The famous kid actors who left Hollywood to become lawyers, doctors and more

Danny Lloyd starred as Danny Torrance in Stanley Kubrick’s beloved adaptation of Stephen King horror The Shining. Following his iconic role, Danny was cast in TV movie Will: G. Gordon Liddy though acting work mostly dried up after that.

 He subsequently quit acting and since 2004 has been working as an associate biology professor at a community college in Kentucky. Dan did however stop by for a quick cameo in 2019 sequel Doctor Sleep.

Charlie Korsmo’s acting career brought him star roles in memorable hits like Dick Tracy and Hook, but it was a short-lived bout of fame, lasting just two years. He also appeared in Men Don’t Leave (1990), What About Bob? (1991) and The Doctor (1991) during that time.

He revisited his acting career in cult classic Can’t Hardly Wait while at MIT, but ultimately pursued a degree at Yale Law School and now works as a law professor at CWRU.

At just 10 years old, Jeff Cohen starred in The Goonies as Lawrence ‘Chunk’ Cohen. Prior to his most famous role, he’d already debuted on TV movie Little Shots in 1983. He also appeared on Tales from the Darkside, Webster and The Facts of Life.

In 1991, Jeff left acting behind and currently works as an attorney. But he hasn’t left his Goonies family behind and even negotiated his co-star Ke Huy Quan’s contract for his role in Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022).

Every Disney Channel classic has a resident quirky best friend, and Wizards of Waverly Place was no exception. Jennifer Stone took a break from the screen after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2013.

During the COVID pandemic, Jennifer joined the front lines in her most important role yet. However, she hasn’t left acting behind entirely; she recently returned to the screen to reprise her role as Harper in the sequel series Wizards Beyond Waverly Place, balancing her acting with her nursing shifts.

Charlie Bucket received a golden ticket to Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, while Peter Ostrum was launched into mainstream fame. The film was his first and only role, with Peter deciding to pursue a different career path.

After starring in the Roald Dahl classic, Peter studied veterinary medicine at Cornell, working for over three decades and is now reportedly retired. He’s still making money from his only screen role, revealing at Snowtown Film Festival in 2018 that he makes around $9 every three months. Certainly enough for a chocolate bar!

Josh Saviano most famously appeared in The Wonder Years as Paul Pfeiffer, the best friend of Kevin Arnold. His acting career lasted between the mid ’80s and early ’90s, with Josh returning to the industry for three episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. 

It’s a fitting role for the former actor who now works as an attorney, blurring the lines between his early acting career and current professional success.

Sheila James Kuehl starred in The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, but is a rare instance of her work post-child star fame bringing her more notoriety. 

The former actress went on to study at Harvard and became a California state legislator between 1994 and 2008 (serving in the Assembly from 1994 to 2000, and the Senate from 2000 to 2008), making history as California’s first openly LGBTQ+ legislator.