Childhood Photos Of Celebrities Before They Were Famous
Are celebrities really just like us? Before these A-listers made it in Hollywood, they were regular kids with big hopes and dreams. They may be on top now, but they still know where they come from. Check out these celebrities who've shared what their younger selves were like. A certain This Is Us star hasn't aged a bit!
John Stamos
Photo Credit: johnstamos/Instagram
Here is John Stamos as an adorable toddler. The actor was born and raised in Southern California. Growing up, he worked in his father's restaurants and reportedly had a job flipping burgers in Orange County.
Stamos skipped his first semester of college to pursue an acting career. After just a few weeks, he landed a role on ABC's General Hospital as Blackie Parrish in 1982. In the late '80s, he began acting in his most iconic role as Uncle Jesse on Full House. In April 2015, Stamos and his wife, model, and actress Caitlin McHugh welcomed their son, Billy.
Reese Witherspoon
Photo Credit: reesewitherspoon/Instagram
Reese Witherspoon shared this picture of her school-aged days saying, "Yes, my dress has 'Reese' stitched to the front." The actress was born Laura Jeanne Witherspoon, eventually taking on her mother's maiden name "Reese" as her first name.
Witherspoon was born in New Orleans but raised in Tenessee with a traditional Southern upbringing. Her interest in acting began after she modeled for commercials and as a child was described as a Type A high achiever. Her first big role was the lead in The Man in the Moon at age 14. Witherspoon rose to prominence for her roles in Cruel Intentions and Legally Blonde.
Mandy Moore
Photo Credit: mandymooremm/Instagram
Mandy Moore shared this picture of herself from when she was in seventh grade. Though the This Is Us actress was born in New Hampshire, she grew up in Florida as the middle of three children. Moore began singing and acting as a kid and performed at the local theatre.
When she was thirteen, she began making her own music, and by the time she started high school, she was well on her way to becoming a pop star. Her debut single "Candy" came out in 1999, the same year she toured with NSYNC. A couple of years later, she began acting in films.
Speaking of NSYNC, wait until you see a certain former member in his little league gear!
Beyoncé And Solange Knowles
Photo Credit: beyonce/Instagram
Beyoncé shared this photo of her and younger sister Solange on Solange's birthday. Five years apart in age, Beyoncé and Solange were both born and raised in Houston, Texas. Both sisters showed talents for singing at a young age and were managed by their father.
Solange sometimes was a backup dancer for Destiny's Child, and on at least one occasion, she had to step in and perform when Kelly Rowland injured her feet. While Beyoncé's megastar status was earned over her career in R&B and Pop, Solange is also a star in her own right despite the fact that her music is more independent.
Justin Timberlake
Photo Credit: justintimberlake/Instagram
Justin Timberlake was born and raised in Memphis, Tenessee. He shared this throwback picture of him where he must be around five or six years old. Back then, Timberlake was reportedly singing country and gospel music. At age 11, Timberlake performed country songs on Star Search and went by Justin Randall.
We knew of Justin Timberlake in the early '90s as a cast member of The Mickey Mouse Club alongside other future celebrities such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Ryan Gosling. As a teen, Timberlake rose to fame in the group NSYNC before becoming a solo artist and actor.
John Legend
Photo Credit: chrissyteigen/Instagram
Model Chrissy Teigen shared this photo of her husband, John Legend. Born John Stephens, the singer was raised in Springfield Ohio. Legend looks to be around three years old in this picture, a short time before he began performing in his church choir and playing the piano.
Legend attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he presided as the musical director of the a cappella group, Counterparts. In 2004, Legend's debut album was released on GOOD Music, a label by Kanye West, whose photo later in this list was probably taken around the same time as this one!
Hugh Jackman
Photo Credit: thehughjackman/Instagram
Australian actor Hugh Jackman posted this throwback of himself from 1972. Born in Sydney, Australia to English parents, Jackman has stated that he used to want to be a chef on a plane because he wanted to see the world and assumed that planes had chefs since they served food.
After getting his Bachelor's degree in 1991, Jackman entered drama school at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts. His first role was on the Australian show Correlli, where he met his would-be-wife for over 20 years, Deborra-Lee Furness. Jackman's breakout role as X-Men's Wolverine would come not long after.
Kanye West
Photo Credit: kimkardashian/Instagram
This photo of Kanye West as an infant was shared by his wife, Kim Kardashian, on his birthday. Born on June 8, 1977, in Atlanta, West grew up in Chicago with his mother. Throughout his youth, West reportedly expressed an interest in the arts, beginning to rap in the third grade and making his own songs by the time he was in middle school.
West dropped out of college and began pursuing his music career in the mid-'90s. In 2004, he dropped his debut album, The College Dropout. Seven albums later, West has become a controversial public figure. His eighth album is to be released in June 2018.
Eva Mendes
Photo Credit: evamendes/Instagram
Eva Mendes shared this adorable photo of herself from back in the day. In this picture, she must be around seven or eight years old. Born on March 5, 1974, in Miami, Mendes grew up in Glendale, California where she and her mom lived following her parent's divorce.
In her late teens, she initially went to Califonia State University in Northridge to study marketing, but soon left school to pursue acting, studying under renowned acting coach, Ivana Chubbuck. Mendes modeled early in her career but found her first break in the film Training Day.
Ryan Reynolds
Photo Credit: vancityreynolds/Instagram
Ryan Reynolds posted this photo of his two-year-old self to his Instagram saying, "Football would be a totally ridiculous game if the ball were this big." The actor has a reputation on social media for his sarcastic and his no-holds-barred sense of humor.
Born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1976, Reynolds would eventually drop out of Kwantlen Polytechnic University to pursue an acting career. He is known for his roles in The Proposal, Green Lantern, and most recently Deadpool. The 41-year-old actor shares two daughters with wife, Blake Lively, who is also on this list!
