The '00s were full of era-defining child stars who shot to superstardom, many of them growing up before our very eyes. While some continued to shine in the spotlight – like Will Poulter – others chose to step away and reinvent themselves completely (looking at you, Taylor Momsen!). Join HELLO! for a trip down memory lane as we uncover the transformations of some of the decade's most recognisable child stars – and see just how far they've come since then.
Amanda Bynes
© FilmMagicAmanda has undergone a dramatic transformation since the '00s, when she was the reigning teen comedy queen. She first rose to fame on the sketch comedy show All That in the '90s, before fronting her own series, The Amanda Show, which ran from 1999 to 2002.
She epitomised the funny girl-next-door vibe with her glossy brunette hair and radiant smile, before she became a big-screen favourite with She's the Man (the greatest movie ever made in my humble opinion) and What A Girl Wants (Colin Firth stars as her dad – need I say more?). Her last acting role was in Easy A in 2011, before she retired from Hollywood altogether.
"Being an actress isn't as fun as it may seem," she tweeted in 2010. "If I don't love something anymore, I stop doing it. I don't love acting anymore, so I've stopped doing it. I know 24 is a young age to retire, but you heard it here first."
© GC ImagesIn the years that followed, Amanda struggled with substance abuse and had frequent run-ins with the law. The former child star was placed under a conservatorship led by her parents in 2012, which remained in place for a full decade.
She released a statement after the conservatorship ended in 2022, which detailed her plans for the future. "In the last several years, I have been working hard to improve my health so that I can live and work independently, and I will continue to prioritise my well-being in this next chapter," she said. "I am excited about my upcoming endeavours – including my fragrance line – and look forward to sharing more when I can."
© FilmMagicSince stepping away from acting, Amanda's look has changed significantly, and she's clearly enjoying the freedom to experiment (good for her!). The California native began to switch up her style with brightly coloured wigs and bold makeup looks, and even inked a heart tattoo on her cheek. Fans later declared that she looked worlds away from the Amanda they grew up with.
"This is Amanda Bynes!!???? What!??" one social media user wrote in 2024 after a photo of her with bleached blonde hair went viral. "NO WAY THAT’S AMANDA BYNES," said another, while a third commented, "My brain cannot comprehend Amanda Bynes' appearance now. Like how does that happen!!!!" I personally love that she feels comfortable enough in her skin after years of scrutiny to wear whatever she pleases – it's really the ultimate goal!
Taylor Momsen
© FilmMagicTaylor went from adorable child star to seasoned rocker in just a few short years – and continues to make waves in the music world to this day. After melting hearts as Cindy Lou Who in How the Grinch Stole Christmas (drop the pigtail tutorial, girl!), she shot to teen superstardom thanks to her role as Jenny Humphrey in Gossip Girl.
Fans watched her transformation unfold in real time when she began to experiment with her look on the CW series. With every passing season, Jenny's eyeliner got darker, her lipstick bolder, and her outfits grungier than ever.
© FilmMagicHer newfound goth-girl aesthetic lent itself perfectly to a career as a rockstar, and she quit acting altogether at 16 to front her band, The Pretty Reckless. ''Personally, I don’t really consider myself an actress,'' she told Elle. ''I wouldn't call it a passion. It was just something I always did, I kind of didn’t know anything differently, and music was something I was always doing, just behind the scenes.
''I was always writing songs and playing instruments and singing, and it just took. I had to get to a certain age, and growing pains came with that because it’s all me. There's no script. There's no director. There's no outside forces. It's all me.'' It seems that Little J was always destined for the stage!
© WireImageAs for her signature glam-goth aesthetic (think dramatic smoky eyes, platinum blonde hair and head-to-toe leather outfits), Taylor shared insight into her style with InLove magazine. "I grew up always needing to express myself. It's a constant need for an outlet for my imagination," she explained.
