They may have left the screens, but we still remember them. Celebrity culture changes in an instant. One minute, you’re selling out stadiums or packing movie theaters and the next, you’re trying to sell $30 headshots at conventions, telling anyone who will listen what a big deal you used to be. While you can’t always predict a fall from greatness, smart celebs do their best to prepare.
For stars who know just how quickly a knee injury can torpedo an athletic career or those who come to realize how few and far between roles for actresses over 35 really are, a regular job starts to look pretty appealing. These celebs have found their second (or third) acts away from the spotlight and are better off for it. Where are they now? Maybe closer than you think. They might be your son’s teacher or your Starbucks barista. Here’s a list of the celebrities who ended up with normal jobs.
AMANDA BYNES
Amanda Bynes was a Nickelodeon sensation back in the day. Sadly, the child star fell out of the spotlight and hit some hard times when it came to her personal life. She no longer acts and has started to look for jobs elsewhere.
After struggling with the law and substances, Bynes claims to be working on a career in fashion.
PHOEBE CATES
Best known for her role in Fast Time at Ridgemont High, Phoebe quit acting rather suddenly in the mid 90’s.
She originally left to focus on her family life but does a lot of work for charity and raises.
PETER OSTRUM
Peter was 12 when he starred in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.
Today he is in his 60s and works as a veterinarian in Lowville, New York. That is probably one of the best career shifts we could think of!
JESSICA SIERRA
The fallen American Idol singer, Jessica Sierra, had to take a day job at the renowned restaurant chain Hooters when she realized singing wasn’t enough to pay the bills.
One has to find a way to make their dream come true but also pay for their life, this is exactly what she did.
VANILLA ICE
When his career started to die down, Vanilla Ice decided to launch a real estate website. Now he is a real estate investor and home renovator.
He also teaches new investors how to make a profit selling houses.
M.C. HAMMER
After accumulating $13 million in debt and filing for bankruptcy, Hammer got his life back together.
These days he officiates weddings, develops iPad apps and lectures about new media at Ivy League universities.
JEFF COHEN
After playing the role of Chunk in The Goonies, Jeff chose to put an end to his acting career.
Today he is a lawyer and lives in Los Angeles.
CHARLIE KORSMO
Charlie Korsmo was famous for staring next to Robin Williams in the 90’s blockbuster film Hook which shot the young star to success. However, Korsmo was not quite happy with his career in Hollywood since his interests lay in the field of physics instead of acting.
The brilliant-minded star attended MIT where he got a degree in science. After graduating, Charlie worked as a lawyer for a few years before deciding to join the faculty of Western Reserve University School of Law in Cleveland, Ohio as a law professor.
TIFFANY
The ’80s pop star Tiffany rode the wave of success with hits like her 1987 cover song, “I Think We’re Alone Now,” but after a long stretch of small-time music, television and film gigs, Tiffany returned to the simple life.
Before she said goodbye to the spotlight, she decided to pose for Playboy back in 2002 after her records failed to sell. Now she runs a vintage shop called “Tiffany’s Boutique” off of Highway 76 in White House, Tennessee.
TARAN NOAH SMITH
He’s known by most people as the kid from the popular sitcom Home Improvement. When he was 17, Taran Noah Smith had a falling out with his parents because they bought themselves a cozy mansion with his hard-earned life savings.
He sued them, got married to a vegan woman twice his age and invested the money he got from the lawsuit in a vegan dairy farm and catering service.
FREDDIE PRINZE JR.
Freddie's had a couple of career changes since coming to our attention as the heartthrob in She's All That and I Know What You Did Last Summer, where he met his wife Sarah Michelle Gellar.
After working as a director and producer for WWE, Freddie released his first cookbook in 2016 called Back To The Kitchen, described as 75 delicious, real recipes (and true stories) from a food-obsessed actor.
JOSH SAVIANO
In the 90s the most popular rumor about Josh Saviano (Paul from the Wonder Years) was that he grew up to be Marylin Manson.
