20 teen stars who made career comebacks as adults

Mayim Bialik was Blossom. She attained massive fame thanks to her work in the series, but she left it behind to pursue an education. After earning her PhD, she returned to the small screen on The Big Bang Theory. 

Johnny Galecki was another star of The Big Bang Theory to find popularity again as an adult. Some of his most notable works from his teen years include Prancer and Christmas Vacation.

Gaby Hoffmann was a child star in Field of Dreams, but she kept her momentum going into her teen years. She didn’t have quite the same cachet in early adulthood as she did at the beginning of her career, but she made a comeback later on thanks to shows like Transparent and Girls. 

Chad Michael Murray became a teen idol just as he was about to turn 20. His roles in Gilmore Girls, One Tree Hill, and a handful of quintessential early 2000s movies made him a bona fide heartthrob. His career waned for a bit in the 2010s, but the mid-2020s brought about a renaissance for his work. 

Adam Brody’s career followed a similar trajectory to Chad Michael Murray’s. He started his career as a teenager and grew very popular among teens when he was in his early 20s. After The O.C. ended, Brody’s popularity slowly lessened, but his role in the Netflix series Nobody Wants This reminded millennials everywhere why they fell in love with him in the first place. 

Mark-Paul Gosselaar was a teen star on Saved by the Bell. He continued working after the series ended, but his career hit another high when he was cast in NYPD Blue later in adulthood. 

Lindsay Lohan ruled the box office in the late ‘90s and early 2000s. She defined teen culture and was incapable of being in a bad movie. She stepped out of the spotlight for a while and contended with some personal issues, but she made a roaring comeback in adulthood thanks to some Netflix Christmas movies and a sequel to Freaky Friday. 

Brenda Song was a very popular Disney star in her teen years thanks to her roles in The Suite Life of Zack and Cody and Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior. She kept working after her exit from Disney, but it wasn’t until the mid-2020s that she started acting in popular projects again (excluding, of course, The Social Network). 

Sean Astin’s work as a teen was defined by one classic: The Goonies. That movie made him an immediate icon, but his work wasn’t quite as notable for years after that (though he did get nominated for an Oscar in the mid-'90s). That all changed when he was cast as part of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. 

Josh Brolin also rose to fame as a teenager thanks to The Goonies. His career took slightly longer to regain popularity than his co-star’s. Brolin became ultra-famous again thanks to his work in No Country for Old Men. 

Joseph Gordon-Levitt was a child and teen star after gaining popularity early on. He took some time off to go to college, but he eventually returned to the craft, and his stardom picked up right where it left off. 

Jodie Sweetin rose to stardom as a teenager on Full House. Her career took a bit of a turn as she struggled a bit in her personal life, but she made a comeback when she reprised her role of Stephanie Tanner on the sitcom’s reboot, Fuller House. 

Danica McKellar was popular as a teen thanks to her work on The Wonder Years. She took some time off to go to college, but she returned to acting as an adult and became a Hallmark star. 

Emily Osment was a child star and a teenage star, with her most notable role in adolescence being Lilly Truscott in Hannah Montana. As an adult, she made a comeback by joining the cast of Young Sheldon and securing her own spin-off from the spin-off. 

Vincent Kartheiser was a go-to teen actor throughout the ‘90s. His career took a bit of a dip for a while, but he had a resurgence in popularity in the late 2000s thanks to his work on Mad Men. 

Rob Lowe was one of the members of the elite Brat Pack back in the ‘80s. Though he kept working into and throughout adulthood, his fame dipped a bit for a while. He’s had multiple comebacks as an adult thanks to shows like The West Wing and Parks and Recreation. 

Jussie Smollett was a famous teenager thanks to his work in The Mighty Ducks. His comeback came as an adult when he was cast in Empire. 

Brie Larson enjoyed some notoriety as a teenager after finding work in films like Right on Track and 13 Going on 30. She kept working and hit her stride again in adulthood after starring in Room and winning an Oscar for her performance. Now she’s a Marvel star. 

Fans will remember David Krumholtz from his work as a teen in Addams Family Values and The Santa Clause films. As an adult, he enjoyed a career resurgence thanks to a reprisal of his Christmas role for the film trilogy’s series adaptation, as well as a part in Oppenheimer. 

Miranda Cosgrove was a hugely successful child and teen star thanks to her work on Nickelodeon. She balanced college with a handful of voice-over roles, most notably the Despicable Me series, and then she fully stepped back into the spotlight to reprise her most famous role for the iCarly reboot.