It seems that in the world of child stardom, kids who become famous at a young age are essentially flipping a coin as to whether they’ll eventually become functional adults or bleary-eyed trainwrecks. In some cases they manage both, by losing the run of themselves and then allowing everyone a sigh of relief by getting their act together. (Hello, Britney.) Unfortunately though, for every Neil Patrick Harris being a brilliant human being, there’s a Lindsay Lohan not showing up for her court dates.
Someone who looks to be heading down the Lohan route is the tween scene’s reigning brat king, Justin Bieber. Once a floppy haired moppet with a YouTube channel, he’s since taken to wrecking everyone’s head with his entitled douchebag behavior and the attitude of someone who doesn’t appear to have ever heard the word “no”.
Whether he’s grabbing a fan’s boob, heartlessly abandoning his pet monkey in Germany, or leaving a note at the Anne Frank House saying that he hopes Anne would have been a Belieber, he makes me want to sit in a rocking chair and shout at him to get off my damn lawn. And he can take his shirtless selfies with him too and pull his flipping pants up, the eejit.
Meanwhile, former Nickelodeon star Amanda Bynes appears to be having a rough time of things. With a few arrests under her belt, her increasingly erratic behavior is becoming some very dark tabloid gold. She posts selfies online that show her barely wearing a bra, had her cheeks pierced, picks fights with Rihanna on Twitter, proclaims that anyone who criticizes her is “ugly” and has taken to wearing a bizarre blonde wig when out in public.
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It’s even gotten to the point where COURTNEY LOVE tweeted her, telling her to “pull it together, dude”. I really hope she manages to sort herself out, before things escalate too horribly. Also, I have a secret soft spot for What A Girl Wants, the cheesy teen film she did with Colin Firth in 2003.
One child star who managed to survive the entertainment industry unscathed and with minimum fuss is Mara Wilson. The adorable little girl from Mrs. Doubtfire and Matilda has since grown into a smart, funny feminist, now living in New York as a writer and well worth a follow on Twitter. She recently wrote a great article for Cracked.com where she breaks down the different reasons why child stars seem to go off the rails so easily and she quite clearly knows what she’s talking about.
“Years of adulation and money and things quickly become normal, and then, just as they get used to it all, they hit puberty -- which is a serious job hazard when your job is being cute.”
Fame a young age really is a double edged sword, so it’s always a relief when you see former child stars doing well. However, it’s probably more compelling when they’re not, which is unfortunate.
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What do you make of child star behavior? And did you have a favourite child star when you were growing up? I know I wasn’t alone in loving Jonathan Taylor Thomas on Home Improvements, so share in the comments!
