These Child Stars Walked Away from Hollywood — Can You Guess What They’re Doing and How They Look Now? — Photos

The young faces audiences once welcomed into their homes grew up, changed course, and built lives that few viewers could have predicted.

One played a governor's daughter, another became Archie Bunker's young housemate, and a third helped create the dream woman in "Weird Science." The group also includes two former teen idols and the eldest daughter from "Mrs. Doubtfire," but their identities will only become clear as their surprising second acts unfold.

The Governor's Daughter Who Chose a Very Different Office

Missy Gold was born on July 14, 1970, in Great Falls, Montana, and became best known as Katie Gatling, the governor's daughter on "Benson." The sitcom ran from 1979 to 1986, while her other credits included "Captains and the Kings" and "Trapper John, M.D."

Although acting ran in the family, Missy never shared the same attachment to it as her older sister, "Growing Pains" star Tracey Gold. Missy described herself as the student and introvert of the family, and she always knew television would not be permanent.

When "Benson" ended, 16-year-old Missy was invited to test for a soap opera. She declined because the opportunity clashed with the future she already wanted.

"I thought, 'No, this will interfere with what I want,'" she told Page Six. "I knew I wanted to go to college, and I knew I wanted to do something beyond that … so I said no to even testing, finished up school and applied to colleges."

Missy attended Georgetown University and later earned a doctorate from the California School of Professional Psychology. The sitcom daughter grew up to become a practicing psychologist.

Her experience as a child performer did not simply disappear once she entered college. Missy began therapy there to understand what she had lived through, including the strange tension between taking on an adult job and still being treated like a child on set.

"Psychologically to have that experience of celebrity is complicated, and to do it as a child, you know, when your mind is forming," she said.

Missy remained grateful to the "Benson" cast, whom she remembered as nurturing and supportive. She even recognized a curious connection between her two careers: As a young actor, she spent time in a dressing room where people visited and shared their thoughts; as a psychologist, she once again sits in a private room and listens.

She also considered herself fortunate to have avoided some of the more damaging experiences associated with early fame. Tracey struggled with anorexia during "Growing Pains," at one point reportedly reaching an estimated 80 pounds before eventually recovering and co-writing "Room to Grow: An Appetite for Life with Julie McCarron."

Now married to Brian Herskowitz, with whom she has two children, Missy said she would not put her own kids into the entertainment business. Her childhood worked out for her, but she viewed the industry as too risky to make the same choice as a parent.

The Teen Heartthrob Who Had to Rebuild from Ten Dollars

Willie Aames entered show business almost by accident. A teacher's aspiring-agent boyfriend saw him performing school skits and asked his mother to introduce him to an agent who represented Jodie Foster.

His father initially refused, but Willie pleaded for a chance and received a three-month trial. Within three weeks, he had secured a commercial, followed by "The Young Rebels," according to a 2020 interview.

Willie appeared on "Gunsmoke," "Adam-12," and "The Courtship of Eddie's Father" before he turned 12. "Eight Is Enough" later made him a teen idol, while "Charles in Charge" cemented his place in sitcom history as Buddy Lembeck.

His credits also included the 1982 film "Zapped!" and, decades later, writing the 2022 TV movie "Love in the Limelight." Away from the cameras, he played music for arenas filled with up to 15,000 screaming fans, even though the attention made him uncomfortable.

Faith became central to Willie's life while he was attending Alcoholics Anonymous. He became a born-again Christian and an ordained minister, then portrayed the superhero Bibleman in videos and touring productions from 1995 until 2004.

In 2008, Willie and his then-wife Maylo McCaslin discussed their respective experiences with addiction, sexual abuse, illness, and recovery in the book "Grace Is Enough." Willie told CBS News that people often saw the book less as a faith story than a love story about two damaged people who survived.

But his life soon entered a frightening period. After bankruptcy, the repossession of his car, and the end of his 22-year marriage, Willie moved into a rented room in Los Angeles.

On Thanksgiving in 2008, he relapsed after 20 years of sobriety and attempted suicide. In 2009, he told Fox News, "I stole a bottle of Jack Daniel's from the guy I was renting the room from. I'd been sober for 20 years when I took that first drink... It got so bad."

Willie later held a garage sale at his home in Olathe, Kansas, selling artwork, antiques, a piano, mounted deer heads, and entertainment memorabilia. He eventually described the full scale of the collapse in brutally simple terms: "I went from eating at the White House to sleeping in the bushes."

At one point, he slept outside near the Hollywood Bowl. Willie accepted responsibility for his decisions and rejected the idea that Hollywood, his parents, or anyone else had forced him onto that path, as he explained in a 2017 television interview.