The truth is not quite as exciting - he is a corporate lawyer.
DYLAN SPROUSE
After the former child star left the Disney series that he shared with his identical twin brother, Cole, people wondered where he’d gone.
Many years later, tabloids found a photo of him working at a New York City restaurant. Turns out, he was only working part-time and is enrolled a New York University.
KEVIN JONAS
After leaving The Jonas Brothers, Kevin launched the food searching app Yood.
The app is location-based and gives the location and phone number of restaurants in your area.
DANNY LLOYD
He was only 5 when he starred in The Shining.
After the movie was released, Danny quit acting and today he is a biology teacher in Kentucky.
MICHAEL MARONNA
Children lucky enough to grow up during Nickelodeon’s ‘90s heyday will remember Mike Maronna as the older of the two Petes on the now classic program The Adventures of Pete and Pete.
After The Adventures of Pete and Pete ended in 1996, Maronna had small roles in a few other films before finding a job that he still has to this day – an electrician on film set
AL FRANKEN
Eventually, Franken decided that he had tired of simply making fun of lawmakers, he wanted to be one himself.
In 2008, Franken ran for the United States Senate in his native state of Minnesota, narrowly beating his Republican opponent by a few hundred votes. He has since resigned as a U.S. Senator and is now retired.
STEVEN SEAGAL
Most of us remember Steven Seagal as a master of martial arts and actor in movies such as Under Siege.
Today he is still fighting crime as a New Mexico deputy sheriff.
BRITTANY ASHTON HOLMES
Darla from Little Rascals didn’t make it very far in her acting career. She was 5 years old when she won the hearts of Alfalfa and Hollywood, and she had a few minor roles after that movie, but she left all of that behind.
She was reportedly pursuing a political science degree the last anyone heard from her, and she works at a Starbucks.
MERCEDES LANDER
For those who might not remember, Kittie was an all-girl metal band who scored a radio hit with their song “Brackish” near the turn of the millennium.
Originally grouped in with the genre “nu-metal,” they switched to a more extreme sound after Nu-Metal became about as fashionable as goatees, backward Yankees caps, and a bad attitude (which were actually all surprisingly fashionable during a weird time from about 1997-1999).
LARK VOORHIES
Remember Lisa Turtle from Saved by the Bell? After the show ended its run on television, Lark Voorhies decided to shift gears and start writing.
She has written numerous books over the years and has found her passion outside of Hollywood’s spotlight.
KIRK CAMERON
The former Growing Pains star ended his acting career to become an author of Christian books.
This was a major turn in his career path since Hollywood and conservative ethics are not necessarily one in the same.
TOM SELLECK
Although he still occasionally acts, Selleck retired to a 60-acre ranch where he tends to his 20-acre avocado farm.
Selleck said that his work on the farm allowed him to finally find balance after his stressful acting career.
NIKKI BLONSKY
This former Hairspray star struggled to find new roles after her 2007 movie.
Today she is a hairstylist in Great Neck, New York.
LIAM GALLAGHER
After his brother Noel left Oasis to pursue a solo career, Liam started the band Beady Eye, but that ended after only two albums.
Today Liam runs a fairly profitable fashion label in London, Pretty Green.
TONY DANZA
The star from Taxi and Who’s the Boss is now an English teacher at Philadelphia Northeast High School.
Who wouldn’t love to be his student? We know we sure would.
CHRIS OWEN
Despite the success of American Pie, Chris Owen never quite found success.
Today he is a waiter at a sushi restaurant and has less than 100 followers on Twitter.
OMRI KATZ
Omri Katz rose to fame as the good-looking teenager on Hocus Pocus. After the film wrapped, Katz’s career in Hollywood was basically over.
Today, Omri lives in Los Angeles and works as a hairdresser.
GEORGE FOREMAN
The former boxing champion got into financial debt and needed a way to make ends meet. So he became the spokesperson for the George Foreman Grill.
