Can you guess these 20 A-listers from before they were Hollywood superstars?

Before she reached star status as MJ in the Spider-Man universe or was channelling divine energy as Athena in The Odyssey, Zendaya started out as a Disney Channel kid.

She joined co-star Bella Thorne on musical tween hit Shake It Up, earning her big break on the small screen before cinema came calling. 

We might now know Kristen Stewart best as the awkward teenage Bella Swan or for her arthouse legacy and filmmaking career. But her acting career started far earlier.

Kristen was spotted at a school play when she was just eight years old, going on to be cast in The Thirteenth Year (1999) and The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000). In 2002, she found mainstream fame as Jodie Foster's daughter in Panic Room and has been a fixture of the screen ever since.

Where would Hollywood be without Jeff Goldblum's eccentric charms and leading man good looks? From Jurassic Park to The Fly and off-beat comedies like Earth Girls are Easy, he's a fan-favourite of the big screen.

Prior to those hits, Jeff was paying his dues with smaller roles in Death Wish (1974), California Split (1974) and Annie Hall (1977) leading up to his big movie break in 1983 with The Big Chill.

Scarlett Johansson has starred in the likes of The Avengers, Jurassic World Rebirth and Jonathan Glazer's sci-fi thriller Under the Skin. However, her career actually began on the stage.

At eight years old, Scarlett starred alongside Ethan Hawke in off-Broadway play Sophistry, going on to appear in comedy North (1994) and Manny & Lo (1996).

Charlize Theron's star credits include lead roles in Monster, North Country and Tully, as well as a sitcom casting in Arrested Development.

The Devil's Advocate (1997) landed her mainstream fame, but earlier on, she appeared in direct-to-video horror flick Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest (1995) and gained a breakout supporting role in 2 Days in the Valley (1996).

Prior to stirring up a spell in Practical Magic, getting the audience shivering in Eyes Wide Shut and starring in erotic thriller Babygirl, she started out with smaller castings on the Australian screen.

Nicole got a leading role in 1983's Bush Christmas and adventure flick BMX Bandits. Six years later, she starred in the psychological thriller Dead Calm (1989) and earned a place on the red carpet guest list forever.

In the '90s, Hugh Grant was the last word in a camera-ready leading man. From Four Weddings and a Funeral to Notting Hill, it was impossible to escape cinema's Hugh-mania.

Earlier in his career, he started out like any other actor with smaller projects, including cult classic costume drama Maurice. In the iconic '80s adaptation—developed by Merchant Ivory and based on a novel by E.M. Forster—his future leading-man skills are obvious.

Oscar-nominee Kirsten Dunst has played spoilt youngest child Amy in Little Women, frozen vampire child Claudia in Interview with the Vampire and ill-fated Lux Lisbon in The Virgin Suicides. Needless to say, her days of stardom came early.

But before that, the Spider-Man star had smaller roles in Saturday Night Live, Star Trek: The Next Generation and a debut role in 1989 on New York Stories. 

We might now know him better as Grey's Anatomy's McDreamy, but Patrick Dempsey started his career long before he was cast as Dr Derek Shepherd. The Primetime Emmy nominee got his first role in 1985 in Catholic Boys. 

His first recurring job was a role on the TV adaptation of Fast Times at Ridgemont High, titled Fast Times. Now, of course, we know him as a rom-com lead from hits like Made of Honour, Can't Buy Me Love and Sweet Home Alabama. 

Lily-Rose Depp has become a regular on screen in horror hits like Nosferatu (2024), Tusk (2014) and hotly anticipated feature Werwulf (2026). 

But her current star power isn't all that surprising, given the fame of her parents, actor father Johnny Depp and model mother Vanessa Paradis. Lily-Rose has been seen in public for years, but established herself as an independent star in 2014 body-horror Tusk.

The '80s would have been nothing without the Brat Pack and their on-screen teenage antics. But before she was pretty in pink, Molly Ringwald first appeared as Molly Parker on Diff'rent Strokes and The Facts of Life.