With only $10 and no familiar identity to fall back on, he decided to begin again. Willie borrowed money to return to Kansas and sought a job installing satellite equipment, although the company initially hesitated to hire him because he was too recognizable.

He then joined a cruise ship crew, starting with duties that included overseeing ping-pong and shuffleboard, monitoring bathrooms, and cleaning the library. Within roughly six months, the former teen idol had worked his way up to cruise director.

The job eventually took him around the globe, reportedly covering more than 127 countries. Willie joked to passengers, "Hi, I'm your favorite ex-teen idol," while admitting to Oprah that he had never understood why magazines placed him alongside heartthrobs such as Shaun Cassidy, Leif Garrett, and Scott Baio.

Life at sea also helped bring him together with Winnie Hung, a longtime pen pal he had never met in person. She had followed his career for 30 years, and the two periodically lost contact before she reached out through LinkedIn to ask whether he was all right.

When one of Willie's routes finally brought him to Vancouver, Canada, he arranged to meet her for dinner and a ship tour. He said his knees weakened when he saw her, and after their evening together, he asked Winnie to meet him at the airport, where he told her, "I'm going to marry you."

They sailed together for a year and married about 10 months after their first meeting. In a 2025 Facebook post, Willie wrote, "12 years ago tomorrow... 2 long time pen pals met for the very first time. 10 months later they married. 10 years later to the day and exact hour of their first meeting... 1 became a Canadian... 🇨🇦 Proving that fairy tales do come true... 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰"

Willie has two children from previous relationships, Christopher and Harleigh. He described Christopher, a composer, as one of the few people who did not give up on him during his lowest period.

Although Willie apparently left cruise management, he did not stray far from the water. His social media indicates that he has operated a boat carrying passengers, with each trip bringing a different glimpse of life.

"My first group of passengers this morning included two new parents with a newborn just a few days old," he wrote in another July 2025 Facebook update. "My second group was for an ashes at sea ceremony - as they said goodbye to their loved one, I offered my condolences … what a contrasting life."

A Frontier Favorite Found His Calling in Therapy

Chad Allen was born on June 5, 1974, in Cerritos, California. He began acting at eight as an autistic child on "St. Elsewhere." He subsequently appeared in five television series, including "Our House" and "My Two Dads," although he preferred calling himself a child actor rather than a child star.

His education took place largely on sets with tutors, leaving him feeling unprepared to socialize with other children. At 16, he attempted to leave professional acting, attend high school, and experience ordinary teenage life.

Joining the school drama department reminded him how much he loved the communal side of performance. Soon afterward, he secured the role of Matthew Cooper on "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman."

Chad's private life was exposed without his consent in 1996. A man he had been seeing sold the Globe a photograph of them kissing in a swimming pool, and the tabloid paired it with false allegations that Chad had been involved with a prostitute.

He refused to lie about being gay, despite suddenly finding himself surrounded by agents, attorneys, and publicists debating what he should say. Chad personally told his parents before the story emerged, then nervously returned to the set, where his castmates and crew received him with kindness.

The support he received from colleagues and the LGBTQ+ community helped him embrace his identity. As he explained in a 2001 Advocate interview, the experience also steered him toward activism and theater.

Chad eventually pursued another calling under his full name, Chad Allen Lazzari. His education record lists doctoral studies in clinical psychology at Antioch University New England from 2015 to 2020.

He now works as a psychologist specializing in trauma therapy for older teenagers and adults. Chad named his practice Confluence Psychotherapy, drawing on the image of two rivers meeting and becoming deeper together, according to his professional therapist profile.

The Teen Idol Who Discovered a Daughter He Never Knew Existed

Jimmy McNichol, also known as James Vincent McNichol III, became one of the most recognizable young performers of the late 1970s and 1980s. He appeared across television and film, recorded music, hosted "Hollywood Teen," and shared the spotlight with his sister, Kristy McNichol.

Jimmy starred in "California Fever," appeared on "General Hospital," and worked in television movies. He also headlined the cult film "Night Warning" and appeared in "Smokey Bites the Dust" and "Escape from El Diablo."

His popularity put his face on countless magazine covers, with screaming fans greeting him much like a later generation would greet Justin Bieber or Zac Efron. Yet by 30, Jimmy was exhausted enough to leave Hollywood behind.

He settled with his wife and children on a remote Colorado ranch, where he built a quieter routine centered on his family and animals. Jimmy became a real-estate developer, environmentalist, and philanthropist, while continuing to create music and occasionally perform.

His IMDb biography also identifies him as a partner in Playground Television and describes projects involving animal rescue, ecological awareness, and charitable work. Among them was "Animal Rescue The Rockies," which was developed around rescues in Colorado and support for older shelter animals.

