Thanks to a tricky thing called time, it’s easy to forget that the actors we know and love have been around for a long time.
Some of their current roles are a far cry to the first one they ever did. Take Natalie Portman, for example, who played a young hitman in Leon: The Professional when she was just a pre-teen.
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A lot had changed since then! Come see these other actors in their first movie roles.
Cara Delevingne – *Anna Karenina*
At just 20, Delevingne set the stage as Princess Sorokina in the 2012 drama/romance.
Since she had a more experienced actor, Keira Knightly, to guide her, Cara told Grazia Daily that Keira was “so helpful” and “really supportive”.
Jessica Biel – *It’s a Digital World*
1994s It’s A Digital World had fans meet an adorable all-blue Biel at age 12. She played the character Regrettal in the ’90s flick.
It wasn’t until 7th Heaven where Biel gained ultimate status as an actress.
Leonardo DiCaprio – *Critters 3*
At just 16, this legendary actor had landed his first role playing Josh in Critters 3 . Just look how cute he was!
Six years later, he hit the royal “jack” pot by landing the role of Jack in Titanic .
Tom Cruise – *Endless Love*
It was no impossible mission for Cruise to make his way to the top of Hollywood after starring in 1981’s Endless Love . We love to see a baby Tom Cruise.
He eventually followed this up with his career-making film, Topgun .
Matt Damon – *Mystic Pizza*
A young Damon landed the role while he was still in high school. He played the role of Steamer.
Thanks to his performance, we clearly knew a star was born. He went on to have back-to-back lead roles nine years later in both Good Will Hunting and Saving Private Ryan .
Halle Berry – *Jungle Fever*
The actress told IndieWire that she was very thankful towards Spike Lee for not subjecting her to play “the gorgeous girl”.
This stemmed from wanting to “rely on my physical self at all and that was a good way to sort of get some credibility within my industry.”
Anne Hathaway – *The Princess Diaries*
It was a role fit for a princess! Starring as the lead set the tone for the talented actress in her first movie. Plus, she got to work with the great Julie Andrews.
Since then, she has worked on several blockbuster films, such as Interstellar and Ocean’s 8 .
Margot Robbie – *Vigilante*
We know her as Harley Quinn, but way before that, Robbie’s kickstarted her career as Cassandra in the Vigilante .
Her talent was undeniable, as she soon stole the screen from whatever movie she was in, such as Wolf of Wall Street and certainly as Harley Quinn in 2018’s supervillain action, Suicide Squad .
Edward Norton – *Primal Fear*
Acting alongside big names like Richard Gere and John Mahoney made his first role a scary one.
He told CinemaBlend that he learned quite a lot and was “very very impressed” with Gere, who had no fear in taking command on set.
Angelina Jolie – *Looking To Get Out*
Jolie found herself in her first film at just seven years old acting alongside her father, Jon Voight.
It wasn’t until 19 years later where she played her infamous role as Lara Croft in Tomb Raider .
Denzel Washington – *Carbon Copy*
Thanks to the role of George Segal in Carbon Copy , one of the greatest actors was born.
Since he had chipped teeth at the time, he told EW that he was worried it would stop him from getting the part. But instead, they told him, “we’re going to help you get them fixed.”
Emma Stone – *Superbad*
She went from Superbad to superstar after starring as one of the main female leads in the film opposite Jonah Hill and Seth Rogen.
Soon after this, she acquired roles in Zombieland and Easy A , proving that she’s always meant to carry a film.
Scarlett Johansson – *North*
Johansson was only eight when she appeared in her first feature film North film. Get this: she had another five movies under her belt by the age of 12!
Soon after, she blew viewers away with her performance in Lost In Translation and maintained that high reputation in The Avengers .
Emilia Clarke – *Triassic Attack*
From dinosaurs to dragons — that’s the story of Clarke’s career.
Being surrounded by massive reptiles in her first role ultimately prepared the British actress for her major role as Daenerys Targaryen in HBO’s Game of Thrones .
Natalie Portman – *Leon: The Professional*
The very talented Portman was just a pre-teen when she took on her first role as Mathilda in Leon: The Professions
Sadly, she has spoken out about how she felt sexualized in the film as a young girl.
Jennifer Lawrence – *Garden Party*
With a hunger for the spotlight, Lawrence wasn’t playing games while she starred as Tiff in the coming-of-age drama.
The poorly-reviewed movie didn’t stop the star from becoming the lead as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games .
Megan Fox – *Holiday In The Sun*
The actress was just 14 when she made her debut as Brianna in the Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen twins movie, Holiday In The Sun .