This fast-talking photographer was only the start for Molly who is now widely recognised as one of the '80s best, starring in hits like Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink.

Born to acting stars Jon Voight and Marcheline Bertrand, Angelina Jolie came from a family with strong celebrity credit, appearing with her father Jon on the red carpet before she'd set foot on her own path to fame. 

The Lara Croft: Tomb Raider star has since taken the silver screen by storm in Maleficent, Girl, Interrupted and Salt.

Before he was turning heads as Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice and Bridget Jones's Diary (Fitzwilliam and Mark, respectively), Colin Firth was just another drama student hoping for his big break. 

In the early '80s he was cast on the West End in Another Country, going on to grace the cinema screen with standout roles in The King's Speech, Kingsman, Love Actually and Mamma Mia!. 

Maya Hawke isn't just the daughter of two beloved celebrities, she's a star in her own right with major credits on cultural phenomenon Stranger Things, comedy Do Revenge and Tarantino hit Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood. 

Born to Before Sunrise's Ethan Hawke and Kill Bill star Uma Thurman before their split, it's no wonder Maya's a star. Before she reached the heights of Hollywood fame, she got her start on PBS mini-series Little Women, just two years before her role on Tarantino's 2019 drama – not a bad start to a now-flourishing career.

Denzel Washington is one of our favourite action heroes, with leading credits in The Equalizer, Training Day and Man on Fire to his name. No one does it quite like Denzel, and he's still a favourite on-screen today.

He got his first on-screen credit in biographical drama Wilma, starring in medical drama St. Elsewhere five years later for a total of 137 episodes. A regular on-screen, Denzel has since starred in Malcolm X, Much Ado About Nothing and a host of action-packed blockbusters. 

Who better to provide a teenage POV on Los Angeles than regular 15-year-old Demetria Gene Guynes? Well, it turns out she wasn't quite so ordinary, as Demetria later became Brat Pack star and Patrick Swayze love-interest Demi Moore. 

Before she reached silver screen stardom, Demi worked in front of the camera as the typical American teen in a photo series around LA. Since then, she's become far better known for not-so-typical Hollywood roles in The Substance, Ghost and Indecent Proposal. 

Star of Cast Away, The Green Mile and Forrest Gump, it feels as though Tom Hanks has been a fixture on screen forever. He's starred in touching dramas like Philadelphia and light-hearted kids franchise Toy Story, proving his versatility on screen.

But before that, Tom made his screen debut in 1980 with slasher horror He Knows You're Alone and a 37-episode run in Bosom Buddies. A head of curls and early dreams of stardom makes it harder to place him as the Big actor we know today.

Michael B. Jordan oozes cool and charisma, recently showing he's got the talent of two in Sinners. Of course, Michael's been proving his leading-man talents for years with roles in Black Panther, Creed and Fruitvale Station. 

Before he was packing a punch on screen, Michael was a rising star. A few years after a guest appearance on legendary series The Sopranos started his career off on the right foot, he was cast in famed series The Wire and beloved sitcom All My Children. 

Brad Pitt got his start in 1987 with an uncredited role in Hunk and a two-episode appearance on Another World, years before he was spotted as the ideal heartthrob to bring Thelma & Louise's J.D. to life in 1991. 

Now, of course, he's the A-list talent behind hits like Fight Club, Twelve Monkeys, Mr. & Mrs. Smith and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. 

Meryl Streep has the golden touch in cinema today, almost guaranteed to make every casting a dominating feature at the box office. From Mamma Mia! to The Devil Wears Prada and Death Becomes Her, Meryl has proved her talent for coldness, comedy, likability and singing on-screen.

While the actress is now noted for her versatility, her first role was more understated than might be expected. In 1976, she voiced a part in Everybody Rides the Carousel, an animated feature based on the eight stages of life described by psychoanalyst Erik H. Erikson.