January Jones
Photo Credit: januaryjones/Instagram
Actress January Jones shared this picture of herself from when she was nine years old. She was allegedly named after January Wayne, a character from the novel Once Is Not Enough. Jones was born in South Dakota, spending her formative years in Hecla before moving to Sioux Falls, where she graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1986.
Jones had supporting roles in film and television before hitting a break with the AMC series, Mad Men in 2007. For seven seasons, Jones played Betty Draper Francis opposite Jon Hamm. She has been nominated for two Golden Globes and an Emmy for the role.
Lupita Nyong'o
Photo Credit: lupitanyongo/Instagram
Lupita Nyong'o posted this picture of herself during her school days. Although she was 14 in this picture, she still looks incredibly young! Nyong'o attended Rusinga School in Nairobi. Although she grew up in Kenya, Nyong'o was born in Mexico City and holds dual Mexican and Kenyan citizenship.
Nyong'o became a breakout star at age 30 for her role in 12 Years a Slave, for which she was the Academy Award for Best supporting actress. Despite being thrust into fame, Nyong'o is known for remaining humble and grounded. She is still close to the young girl she was in this photo.
Blake Lively
Photo Credit: blakelively/Instagram
Blake Lively shared this throwback snap of her and a young Jason Priestly circa Beverly Hills, 90210. Born Blake Ellender Brown in 1987, Lively was raised in Southern California. Her parents and all her siblings worked in the entertainment industry and growing up, Lively sat in on her parents' acting classes.
Lively was at the end of her high school career when she starred as one of the leads in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, based on the book of the same name. Shortly after, she was cast as Serena van der Woodsen in Gossip Girl which is her most iconic role to date.
Can you guess which talented guitar player is coming up soon?
Amanda Seyfried
Photo Credit: mingey/Instagram
Amanda Seyfried shared this snap of herself from 1991 when she was six years old. Seyfried was born and raised in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Throughout her teens, Seyfried worked as a model and appeared in campaigns for Limited Too.
It wasn't until 2003 that Seyfried gained popularity for her role as the dim-witted Karen Smith in Mean Girls. She left behind her admission to Fordham Univesity to act in the film. Seyfried was cast in HBO's Big Love and shortly after, co-starred with Meryl Streep in the film version of Mamma Mia! which put her on the map.
John Mayer
Photo Credit: johnmayer/Instagram
John Mayer was raised in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The skilled musician reportedly took an interest in the guitar after seeing Marty McFly's guitar solo in Back to the Future. Mayer's father rented him a guitar when he was 13, and he began taking lessons from a local guitar shop owner.
Mayer took a great interest in blues music after he received a Stevie Ray Vaughan cassette and soon sought out the tunes of Buddy Guy, B.B. King, and other blues legends. Mayer dropped out of Berklee College of Music to pursue his musical career.
Another singer on this list became the youngest person to win a Grammy at 14 years old!
Dax Shepard
Photo Credit: kristenanniebell/Instagram
Actress Kristen Bell shared this photo of her husband, Dax Shepard. Shepard was born in Highland Township, Michigan and grew up in suburban Detroit. The actor has said that he was named after playboy Diogenes Alejandro Xenos in The Adventurers, a novel by Harold Robbins.
Shepard came to California to attend college. Growing up, he was more interested in doing stand-up but it wasn't until he moved to Califonia that Shepard felt compelled to try it out himself. Shepard is most recently known for his role in NBC's Parenthood.
Jennifer Love Hewitt
Photo Credit: jenniferlovehewitt/Instagram
Jennifer Love Hewitt shared this photo of herself with the caption, "#tbt school pic from first grade. Gotta love a little kid school smile. I never grew out of mine." The actress was born and raised in Texas, where she took an interest in music at a young age. By the time she was 10, Hewitt and her mother moved to Los Angeles so that she could pursue acting.
Hewitt did many commercials before she was eventually cast on the Disney Channel's Kids Incorporated in the late '80s. She became a star in her late teens for her role in I Know What You Did Last Summer.
LeAnn Rimes
Photo Credit: leannrimes/Instagram
Country singer LeAnn Rimes shared this cute throwback snap of her childhood days. Born in Jackson, Mississippi, Rimes' family moved to Texas when she was six years old. From a very early age, Rimes took vocal and dance lessons and eventually shes appeared on Star Search, where she was a one-week champion. By age nine, Rimes was touring nationally.
With the help of her father, she independently produced three albums by the time she was 14. She became the youngest person to win a Grammy, winning Best New Artist and Best Female Country Vocal Performance in 1997.
Chris Pratt
Photo Credit: prattprattpratt/Instagram
Chris Pratt shared this classic picture of his younger self, dressed as a rabbit. Born in Virginia, Minnesota in 1979, Pratt grew up in Washington state after his family relocated there when he was three.
Pratt was scraping by in Hawaii when he was discovered at 19 years old. He had minor roles in television before rising to fame for playing Andy Dwyer in Parks and Recreation. Pratt's career has really taken off since he was cast in the lead of Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy and the resurrection of the Jurassic Park films.
Kim And Khloé Kardashian
Photo Credit: krisjenner/Instagram
Here is a sweet snap of Kim and Khloé Kardashian, shared by momager Kris Jenner. The Kardashian family resided in Beverly Hills when this photo was snapped, which is where the siblings grew up. Aside from their father, Robert Kardashian Sr., being OJ Simpson's lawyer during his infamous trial, the Kardashian siblings were relatively unknown — that is until Kim got her name out there for all the wrong reasons.
You either hate or love this polarizing family, but it's nice to think how innocent and drama-free they might have been in old photos like this.
