Top 10 Stars You Forgot Were on Drake & Josh
#10: Alyson Stoner “Number One Fan”
Many of the cameos on this list were made by stars when they were still just kids, and Alyson Stoner’s is no exception. The future “Step Up” cast member was just 11 years old when she appeared in the season two episode “Number One Fan”. Stoner played the titular “fan” who becomes obsessed with Drake after he gives her one of his guitar picks. Stoner’s character Wendy spends the episode telling people she’s Drake's girlfriend and promoting his band all over the school without his consent. It’s a hilarious performance on Stoner’s part, begging the question: why didn’t she ever pop up on the show again?
#9: Emma Roberts “Honor Council”
Nickelodeon crossovers are the best! In the season two episode “Honor Council”, Drake is accused of pulling a prank on Mrs. Hayfer. A trial is held, with Josh serving as Drake’s defence council and Mindy Crenshaw serving as the prosecutor. Part of their defence relies on the jury believing that Josh is a light sleeper, something Mindy hilariously rebukes with a piece of video evidence. The evidence is a video from Megan’s website called “Doing Stuff to Josh While He Sleeps”, and it features a cameo from “Unfabulous”’ Addie Singer – who is of course played by Emma Roberts. The cameo is short and sweet, but nevertheless one that Nick fans surely recognized at the time!
#8: Torrey DeVitto “Playing the Field”
“Chicago Med” star Torrey DeVitto actually appeared in three episodes of “Drake & Josh” back in the day. However, while her first two appearances were bit parts, she made the leap to being one of Drake’s lady friends in the season three episode “Playing the Field”. DeVitto played Tori, a girl whom Drake breaks up with after he decides he doesn’t want to be tied down to one girl. However, the tables are turned when Drake sees Tori kissing another guy and gets extremely jealous. DeVitto would go on to play Melissa Hastings on “Pretty Little Liars” for seven seasons.
#7: Dylan Minnette “The Demonator”
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This future Netflix star made his one and only appearance on “Drake & Josh” when he was just 10 years of age. Dylan Minnette pops up in the season three episode “The Demonator”, which sees Drake, Josh and Meghan sneaking off to go ride the titular roller coaster on opening day. While in line they find themselves standing beside Dylan Minnette, who is listed as “Jeffrey” in the credits. Jeffrey proceeds to rip off the tail of the park’s mascot, who proceeds to attack Josh when he’s caught holding the appendage. Minnette looks adorable in his pirate outfit, even if his character was being a bit of brat. Why do we get the feeling that now we won’t ever be able to look at Clay Jensen the same?
#6: Nathan Kress “Battle of Panthatar”
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If you thought Dylan Minnette’s cameo was brief, wait until you get a load of this one! Nathan Kress, who’s best known for playing Freddie Benson on “iCarly”, appeared in a season four episode for what amounts to less than a few seconds. The blink-and-you’ll-miss it cameo occurs near the end of the episode, just as the Galaxy Wars actors are preparing to recreate a scene from the fictional film. Kress can be seen standing behind a lightsaber wielding Red Sky Naut, dressed in an orange t-shirt and khaki pants. You can add this uncredited role to Kress’s long list of Nickelodeon work.
#5: Minka Kelly “Movie Job”
Looking back, it’s crazy how many of Drake’s girlfriends went on to have lengthy careers in the entertainment industry. Take Minka Kelly. She played Stacey in the season two episode "Movie Job", a girl Drake cared about so much he forgot her name when introducing her to Josh. Kelly only appeared in a couple of scenes, but her character’s expensive taste prompts Drake to get a job at the movie theatre in order to make some money. Minka Kelly would go on to star as Lyla Garrity on “Friday Night Lights” and you can catch her these days playing Dawn Granger (or, Dove) on “Titans”.
#4: Vanessa Hudgens “Little Sibling”
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Is it just us, or is Drake a total sleazeball in this scene? Not long before she was cast as Gabriella Montez in “High School Musical”, the Disney Channel franchise that would serve as a launching pad for her acting career, the now-controversial Vanessa Hudgens landed a bit part in this season three episode. In it Hudgens plays Becca, a girl who lies to Drake and Josh’s teacher so that Drake can show up to class late. Drake then kisses her as “payment” for the lie and tells her to let him know if she “needs any more Drake”. Ugh. Isn’t this supposed to be a show for kids?
#3: Dianna Agron “The Great Doheny”
Another entry, another future star who Drake dated for an episode, only for her to never be seen again. This time it’s Dianna Agron, who most people will recognize for her work on “Glee”. She played Quinn Fabray for 73 episodes and has since gone on to appear in films such as “Ralph Breaks the Internet” and “Berlin, I Love You”. In the fall of 2006 she appeared in the “Drake & Josh” episode “The Great Doheny”. Agron played Lexi, a girl Drake takes on a date to the movie theatre, but who ends up on the wrong end of a trick pulled by magician Henry Doheny. Lexi ends up in a glass display case covered in popcorn . . . annnnnnnd that’s the last we see of her.
#2: Taran Killam “Dune Buggy”
This actor and comedian has done a little bit of everything since entering the entertainment business in 1994. While perhaps best known for his tenure on “Saturday Night Live”, Taran Killam has also appeared in films like “Night School” and TV shows like “Community”. Way back in season one of “Drake & Josh” though, he played Trevor, a friend of the titular characters who sells them a broken-down dune buggy. The role may be small, but Killam’s affinity for playing off-the-wall characters is on full display. Do you think this made it onto his “SNL” audition tape? Before we unveil our number one pick, here are some honorable mentions: Erica Shaffer “Girl Power” Skyler Samuels “Little Diva” Jessica Szhor “Two Idiots and a Baby” AnnaSophia Robb “Number One Fan”
#1: Lucy Hale “Theater Thug”
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In the season three episode “Theater Thug”, Drake finds himself in need of a date. Pronto. With a movie about to begin and no one to watch it with, Josh questions how Drake expects to find a movie date in under two minutes. Lo and behold, Lucy Hale’s Hazel is around to help him out! It’s an extremely brief role, and Hale looks super young. As such, we doubt many people remember this appearance by the future Aria Montgomery. Hale would go on to appear in a number of high-profile roles, from “Pretty Little Liars” to “Truth or Dare”. However, if her career were to have never taken off, she would have always had this brief moment to look back on with pride!
