30 Famous Actors You Didn't Know Were In These Iconic Movies And Shows Before They Hit It Big
BuzzFeed
9 min read
1.Here is Paul Dano. You may know him from his most recent role as the Riddler in The Batman:
Here's Paul Dano in his first role as Nicholas, a basketball player on T.J.'s team, in an episode of Smart Guy:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
2.Here's Joey King. You probably know her from The Kissing Booth movies or The Act:
Here's Joey King playing Emily from an episode of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
3.Here's Kat Dennings. You may know her from 2 Broke Girls, Dollface, Wandavision, or all of the above:
Here's Kat Dennings in Sex and the City where she played a 13-year-old who hired Samantha to plan her bat mitzvah:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
4.Here's Dylan Minnette who's best known for his lead role in 13 Reasons Why:
And here's Dylan Minnette in an episode of Grey's Anatomy:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
5.Here's Rachel McAdams who you may know from Mean Girls, The Notebook, The Time Traveler's Wife, and, like, a bunch of other stuff:
Here's Rachel McAdams in an episode of The Famous Jett Jackson as Riley's sister:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
6.Here's Kristen Stewart. You probably know her from Twilight and her recent role as Princess Diana in Spencer:
Here's Kristen Stewart in her first role as "Girl in Fountain Line" in The Thirteenth Year:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
7.Here's Emma Stone who you know from Easy A, The Help, and The Amazing Spider-Man movies:
And here's Emma Stone in Malcolm in the Middle where she played the leader of a group of popular girls:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
8.Here's Jennifer Lawrence. You got to know her from TheHunger Games and Silver Linings Playbook:
Here's Jennifer Lawrence in Monk playing a mascot at a school:
And here's how she looks now vs. then:
9.Here's Steven Yeun. You may know him from his roles in Minari, The Walking Dead, and Sorry to Bother You:
Here's Steven Yeun in an episode of The Big Bang Theory playing Sheldon's old roommate:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
10.Here's Dianna Agron who is mostly known for her role as Quinn Fabray on Glee:
And here's Dianna Agron on Drake & Josh playing the girl who went on a date with Drake and said she could fit her whole fist in her mouth:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
11.Here's Mila Kunis who you probably know from That '70s Show:
And here's Mila Kunis in Baywatch when she played a schoolgirl named Annie:
And here's Mila Kunis again in 7th Heaven as Lucy's frenemy Ashley:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
12.Here's Seth Rogen who you probably know from Knocked Up, Pineapple Express, or his many other comedy films:
And here's Seth Rogen in Dawson's Creek where he played a stoner who went with Joey, Audrey, and Eddie to Los Angeles:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
13.Here's Joseph Gordon-Levitt who you may have first seen in 500 Days of Summer or 50/50:
And here's Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Roseanne as DJ's friend:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
14.Here's Ryan Gosling. You probably know him from The Notebook, Crazy, Stupid, Love, La La Land, and more:
And here's Ryan Gosling in Are You Afraid of the Dark? where he played a character who was obsessed with death:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
15.Here's Dakota Fanning. You probably got to know her from her major roles in Uptown Girls, The Cat in the Hat, and Charlotte's Web:
And here's Dakota Fanning on Friends playing the girl who lived in the house Chandler and Monica bought:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
16.Here's Jessica Chastain. You probably came to know her from The Help or Take Shelter:
Here's Jessica Chastain on Veronica Mars where she played a survivor of abuse:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
17.Here's Lin-Manuel Miranda. You know him as the writer of the musical plays Hamilton and In the Heights:
And here's Lin-Manuel Miranda in an episode of How I Met Your Mother:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
18.Here's Simon Helberg. You most likely recognize him from playing Howard on The Big Bang Theory:
And here's Simon Helberg playing a nerd in A Cinderella Story:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
19.Here's Jane Lynch. You most likely know her from playing Coach Sue Sylvester on Glee:
Here's Jane Lynch as Greta on Married... with Children:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
20.Here's Ashley Tisdale. I'm guessing you know from The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and the High School Musical movies:
Here's Ashley Tisdale playing a student in Donnie Darko:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
21.Here's Octavia Spencer. You probably know her for her major roles in The Help and Ma:
Here's Octavia Spencer in Spider-Man where she played a woman who tried to talk Peter out of joining a professional wrestling event:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
22.Here's Adam Scott who you probably came to know from Parks and Recreation:
Here's Adam Scott in Boy Meets World where he had a recurring role as a bully:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
23.Here's Scarlett Johansson who is best known for playing Black Widow in the MCU films:
And here's Scarlett Johansson as the sister in Home Alone 3:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
24.Here's Ben Affleck. You know him from his many major roles in Good Will Hunting, Pearl Harbor, and Gone Girl:
Here's Ben Affleck as a basketball player in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
25.Here's John Cho who's best known for playing Harold in the Harold & Kumar movies:
And here's John Cho in The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas when he played a parking valet:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
26.Here's Johnny Galecki who's best known for playing Leonard on The Big Bang Theory:
And here's Johnny Galecki appearing as Rusty in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation:
And here's what he looks like now vs. then:
27.Here's Jessica Alba who you know from starring in many box office hits like Fantastic Four, Valentine's Day, and Good Luck Chuck:
And here's Jessica Alba in Camp Nowhere playing a small role:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
28.Here's Brie Larson who you probably came to know from her roles in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Short Term 12, or in the MCU films as Captain Marvel:
And here's Brie Larson as one of the Six Chicks in 13 Going on 30:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
29.Here's Abigail Breslin. You probably came to know her from her early films including Little Miss Sunshine, My Sister'sKeeper, and Definitely, Maybe:
And here's Abigail Breslin as one of the orphans in The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement:
And here's what she looks like now vs. then:
30.And lastly, here's Kiernan Shipka who's best known for her roles in Mad Men and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina:
And here's Kiernan Shipka playing a kid customer in an episode of Monk: