Drew Barrymore
Drew Barrymore famously got her start behind the cameras in E.T. at only 6-years-old. Prior to that, she was in a commercial at just 11 months! During her teen years she struggled with drug addiction, but she bounced back and got sober in her 20s. She made her directorial debut with Whip It in 2009, and doesn't look like she'll be old news anytime soon.
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci got her big start as a child model, then was cast in the Cher flick Mermaids in 1990. After that, her role in The Addams Family really sealed her as a star. She's 29 now, and has been behind the cameras for 23 of those years.
Elijah Wood
You'll never guess how Elijah Wood got his little foot in the door back in 1988. He was in the Paula Abdul music video for her song "Forever Your Girl"! Then he had one line in Back to the Future Part II in 1989 at the age of 8. He got noticed after his 1990 performance in Avalon. Then there was Free Willy. He was in and out of the spotlight until he became Frodo in 2001, which made him a household name.
Seth Green
Funnyman Seth Green didn't start his long career off as a jokester, even though he's famous for his wacky roles these days. His first acting gig was in 1984's The Hotel New Hampshire, with Jodie Foster, at age 10. He's been in a slew of flicks since then, like Austin Powers, Can't Hardly Wait, and The Italian Job, though it seems like he spends the bulk of his time creating his claymation show Robot Chicken. And, at 36, he just got engaged!
Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman rocked the big screen at 13 in her first movie Leon, in which she befriends a hitman. Before that, she was a serious dancer and turned down the offer to be a Revlon girl so she could focus on her acting. She took a break from the spotlight in her late teen years to go to Harvard, afterwards she landed star-studded roles in Star Wars, Where the Heart Is. And, the hits just keep coming.
Neil Patrick Harris
We all know Neil Patrick Harris as a child star in TV's Doogie Howser M.D., but his first acting gig was at 15 in the movie Clara's Heart with Whoopi Goldberg in 1988. Since, he's landed hit roles on both the big and small screen, especially with his current TV success How I Met Your Mother. The 36-year-old has also done quite a lot of theater work over the course of his 21-year career.
