20 Actors Who Had Their First Roles In Our Favourite TV Shows And Films
Since when was Bradley Cooper in SATC?
From first jobs to fashion regrets, celebrities regularly find themselves opening up about the early days of their Hollywood careers.
Several actors including Meghan Markle, Jennifer Lawrence and Shailene Woodley started their jobs on television in US sitcoms and shows, in programmes such as The O.C. and Monk.
Meanwhile, stars like Bradley Cooper had minor roles in Sex and The City, while the likes of Lupita Nyong'o won an Oscar for her first role out of drama school in 12 Years A Slave.
If anything, their first jobs in television and film go to prove that the majority of celebrities have had humble beginnings and worked hard to find success.
Here is a list of actors and their first roles before they hit the big time:
Shailene Woodley
The leading actress might have starred in projects such as Big Little Lies and The Fault In Our Stars but the 28-year-old would like to remind you all that she started off her Hollywood career in one of our favourite Noughties teen angst dramas.
On April 26, the actress shared a photograph of herself in the role of Kaitlin Cooper – the younger sister of Mischa Barton's character, Melissa Cooper, on The O.C.
‘Yes, yes i was on “the OC.” and yes, it is still one of my proudest accomplishments. california, here i (can’t) come.. [sic].' she captioned the snap of herself in an episode.
Dylan Minnette
You might recognise him from 13 Reasons Why, but the actor played some pretty huge roles early on in his career.
According to IMDb, his first TV role was on Two and A Half Men in 2005. He went on to play Jack's son in Lost and President Fitz’s teenage son in Scandal in 2014.
George Clooney
People often think that Clooney’s first role was as a doctor in ER but, in fact, his big start in Hollywood was in the film Grizzly II, with a young Charlie Sheen, that was never released. Despite having a small role as a young man carrying a barrel in the TV mini series Centennial, Grizzy II was a big step for the star.
His first release film debut came in Return to Horror High in 1987.
Orlando Bloom
Long before his Lord of The Rings days and engagement to Katy Perry, the British star was an extra in Casualty and a womanising criminal on Midsomer Murders’ ‘Judgment Day’ episode in 2000.
Watch an excerpt of his scenes here.
Lupita Nyong'o
It’s hard to believe that Nyong'o's first film role was in 2013’s 12 Years A Slave, which she landed just after graduating from the Yale School of Drama.
In the film, she plays Patsey and ultimately, the actress won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance.
James Corden
He might be a world-famous TV show host in the US nowadays but Corden has played various roles on the UK box over the Years.
His IMDb page states that he started out on TV shows like Hollyoaks and Little Britain before making a name for himself as student Timms in the famous History Boys in 2006.
Tiffany Haddish
Forget Girls Trip and her beautifully written ELLE memoir for just a second, because one of the actress' first roles was as a museum tour guide named Charlotte on Disney’s That’s So Raven ‘When In Dome’ episode in 2005.
Ellen Pompeo
She might be saving lives in the O.R. on Grey's Anatomy, but let’s not forget that Pompeo was originally a classmate of Ross and Chandler's in the Friends episode ‘The One Where the Stripper Cries’.
Before this, she'd starred in shows like Law & Order and the 2002 film Catch Me If You Can with Leonardo DiCaprio.
Meghan Markle
When it comes to acting, the Duchess of Sussex is best known for her work as Rachel in Suits, but she first started out with a cameo on General Hospital as a nurse answering phones in 2001.
Roles in CSI: NY, Get Him To The Greek and Horrible Bosses then followed.
Millie Bobby Brown
Years before she was fighting monsters in Stranger Things, the actress had a small part in Once Upon a Time In Wonderland (2013) and then a hilarious role in Modern Family. Her character has her bike stolen by Manny in ‘Closet? You’ll Love It!’ in 2015.
Leonardo DiCaprio
Years before he was on a sinking ship and won an Oscar for braving the wilderness in The Revenant, he made his first TV show debut in The New Lassie in 1989 and a film debut in the horror film Critters 3 as a boy named Josh.
Matt Damon
Bourne Identity made him a household name, but it was his scene as Steamer in Mystic Pizza (1988) that had us falling in love.
The actor went on to star in Good Will Hunting, for which he won an Oscar with his best friend Ben Affleck.
Jennifer Lawrence
She might be an Oscar winner and regularly wear Dior gowns on the red carpet, but she started out on the big screen as a school mascot in a 2006 episode of Monk.
Lawrence then went on to star in 2008’s Garden Party in which she plays a friend of the main character.
Emma Stone
Her start in Hollywood began with roles on The New Partridge Family, The Suite Life of Zack and Cody and Malcom in The Middle.
Her big film break came with Superbad in 2007 opposite Jonah Hill.
Roles in Zombieland, The House Bunny and Easy A soon followed, culminating in an Best Actress Oscar award in 2017 for La La Land and roles in award-winning films like The Favourite and The Help.
Zac Efron
Bad Neighbours, High School Musical and Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile might be more commonly associated with the actor now, but back in 2002 he played a young Dr Simon Tam in an episode of Firefly.
Bradley Cooper
The A Star Is Born director cut his teeth in Hollywood as a smoker who attempted to flirt with Carrie Bradshaw in Sex And The City in 1999.
Natalie Portman
The Black Swan star made her screen debut in the French 1994 film Léon: The Professional about a 12-year-old named Matilda.
Soon came roles in Mars Attacks, Star Wars, Zoolander and V for Vendetta.
Rami Malek
We should have known the Oscar-winner was cut out for the big time when he starred as a student on Gilmore Girls in 2004.
Timothée Chalamet
The Little Women and Call Me By Your Name star starred in Law & Order in 2009 before he nabbed the role as the vice president’s son (Finn Walden) on Homeland in 2012 for several episodes.
Emily Ratajkowski
The model/actress flexed her acting muscles on TV in 2009 as Gibby’s girlfriend on iCarly.
She later went to star in Gone Girl opposite Ben Affleck and in I Feel Pretty with Amy Schumer.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.
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