A phone call then expanded Jimmy's family in a way he had never imagined.

Pittsburgh rapper Kellee Maize had been adopted as an infant and raised by Christine and Terry Maize in New Berlin, Pennsylvania. When she tried to locate her biological parents at 21, she was told that a fire had destroyed the relevant records.

With help from an adoption support group and a skilled records researcher, Kellee located her birth mother in 2004. They spoke and considered meeting, but her birth mother ended contact after several months because the relationship was too difficult.

Six months later, Kellee's adoptive father died from a heart attack. She did not know that he had learned something important about her biological father before his death.

During a 2009 visit, Kellee's then-boyfriend and future husband, Joey Rahimi, asked her aunt Gloria whether she knew anything about Kellee's birth father. Gloria revealed that a nurse from the hospital where Kellee was born had once referred to her as "the McNichol baby" and claimed her father was a pop star.

After identifying Jimmy, Kellee called him in Colorado. She became nervous when the call went to voicemail and hung up, only for Jimmy to return it moments later. Kellee told him that genealogical research suggested he might be her father. Following a long pause, Jimmy replied, "Anything is possible."

She directed him to her music videos, and Jimmy immediately felt a connection as he watched her rap and dance. A DNA test provided confirmation 10 days later, prompting him to send Kellee a short message: "Welcome to the family."

Jimmy said he had never known that she existed and did not remember signing paperwork relinquishing parental rights. Their first face-to-face meeting took place in San Francisco, with both bringing friends to ease the pressure.

Kellee also met Jimmy's wife, Rene, and bonded with Kristy and her half-siblings, Nash and Ellis. Jimmy later met Kellee's infant son, Mateo, and delighted in suddenly becoming a grandfather.

Their reunion soon inspired a creative partnership. As detailed by Pittsburgh Magazine, Jimmy and Kellee began developing "Finding Family: Search Angels," a proposed series intended to help adoptees search for their biological parents.

Jimmy planned for Kellee's search to serve as the pilot story and offered her the hosting role. The father and daughter also built recording studios in their respective cities so they could collaborate from a distance.

Archie Bunker's Young Housemate Had a Hit Hiding in Her Future

Danielle Brisebois was born on June 28, 1969, in Brooklyn, New York City. Her IMDb biography lists acting and composing credits that include "All in the Family," "Archie Bunker's Place," and "Begin Again."

Before television, Danielle performed as a child in the original Broadway production of "Annie." She watched Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin write songs at the piano, sometimes lying beneath it as they worked on "Maybe" and "Easy Street."

On television, she played Stephanie Mills opposite Carroll O'Connor's Archie Bunker. Danielle remembered Carroll as both a gifted performer and a generous teacher who treated her work with respect, regardless of her age.

During one scene, Carroll abandoned the written dialogue while their characters sat outside discussing whether Archie still cared about Stephanie. Danielle followed his timing, and they improvised the exchange together.

"I really felt like an equal because they made me feel that way," she said in a 2020 interview. She credited the adults around her with expecting serious work from her and giving her room to meet that expectation.

Danielle's later career moved decisively toward music. After experiencing three different professional lives, including a period when she went from financial success to being broke and living in a garage at 20, she became a songwriter and producer.

She collaborated with Natasha Bedingfield after Natasha spent several months living on her couch. When producer and songwriter Wayne Rodrigues created a drum groove, Danielle connected it to an idea she had carried for years: Life rarely unfolds as expected.

Danielle had noticed the word "unwritten" on Natasha's computer, although she had not seen the poem Natasha wrote for her brother. The melody came quickly, and the pair developed the song through an energetic back-and-forth process.

That song became "Unwritten," one of Natasha's signature hits. Danielle told The Guardian that witnessing songs being created during "Annie" had hooked her long before she helped write one heard around the world.

Danielle married Nick Lashley on August 2, 2008, and they have two children. Her path from sitcom performer to acclaimed songwriter proved that leaving the screen did not mean leaving entertainment behind.

The "Weird Science" Whiz Became a Real-Life Scholar

Ilan Mitchell-Smith was born in New York City and began studying ballet at five. After his family moved to Amherst, Massachusetts, he attended dance classes four days a week and earned a scholarship to the School of American Ballet.

While training, he was discovered by a casting representative working for director Sidney Lumet. He played a younger version of Timothy Hutton's character in the 1983 film "Daniel," according to his IMDb biography.

Acting lessons followed at the Stella Adler School, and Ilan worked with coach Warren Robertson. He soon landed the role of Jim Conrad in "The Wild Life," a 1984 film written by Cameron Crowe.

