Before Molly Ringwald was a member of the Brat Pack, she was a child actress. And just after landing her first big role, Molly was fired after just one season.
The actress, now 58, went on to have a massively successful career, starring in films like The Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink during the 1980s. But what show was she fired from and why? Keep reading to find out…
Molly Ringwald’s TV debut was in 1978
When she was just 12 years old, Molly briefly appeared on Diff’rent Strokes and was selected by the show’s creators to star in the spinoff The Facts of Life. The actress portrayed Molly Parker, a student at Eastland Girls School.
But, after the first season, the show underwent a major shakeup. Most of the cast, including a young Molly, was written out of the story.
“Then they changed their minds and then fired me, which was kind of hard as a 12 year old girl,” she recalled on PeopleTV’s Couch Surfing. “What they said is, they wanted something closer to Lisa Whelchel, who played Blair, they wanted something closer to her age and I was too young at the time. I was a little bit of a different generation.”
Molly had a hard time adjusting to her sudden firing. “Once you’ve been a regular and then you’re booted to be a semi-regular, it was really hard and humiliating,” she explained. “My mom said, ‘Do you really want to do this?’ and I said, ‘No,’ and that was it. I wasn’t on the show anymore.”
© NBCUniversal via Getty ImagesWhat is Molly Ringwald doing now?
The actress didn’t let getting fired from The Facts of Life stop her from chasing her dreams. In 1982, when Molly was 14, she starred in the film Tempest with Susan Sarandon. Her portrayal earned her a Golden Globe nomination.
© FilmMagicShe then went on to join the Brat Pack with other actors Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, Judd Nelson, and Demi Moore. She starred in a string of John Hughes films during the ’80s. Decades later, Molly starred in the hit teen show The Secret Life of the American Teenager for five years. Most recently, she appeared in Riverdale as Archie Andrews’ mom.
Inside Molly Ringwald’s personal life
In 2007, Molly married the Greek-American writer Panio Gianopoulos. The couple are parents to three kids – daughter Mathilda, 22, and twins Adele and Roman, 17. Molly was starring on The Secret Life of the American Teenager when she was pregnant with her twins.
© Getty Images“Suddenly – with three – it’s a bit more challenging,” she told People in 2010, adding: “It really helps to have a very supportive partner and a lot of flexibility.”
Her children are all grown up. Mathilda is a model and made her debut in 2017 with a campaign for J. Crew. Adele and Roman are still in high school, but according to their mom, have distinct personalities. “Adele is the most woke individual that you’ve ever met,” Molly shared during an interview with SiriusXM’s Radio Andy.
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