Leonardo Dicaprio
Before establishing himself in the world back in 1998 with Titanic, Di Caprio already had vast experience on film sets. His debut was through commercials when he was less than 10 years old. Later he was part of the Parenthood and Roseanne series that won him the award for best young actor.
But it was with the horror film Critters 3 that he was placed in the sights of the producers: he was barely 11 years old at the time. In 1992, Leonardo played Robert De Niro's son in My Life as a Son. After him would come his first breakthrough role with Who Does Gilbert Grape Love?, which earned him his first Oscar nomination (many more would come later until he finally received the golden statuette for The Revenant). A precocious career, based on effort and good project choices placed him in the category of best actors of his generation.
Jodie Foster
The protagonist of The Silence of the Lambs began in the industry when she was very young. At the age of 12, she participated in the television series Luan de Papel and two years later Martin Scorsese would choose her for the role that would change her life: a prostitute for the film Taxi Driver, with De Niro. The rest of her career was littered with success. But Foster says she faced a lot of trauma starting so young in the industry.
Natalie Portman
That Matilda from The Perfect Assassin, the Luc Besson film, earned him worldwide fame. The Israeli-born actress was only 13 years old when she starred in this film alongside Jean Reno and Gary Oldman. Her ductility led her to roles in romantic comedies, science fiction, and dramas, such as The Black Swan, for which she won the four most important awards: Bafta, Oscar, Golden Globe, and Sag.
Macaulay Culkin
The adorable boy in My Poor Little Angel is the epitome of the little actor and the consequences that starting at such a young age in the industry can bring. At the age of 12, Macaulay became famous with that leading role that later led him to hits like My First Kiss and the second installment of My Poor Little Angel. His participation in the video clip for "Black and White" earned him the start of fame as a rebel. Then would come the scandal with Michael Jackson and the complaint, including a trial, about child abuse. Culkin testified that he was never a victim of his then-friend.
Drew Barrymore
Elliot's cute little sister on ET was little Drew. At just six years old, back in 1982, Barrymore made his film debut under the orders of Steven Spielberg and his career would take off immediately. Looking back, the Charlie's Angels actress remembers those childhood years with many pressures, inappropriate for her age. Years later she would fall into addictions. She already recovered, and she remains active to this day.
Kirsten Dunst
She was seven years old when she participated in a short film in Woody Allen's New York Stories trilogy. But Kirsten's real success was with the film Interview with the Vampire, when she, at the age of 12, gave life to the vampire Claudia. There she shared the bill with Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Antonio Banderas, and Christian Slater. With Hollywood at his feet, Dunst did not stop filming and the proposals did not stop coming into his hands: Jumanji, Little Women, Spiderman, and Marie Antoinette were some of the films in which we saw the young Kirsten grow up to become the woman and character actress she is today.