Cameron prepared custom 1960s mixtapes to help Ilan understand his character, while the production crew gave him a signed prop head from the scene in which Jim blows up a school statue. Ilan kept the unusual souvenir.

His best-known role arrived in 1985 when he played Wyatt Donnelly in John Hughes' "Weird Science." Ilan thought he had ruined the audition by repeatedly laughing at Anthony Michael Hall and the script, but the chemistry that broke his concentration helped make the duo work onscreen.

He remembered John as a fellow nerd who understood children who did not fit in. Anthony, whom Ilan already knew from New York's Professional Children's School, became a mentor, while Bill Paxton generously helped the younger actor and developed many of Chet's unforgettable mannerisms.

Despite those memorable experiences, teenage work in Hollywood could be lonely. Ilan enjoyed Dungeons & Dragons and comic books far more than being fussed over as "the talent."

He eventually left acting and entered academia, transforming the education he once conducted for movie research into a full career. Wyatt grew up to become a medieval-studies professor, an outcome that feels almost perfectly suited to the thoughtful teenager behind the outlandish science-fiction comedy.

Ilan was also diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa in 2014 and is legally blind, according to a later cast update.

The Overlooked Middle Sister Took Control of the Canvas

Eve Plumb began working professionally in 1966, first appearing in commercials before moving into television roles the following year. In 1969, she became Jan Brady, the middle daughter on "The Brady Bunch."

The sitcom ran for five seasons and inspired several follow-ups. Eve declined "The Brady Bunch Variety Hour" because she did not want to accept a five-year contract, although the program ultimately lasted only nine episodes.

She later returned as Jan in "The Brady Girls Get Married," "The Brady Brides," "A Very Brady Christmas," and "The Bradys." Her other notable work included playing a teenage prostitute in the 1976 TV movie "Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway," according to her IMDb biography.

During the 1990s, Eve developed a second creative career as a painter. She had drawn and painted since childhood, but waiting for auditions gave her the time to teach herself through experimentation with watercolor, casein, and acrylic before settling on oils.

Painting offered something acting could not: complete control. Eve could make the work without waiting for a casting call or audition, and collectors eventually bought her pieces through galleries.

"If someone chooses one of my paintings to put in their house, that's great," she said in a May 2026 ET interview about her memoir, "Happiness Included: Jan Brady and Beyond."

Eve and her husband, Ken Pace, also turned their affection for coffee into the PlumbGoods brand. Their first date took place at a coffee shop, and they continued visiting cafés during their travels, sometimes inspiring photographs that Eve later used for paintings.

Their Happiness Included Coffee line directs 50 percent of its net profits to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The couple's coffee story explains that its terrier branding reflects their fondness for vintage dog imagery and their own rescued terrier mix.

The Blockbuster Daughter Who Redefined Success

Lisa Jakub was born on December 27, 1978, in Toronto, Ontario. She began acting at four and accumulated more than 40 film and television credits, including "Independence Day" and "George Lucas in Love."

Her IMDb biography notes that she married Jeremy Jones on June 23, 2005. Long before that milestone, however, Lisa faced a private struggle that clashed sharply with the glamorous life others assumed she enjoyed.

At 15, she bought a house and appeared as Robin Williams' eldest onscreen daughter in "Mrs. Doubtfire." Fame made it harder to leave home without unsolicited photographs, prolonged hugs, and strangers behaving as though they knew her.

Lisa also endured producers telling her she was talented but insufficiently attractive. Although she contemplated leaving, people around her insisted that abandoning a successful acting career would be foolish.

Her anxiety grew as work continued. On the night of the "Independence Day" premiere, Lisa stood at her front door in formal clothes, unable to make herself leave because she was having a panic attack.

She eventually attended the event, but the experience exposed how thoroughly she had been performing offscreen. By 22, the negative parts of acting had overwhelmed the travel and close relationships she enjoyed on sets.

Lisa feared losing the only identity she had known, yet the prospect of staying frightened her more. She retired from acting and created an ordinary routine far from Los Angeles.

"I moved to a small town in Virginia. I went to college. I worked at a radio station and did communications for a non-profit," she wrote in a 2015 Newsweek essay.

She learned to complete timecards, manage household tasks, and live without Hollywood-sized paychecks. Writing became the work that finally felt like her own, leading to her memoir "You Look Like That Girl."

Lisa later turned her experiences with anxiety and depression into mental-wellness advocacy. She became the CEO of Blue Mala, which offers accessible online resources involving yoga, meditation, mindfulness, and community.

She also founded and directs Mission Flexible, a nonprofit supporting military veterans affected by post-traumatic stress. Through workshops, retreats, custom programs, and speaking engagements, she now helps others develop practical ways to manage mental-health challenges.