Top 10 Child Stars Who Look Completely Different Today

These former child stars have no problem slipping past the paparazzi . . . NOWADAYS! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 child stars who are unrecognizable today.

For this list, we’ll be looking at famous child stars who have grown up and become unrecognizable.

You might know Jonathan Lipnicki as the little boy with glasses from movies like “Jerry Maguire” and “Stuart Little.” However, he’s since retreated from the mainstream eye to focus on independent movies and mixed martial arts. Suffice it to say, you can tell. He’s been seen on various reality shows like “Drop the Mic,” “Celebs Go Dating,” and “Worst Cooks in America,” and the dude is pretty jacked now. He’s also dropped the signature circular glasses that made him so adorable as a child. Then again, all this is probably by design. We’re sure he doesn’t want to be seen as “that cute kid from Jerry Maguire” for the rest of his life.

Daveigh Chase was best known for two movies – “Donnie Darko” and “The Ring.” In “Donnie Darko,” she played Donnie’s younger sister Samantha, and in “The Ring” she was none other than the sinister and horrifying Samara Morgan. Like Jonathan Lipnicki, Daveigh has stuck mostly to independent movies in the intervening years, and in 2016 she appeared, looking considerably different, in “Jack Goes Home” and “American Romance.” Daveigh is now a far cry from the creepy, pale, and long-haired Samara. Yeah, that was mostly make-up, but it’s an image burned into our memories!

When we hear the name Moisés Arias, most of us think of little Rico Suave from “Hannah Montana.” As Rico, he was a fast-talking, enterprising trickster with a Napoleon complex. However, Moisés has long since shed his childish appearance and Disney star demeanor. For a while there, Moisés even had facial hair and dreadlocks, which he showed off as Pimp-Lo in “Pitch Perfect 3”. And while he’s since lost the dreads, he still looks completely different than he did on “Hannah Montana”, in large part thanks to the facial hair, piercings, and new hairstyles.

Angus T. Jones will forever be known as the cute, chubby kid from “Two and a Half Men.” After all, we watched him grow up in front of our eyes. . However, he looked completely different after leaving the show thanks to a pair of glasses and a gangly beard. While Angus has mostly disappeared, he was spotted in January 2016 with glasses, a beard, and long hair. That same year he appeared on Louis C.K.’s “Horace and Pete” with a much thicker beard and shorter hair. You could maybe see Jake Harper if you squinted, but we doubt it.

Have you seen the boys of “Drake & Josh” lately? Because man, were they blessed with good genes. Drake Bell still looks a bit like himself, only older, wiser, and more mature. Oh, and did we mention that the dude is absolutely ripped? It’s an unbelievable physical transformation, and he would have taken this spot if it wasn’t for his co-star, Josh Peck. As you all know, Josh grew up to be one good looking dude. He’s slimmed down since his “Drake & Josh” days and now rocks a pretty killer beard. You can catch him over on his YouTube channel, and you’d never guess that it was the same person who played the baby-faced Josh Nichols.

Remember Carmen Cortez, played by Alexa PenaVega? The bedwetting older sister saddled with babysitting duties in “Spy Kids”? Well, somehow, this is Alexa now. If you had a crush on her when you were a kid watching “Spy Kids” and “Spy Kids 2”, prepare to swoon! While Alexa disappeared for a while there, she recently resurfaced in movies like “Machete Kills” and “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For”. Her “Spy Kids” co-star, Danny Trejo, doesn’t seem to have aged a day in 20 years, but Alexa grew up big time.

Aaron Carter was the pre-teen heartthrob of the early 2000s. Unfortunately, he suffered a few personal and financial problems throughout the 2010s, and in 2017 he was arrested for driving under the influence. His mugshot made headlines, as many people noted his troubling physical appearance; he was pale and gaunt, his hair was messy, and he had a giant neck tattoo. In other words, this was not the Aaron Carter that everyone remembered. A 115-pound Aaron then appeared on “The Doctors” and was advised to enter rehab. Luckily, he did just that, and is now much healthier, and looks a lot happier.

Audiences first got to know Taylor Momsen as Cindy Lou Who - the six-year old heroine of“ How the Grinch Stole Christmas”. With a round, baby face, bright blue eyes, and elaborate blonde hair, she was all wide-eyed innocence and Christmas spirit. And that’s how we pictured Taylor Momsen until she showed up as Jenny on “Gossip Girl”. Watching her grow up there was quite a shock, as she transformed from a sweet, approval-seeking outsider, to a queen bee in all black. Taylor has maintained this dark sense of style for her band The Pretty Reckless, and watching her rock out on stage, it’s hard to believe that this is little Cindy Lou who.

All you 90s babies probably remember Steven Anthony Lawrence as the insufferable Beans from “Even Stevens.” He became a little typecast thanks to Beans, as evidenced by his role as “Chunky Kid” in an episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” Lawrence has continued acting, but he also teaches seminars at various institutions like Berkeley and USC. He’s also the first to admit that he looks totally different, as he told “The Huffington Post”, “I feel like I’ve changed so much when I look in the mirror.” Although there’s still that same twinkle in his eye, grown up Steven is a far cry from “that annoying little kid kid next door”.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Jake Lloyd

Matthew Lewis

Nicholas Hoult

Adam Lamberg

Haley Joel Osment broke onto the Hollywood scene in spectacular fashion with his role in “The Sixth Sense.” He starred as the android David in Steven Spielberg’s “A.I. Artificial Intelligence”, then kind of just . . . disappeared. In actual fact, he expanded into voice acting, a few comedy roles, and even Broadway. And he’s enjoyed a bit of a resurgence thanks to roles in “The X-Files” and “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile”. You might not have recognized him though unless you looked at the credits. While he still somehow has that signature Haley Joel Osment baby face, his face is rounder, his hair is longer, and he generally sports a beard little Cole Sears, all grown up!