"Whether writing songs or creating a look, it's all about being creative and using that to express how I feel at any given time. Fashion is the outside appearance of my inner feeling. Or, I can use it to change my mood. It's fun for the imagination." Who needs the Upper East Side when you're already dressed to kill?
Lindsay Lohan
© Getty ImagesFew stars embodied the glitzy and chaotic energy of the '00s quite like Lindsay Lohan, who burst onto the scene in 1998 with The Parent Trap before becoming a teen idol with starring roles in Mean Girls, Freaky Friday and Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen. She was instantly recognisable back then for her red hair, sprinkle of freckles and girl-next-door smile, with countless young girls wanting to look just like her (myself included).
Eventually, the pressures of fame became too much for Lindsay. After years of public scrutiny and legal troubles, she stepped away from Hollywood to focus on her health and opened up a nightclub in Greece in 2016 (because why not?).
© WireImageThe actress then relocated to Dubai, where she positively thrived and later met her adoring husband, Bader Shammas. "There's a certain calmness that I find [in Dubai]. There's no paparazzi, no cameras – that's a big deal for me," she told W magazine.
Lindsay returned to Hollywood with a bang in 2021, signing a three-film deal with Netflix. Her festive rom-com Falling for Christmas marked her first major production in over ten years. She followed this up with Irish Wish and Our Little Secret in 2024, which told the world what we wanted to hear – she was back, baby!
© WireImageAs for her appearance, the redheaded beauty has been through an incredible transformation since her child star days. Her features have subtly evolved over the years, and she now has radiant skin that is the envy of Hollywood. Lindsay credits her altered appearance not to cosmetic surgery, but to a healthy lifestyle and an excellent skincare regimen.
The mother of one drinks a juice every morning made with "carrot, ginger, lemon, olive oil and apples", as well as tons of green tea and water. "I'm a big pickled beets person, so I put them in almost everything," she told Elle, adding that lemon juice and chia seeds also help spruce up her water.
Meanwhile, on the skincare front, Lindsay revealed: "I'm trying out some serums now. Also, I'm a big believer in ice-cold water on your face when you wake up." If I can get skin like hers with just a splash of water in the morning, sign me up!
Will Poulter
© WireImageWill made a mark on the industry as the whiny, selfish Eustace Scrubb in the third Narnia installment, and as an awkward teen in We're the Millers. Now folks, you'd better hold on to your hats when I show you what he looks like now, after building a successful career in Hollywood.
Ahead of his role in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Will bulked up significantly, so much so that social media users began to compare him to the Hemsworth brothers (honestly, I see it).
© Mike Marsland/WireImageWill didn't just wake up one morning looking like a superhero, though, as he told GQ: "It was my job, literally, in the lead-up to this movie to eat food I wasn't paying for, train at a gym I wasn't paying for, with trainers I wasn't paying for. And I didn't have a nine-to-five to hold down," he admitted. That sounds like my dream…Marvel, got any vacancies?
Haley Joel Osment
© Ron Galella Collection via GettyHaley changed cinema forever when he uttered the words, "I see dead people" in 1999's The Sixth Sense, and even garnered an Oscar nomination at just 11 years old for the role (okay overachiever!). Known for his adorable smile and blond hair, Haley became the poster child for young Hollywood before he chose to leave the industry altogether in 2006.
Instead of going to college in Los Angeles, though, he moved to the East Coast to escape what he described to E! News as the "predatory" and "aggressive" tabloid culture of the time.
After studying at NYU, the star returned to Hollywood as an adult – bearded, broad-shouldered and virtually unrecognisable. He nabbed roles in projects like The Kominsky Method, The Boys and What We Do in the Shadows, proving that he never lost his magic touch.
© Getty ImagesUpon his return, he noted how the media landscape had changed in an interview with E! News. "When I came up in this industry, the internet was around, but it wasn't so omnipresent that it is today," he said.
