Several beloved child stars from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s have chosen to leave Hollywood for more ordinary careers. Mark Lester, Peter Ostrum and Mara Wilson are among those who retired from acting to pursue different paths, including osteopathy, veterinary medicine and writing.
Mark Lester: From Oliver! to osteopathy
Mark Lester is best known for playing the title role in Carol Reed's 1968 musical, Oliver! The film was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and won six, including Best Picture and Best Director. At just 10 years old, Mark became an overnight star.
Following the success of Oliver!, he appeared in Eyewitness (1970), Black Beauty (1971) and The Prince and the Pauper (1977). At the age of 19, he decided to retire from acting. He told The Independent: "Child actors going on to become adult actors never really works, apart from a few. Jodie Foster was the exception."
Mark went on to train as an osteopath and opened Carlton Clinic in 1993. He is also a member of the British Medical Acupuncture Society.
Peter Ostrum: A vet after Willy Wonka
Peter Ostrum was 12 when he was selected to join Gene Wilder in the 1971 cult classic, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. He told the Daily Mirror in 2018: "We had no idea at the time that it would have any kind of success at all, so it's pretty neat that it is still so loved."
Despite speaking fondly of his time on the film and his late co-star, Peter turned down a three-movie deal after the shoot. He eventually left show business and began training as a veterinarian.
During an interview with the American Veterinary Medical Association in 2000, he said: "Everybody thinks that acting is such a glamorous profession, but it's a difficult profession." He added: "I can remember the veterinarian coming out and taking care of the [family] horses, and it made a huge impression on me. This person really enjoyed what he did for a living. My father was a lawyer, and I really didn't have a clue what he did all day. But I knew exactly what the veterinarian did. Someone making a living from something he enjoyed so much really sparked my interest."
Mara Wilson: From Matilda to writing
Mara Wilson became one of the most recognisable child stars of the 1990s through roles in Mrs Doubtfire (1993), Miracle on 34th Street (1994), Matilda (1996) and A Simple Wish (1997). In the early 2000s, she took a hiatus from acting. According to the actress, the death of her mother, Suzie Wilson, in 1996 influenced that decision.
She told NPR: "Sometimes I wish I had stopped [acting] after Matilda because I think that that was really the peak for me. There wasn't really anywhere that I could go from there. So I think that I was already starting to age out of acting. ... I think it would have been a good time to re-evaluate things. But I think that after my mother died, I felt like I had to keep going because film was the only constant in my life. ... I was very depressed, I was very anxious, I can barely even remember Matilda coming out. I only have vague memories of the premiere, and it was really hard for me. So I think that I definitely became kind of disenchanted with acting, with Hollywood, while, at the same time, it was a crutch for me. It was something where, when it was done, I didn't know what to do with myself."
Decades later, Mara is a celebrated writer, playwright and audiobook narrator. She released her memoir, Where Am I Now?: True Stories of Girlhood and Accidental Fame, in 2016.
Jeff Cohen and Carrie Henn: Other stars who stepped away
Jeff Cohen was 11 when he appeared as Chunk in The Goonies. Now a successful entertainment lawyer, he told the Daily Mail why he left Hollywood: "It was survival of the fattest. But when I hit puberty, it was a career-ender for me. I was transforming from Chunk to hunk, and I couldn't get roles any more. It was terrible. My first love was acting, but puberty had other ideas. It was a forced retirement. I didn't give up acting. Acting gave me up."
Carrie Henn shot to fame playing Newt in James Cameron's sci-fi sequel, Alien II. After the film's 1986 release, she decided to leave Hollywood. She told The Sun in 2023: "That's what a lot of people have a hard time understanding. They don't understand that [acting] wasn't my passion. It wasn't my dream. Did I enjoy it? Yes. Was it an amazing experience? Absolutely. Would I do it again? Of course." She now works as a teacher.