Since introducing it in 1994, he’s helped sell over 100 million grills worldwide.
FRANKIE MUNIZ
Most people probably thought this child actor couldn’t get a job in Hollywood after being the star in Malcolm in the Middle, but he signed a two-year contract as a driver with Jensen Motorsport.
Muniz also had a short gig as the drummer for Kingsfoil, a pop-rock group in Pennsylvania. “It’s my focus 1,000 percent right now. I want to be the best drummer I can be for the band and for me.”
JONATHAN BENNETT
You might remember him from Mean Girls, well he is now an instructor at Flywheel in Los Angeles.
My how the mighty have fallen. He was the pretty shiny thing to view on screen.
GARY COLEMAN
The former Diff’rent Strokes star was a household name during the 70s and 80s but his fame slowly faded as the years went on.
Before he passed away in 2010, Coleman was apparently working as a security guard. He was arrested and tried, receiving a 1-year suspended sentence and had to pay $1,665 for the medical treatments.
JACK GLEESON
It must’ve been hard being one of the most hated people on TV, and it explains why Jack Gleeson has decided to retire from the acting world.
The former King of Westeros is now studying philosophy and theology at Trinity College, Dublin.
JONATHAN TAYLOR THOMAS
This young man was a big star in the early 90s. Jonathan Taylor Thomas was on the successful show Home Improvement and then lent his voice to the Lion King movie.
He retired from acting, bar a handful of guest appearances throughout the years, to focus on his studies and even graduated from Harvard.
CARRIE HENN
Carrie will be remembered by many as the cute kid from the smash hit Alien, starring alongside Sigourney Weaver.
That was her only acting credit, despite appearing in many documentaries on the movie since, and would eventually go on to become a teacher.
ANGUS T. JONES
Angus’ life took a very sharp turn after leaving Two and a Half Men. After bashing the show and the values it presented.
Jones found religion when he became a member of the Seventh Day Adventists church. He currently makes a living working for Tonie, a multimedia company founded by P.Diddy.
KARYN PARSONS
Karyn played Hillary Banks on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air but decided to leave the show and the Hollywood life for something more normal.
She founded a company called Sweet Blackberry – a company that funds animated films about unsung Black heroes.
Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson shaved his beard about a year ago, and it was akin to an archaeological dig. Once he got deep enough into his mission, the former Giants closer made a startling discovery.
In addition to having a regular role on Barstool Sports' "Starting 9" baseball show on Facebook (and its accompanying podcast), Wilson appears on the new season of Amazon Prime's British car show, "The Grand Tour." The show is essentially a spinoff of the popular BBC show "Top Gear," and even has former "Top Gear" co-host Jeremy Clarkson at the helm.
ERIK PER SULLIVAN
Much like his on-screen brother, Erik Per Sullivan decided the limelight wasn’t for him and went on to other things.
What he does exactly is unknown, but he graduated from the University of Southern California in 2010. We’re sure he’s doing something ‘normal’.
GEENA DAVIS
Geena Davis was once a Hollywood heavy-hitter. She starred in Thelma and Louise, A League of Their Own, and Stuart Little and Geena even has an Oscar win under her belt.
In 2007, Davis moved on from Hollywood and started the Geena Davis Institute to promote gender in media.
DORIS DAY
Doris Day lit up the big screens in the 60’s and 70’s. Her life in the public eye sadly took its toll on her personal life and after years in the spotlight, Day decided to leave Hollywood.
She then shifted her career to focus on helping nurse injured animals back to health.
DANICA MCKELLAR
Once Winnie Cooper on the ‘The Wonder Years’, Danica McKellar has made a major shift since her days on screen.
McKellar studied mathematics and focused her efforts on encouraging young women to learn similar subjects.
PETER BILLINGSLEY
At a very young age, Peter Billingsley won over audiences when he starred as Ralphie in A Christmas Story.
After getting off the big screen, Billingsley found a career behind the cameras. He has recently been involved in the production of several films, including Iron Man.