"So, for younger actors today, I'm always really impressed with them being able to manage the TikTok/Instagram/social media landscape because that's not something I ever really had to deal with at that age." Haley traded his boyish look for a more rugged countenance, but the star still has that same captivating presence that hooked us from the start.
© WireImagePatrick Fugit
© WireImageWhen Almost Famous hit theatres in 2000, Patrick was just 17 years old with a wide-eyed wonder in his breakout role. Fast forward 25 years, and the actor is still working steadily in Hollywood, although his appearance is decidedly more rugged mountain-man than his fresh-faced teen years. Take one look at his incredible beard, and you'll know what I mean.
Instead of raising their family in LA, Patrick and his wife decided to relocate to a farm in Texas in 2022 to escape the hustle and bustle of city life. "I grew up in Utah, and LA's energy never resonated with me," he told People of the monumental decision.
© FilmMagic"My wife and I, we had our first kid in 2019, and we were in LA, and we had spent a couple of years there. "2020 was a very dynamic period of time in LA, and it was not, in fact, dynamism that we really liked," he explained.
"We also wanted to have chickens and goats and a big garden and a trampoline in a backyard and cool s*** that we have now for our kid." This honestly sounds idyllic – where can I sign up?
Justin Bieber
© WireImageNo child star's journey has been scrutinised quite like Justin's. He went from uploading song covers to YouTube at the dawn of social media to being one of the biggest pop stars on the planet.
His meteoric rise from teen idol to Grammy-winning star has not been without its controversies, though. Fans have noticed a dramatic change with Justin's appearance in recent years – the boyish, cookie-cutter look is out, and the rugged, tattooed aesthetic is most definitely in.
© GC ImagesAs his representative told TMZ, 2024 was a "very transformative" year for Justin, "as he ended several close friendships and business relationships that no longer served him." This included his manager, Scooter Braun, and his longtime personal assistant, which shocked his loyal fanbase.
The rep added that the ongoing rumours about Justin's physical and mental health were ''exhausting and pitiful and show that despite the obvious truth, people are committed to keeping negative, salacious, harmful narratives alive." Preach! On a brighter note, the 'Baby' singer welcomed his son, Jack Blues, with his wife, Hailey, in August 2024, paving the way for a family-focused young man.
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen
© Getty ImagesMary-Kate and Ashley were, without a doubt, the most famous twins in Hollywood during the '00s (sorry to Dylan and Cole Sprouse – you're in second, I promise!). They got their start on Full House in the '90s, but it didn't take long before they built their own empire as teenagers with the help of their entertainment company Dualstar.
They went on to act in more than 15 films together, including my personal favourite, New York Minute, and the instant classic, Passport to Paris. Mary-Kate and Ashley were known for their blonde, highlighted hair and fresh-faced looks before they did a complete 180 as adults, adopting a grungier and more edgy aesthetic.
Their changing style aligned perfectly with their leap from actresses to fashionistas when they launched their clothing brand, The Row, in 2006. The wildly successful label now boasts a cult following and has been worn by celebrities such as Jennifer Lawrence and Gigi Hadid. That's quite the endorsement!
© Penske Media via Getty Images''We were 18 years old,'' Ashley told i-D of their decision to retire from acting. ''And I think what we did know was that we wanted to take that time to take a break from what we were previously doing and to explore things that interested us, and explore what life has to offer.
''We wanted to explore making something of ourselves,'' she added. ''[The Row] really was kind of just a passion project.'' Unlike other celebrities who use their name as a marketing tool, Mary-Kate and Ashley chose not to tack their famous monikers onto the brand, letting their impeccable craftsmanship speak for itself.
Today, the twins are known for their sleek black wardrobes, oversized sunglasses and quiet luxury aesthetic, which is miles away from their pastel cardigans and all-American smiles in the '00s. If I could give out a girlboss award to anyone on this list, it would have to go to this dynamic duo.
© FilmMagic
