Stars Who Struggled Before Making It Big

Jim Carrey

Comedic actor Jim Carrey was on the way to a career breakthrough in the ’90s after he was cast in a regular role on In Living Color. But growing up was a completely different story. During school, Carrey struggled with dyslexia but overcame it by developing a great memory and making friends by being the class clown.

However, his family struggled with poverty, living in rough neighborhoods. To help out, Carrey took on a job working at a local factory while he was in the 10th grade. He would work eight-hour night shifts before going to school, which made his education even more difficult, leading to his dropping out at age 16. At one point, he and his family lived out of an old Volkswagen camper for almost a year.