struggles. It’s sickening. 

Pictured: Amanda Bynes - (left) 2003 16th Annual Kids' Choice Awards; (right) 2024 in Los Angeles, California

A major figure in this category is Amanda Bynes. Made popular by multiple Nickelodeon television series and teen-centric movies like What a Girl Wants, Amanda is one of the most prominent and recognizable figures of the late 1990s and early 2000s film culture. She was the shining star of the industry and was so popular that she scored her own series, The Amanda Show, which aired from 1999-2002. Her credited roles stretch from 1996 to 2010 and include more iconic roles than I can list in this post. The world loved and still loves Amanda immensely. But the industry was far from kind to her.

Despite the fame and popularity, the industry had drastic effects on her. Mostly connected to declining mental health, Amanda suffered from substance abuse and found herself in trouble with the law a number of times in her young adult years. After stepping away from the spotlight and seeking treatment, Amanda got clean, pursued training as a manicurist, and chose to live amongst normal people. She has been offered chances to return to acting, but has rejected them all. While many almost mourned her leaving the industry, there were plenty who celebrated the fact that she was healthy and doing better in life. At the end of the day, we should want the best for everyone regardless of our own wants. 

As our generation gets older, the stories of what our childhood idols suffered through grow in number and horror on a near-daily basis. Documentary after documentary is being produced about the various experiences of these figures. Demi Lovato brought us the production of Child Star, which detailed the lives and tragedies of icons like Drew Barrymore, Alyson Stoner, Christina Ricci, Raven Symone, and more. There was also Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, which had a very scary image of the child acting scene. There was a heavy focus on sexual assault by leaders in the industry, unfair work conditions and treatment, and regrets from times in the past. Drake Bell and Alexa Nikolas were both recognized heavily in the media and on social media platforms following the documentary’s release, with much of the world sympathizing with them. 

At the end of the day, we never truly know what people are going through, but especially celebrities. There’s a lack of grace for young people in the entertainment industry. They are so heavily criticized and ridiculed, especially by older generations, when they still haven’t lived all that much life yet.

Hearing these stories and seeing how they caused our favorite stars to end up, it makes me wonder if the magic of the industry truly only exists in the finished production. Maybe I’m lucky I never got that guest star role I wanted so badly. That’s some reel shit to unpack, right?