As the breeding ground for child stars, Disney has produced some of our most iconic child actors. Many go on to lead fairly normal lives, slipping in and out of stardom. Some live as superstars for the rest of their lives, and experiment in all forms of entertainment. Others, however, fall off the face of the Earth forever. Here is the evolution of some of Disney's most infamous child stars of our generation.
Shia LaBeouf
The goofy Louis Stevens on the Disney Channel show "Even Stevens" kid has turned into a Nike-inspired motivational speaker (see "Just do it" speech). He managed to face huge success even after his Disney days by landing leading roles in movies like "Disturbia" and "Transformers," but after that he started having public outbursts and going outside in a plastic bag because he said the media had brushed him off as a washout. He's also gotten in trouble with cops. We're still rooting for you Shia.
Hilary Duff
Hilary was Disney's long-time sweetheart, playing the role of Lizzie McGuire. As if the show was not enough to make us love her, Disney hit us with the Lizzie McGuire movie and a killer soundtrack (see: "Why Not"). Hilary slipped out of the spotlight for a little while to get married and have a family. Now divorced, Hilary recently released more music. Congratulations to Hilary for staying pretty relevant and not falling off the deep end
Miley Cyrus
A.k.a. Hannah Montana. She was the girl that everyone wanted to be, living a fairly normal life by day while secretly being an undercover superstar. As the daughter of Billy Ray Cyrus, she was musically gifted and her Hannah Montana music was a hit. The Hannah Montana movie was the finale to her Disney career. After leaving the show, Miley continued to sing and released hits like "7 Things I Like About You" and "Can't Be Tamed". Nowadays, you can see her in nude spandex grinding on Robin Thicke, hosting SNL wearing a dress of dread locks, or just sticking her tongue out farther than humanly possible.
Raven Symone
After playing Olivia Kendall on "The Cosby Show" throughout her childhood, Raven played the role of Raven Baxter on the Disney TV show "That's So Raven." This was easily one of the funniest shows to ever grace Disney's line-up, and Raven was one of the funniest characters in TV (Wheel of cheese ring any bells?). After the show wrapped up, Raven starred in "Sister Act" on Broadway. Now, she is a host on "The View", and I absolutely lived for the "That's So Raven" Reunion that she hosted back in August. Keep up the good work, Ray.
Dylan and Cole Sprouse
Dylan and Cole played the role of two boys living in a hotel with their mom, and generally wreaking havoc on the place. Zack and Cody from "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" and "The Suite Life on Deck" were famous for skateboarding through the lobby against the wishes of Mr. Mosby, hanging out with London Tipton, whose father owned the hotel, or hitting on Maddy from the candy bar. Today, Dylan and Cole just graduated from NYU (where they switched places to accept each other's diplomas) and hang out around NYC. Their Twitter feeds are also always pretty hilarious.
Selena Gomez
Selena starred as Alex Russo on "Wizards of Waverly Place". She was a sassy and sarcastic teenage daughter who also just happened to be a wizard. After Wizards wrapped up, she starred in a few movies like "Another Cinderella Story" and "Monte Carlo". Selena also had a lapse of judgment and starred in the movie "Spring Breakers" where she played a college-student-turned-convict but is still the sane friend (i.e. the one that doesn't murder people and snort coke). She also low-key dated Justin Bieber for a few years and it's unclear if either of them has moved on. Now, Selena has it all with a stellar singing career, recently releasing a new album titled "Revival", and a close friendship with T.Swift. Life is good.
Yes, the life of a child star is all glitz and glam. Sometimes that continues throughout adulthood, and sometimes it doesn't. At the very least, thank you to all of the above for your young years of entertaining.