While she disliked the role, it started her career, leading to her playing Mikaela Banks in the box office hit, Transformers .
Johnny Depp – *A Nightmare On Elm Street*
The talented and extremely versatile Depp found himself eaten by a bed in his first role in A Nightmare On Elm Street .
Luckily, his career was the furthest from a nightmare, as he’s since stolen hearts in everything from Donnie Brasco to Edward Scissorhands .
Chris Hemsworth – *Star Trek*
Anyone else forget about this role?
It goes to show that the actor behind Thor wasn’t always wielding the heavy hammer amongst his foes!
In his first appearance on screen, Chris played George Kirk, the father of the infamous Captain James T. Kirk.
Jim Carrey – *Finders Keepers*
About a decade before Jim Carrey found success in films like The Mask and Dumb and Dumber , he had a small but memorable performance in Finders Keepers .
His first starring role came a year later in the highly sexualized vampire comedy, Once Bitten .
Chris Pine in *The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement*
I think many readers would agree with me when I say that Chris Pine helped to awaken the budding sexuality of an entire generation.
Those piercing blue eyes still make me swoon.
Saoirse Ronan – *I Could Never Be Your Woman*
You could tell right away that Saoirse Ronan was something special.
Not even a year after making her acting debut in I Could Never Be Your Woman , Saoirse received her first Oscar nomination for her work in Atonement .
Adam Sandler – *Going Overboard*
I need to come clean — I never knew that this film existed. I’d always (incorrectly) presumed that Adam’s first starring film was Air Heads !
I guess I know what I’m going to be watching next…
George Clooney – *Return Of The Killer Tomatoes*
I kid you not — this movie does actually exist and it really was George’s film debut .
Keep in mind that Clooney didn’t start out like some giant movie star. His career began on the small screen and he had to work his way up.
Brad Pitt – *The Dark Side Of The Sun*
In The Dark Side of the Sun , Brad Pitt plays Rick — a man suffering from a rare skin disease, desperate to find a cure.
While the film is a bit rough around the edges, at its core is a beautifully honest love story and an introspective quest for personal freedom.
Ben Affleck – *School Ties*
Set in the 1950s, School Ties tells the story of an elite high school quarterback given the opportunity to attend one of the country’s most prestigious prep schools.
The only caveat is that he has to hide his Jewish heritage from the faculty and team.
Matthew McConaughey – *Dazed And Confused*
It’s a testament to the talent of Matthew McConaughey that Wooderson in Dazed and Confused was his very first acting role.
The character is iconic and has achieved an almost cult-like status over the past 25-plus years.
Ryan Gosling – *Remember The Titans*
Even though Ryan’s film debut didn’t come until relatively late in his young career, he was already a household name for many.
Canadian fans who grew up watching Are You Afraid of the Dark? and Goosebumps were already well acquainted.
Eva Mendes – *A Night At The Roxbury*
Do you remember toward the end of the movie when Doug Butabi is standing at the altar with Emily?
Well, the bridesmaid that he hits on in the middle of his vows is none other than Eva Mendes!
Lupita Nyong’o – *12 Years A Slave*
Few actors in history have had as successful a debut as Lupita Nyong’o.
She received a Golden Globe nomination for “Best Supporting Actress” and took home the Academy Award that year for the same category.
Tom Hanks – *He Knows You’re Alone*
Would it surprise you to learn that the nicest guy in Hollywood got his start in horror movies?
I tried watching it once, but I just couldn’t get past seeing Tom Hanks so uncharacteristically out of sorts.
Meryl Streep – *Julia*
It’s been nearly 45 years since the cinematic world bore witness to the magnificence of Meryl Streep for the first time.
And though Meryl may not be the star of Julia , she still manages to steal the show — as always.
Julia Roberts – *Satisfaction*
I miss the ’80s and ’90s Julia Roberts so much. Those gorgeous curls are absolutely to die for.
In Satisfaction , a young Julia rocks out alongside Justine Bateman as a member of an all-girl band dealing with the pitfalls of life, love, and music.
Paul Rudd – *Clueless*
Show me someone out there who isn’t absolutely head-over-heels in love with Paul Rudd and I’ll show you a dirty rotten liar.
Seriously though, could Paul have been more perfect in Clueless ? That’s a rhetorical question; of course, he couldn’t be.
Macauley Culkin – *Rocket Gibraltar*
Mack was 8-years-old when Rocket Gibraltar was released. Over the course of the next six years, the acting wunderkind released and starred in a total of ten full-length feature films.
It’s no wonder that he became disenchanted with acting altogether.
