Just look at the baby faces of Brad Pitt, Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, Austin Butler, and more in their very first TV and film projects.

See Leonardo DiCaprio, Zendaya, and more stars in their first onscreen roles

Just look at the baby faces of Brad Pitt, Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, Austin Butler, and more in their very first TV and film projects.

By Skyler Trepel

May 6, 2026 10:00 a.m. ET

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Harrison Ford in 1966; Meryl Streep in 1977; Leonardo DiCaprio in 1989. Credit:

The journey to Hollywood stardom begins with a single step. Or, should we say, role.

** delved into the resumes of modern cinematic icons in search of their very first screen credits, thus allowing fans a look at their humble beginnings. Many of these stars look back on their origins with pride, wisdom, and even a bit of embarrassment.

From legends like Samuel L. Jackson, Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep to rising stars like Zendaya, Austin Butler, and Michael B. Jordan, here’s a collection of 20 stars in their first onscreen roles.

Halle Berry: Living Dolls (1989)

Halle Berry in 1989 on a forgotten 'Who's the Boss?' spinoff.

For her performance in *Monster’s Ball* (2001), Halle Berry became the first Black woman to win the Oscar for Best Actress. Her first onscreen role came 12 years before that on the *Who's The Boss*? spinoff *Living Dolls*.

The role of model Emily Franklin just happened to dovetail with her actual life at the time.

“I was playing a model, and up until that point that's what I was doing. I was in Chicago modeling,” she told *Vanity Fair *in 2021. “I was essentially playing a version of myself in many ways and it was the first time that I really realized I could actually earn a living… through my craft.”

Berry went on to become a superhero in the *X-Men *franchise, a Bond girl in *Die Another Day *(2002), and an assassin in *John Wick: Chapter 3 *(2019).

Austin Butler: Hannah Montana (2007)

Li'l Austin Butler has a date with Hannah Montana and he's all shook up about it.

the disney channel

Austin Butler is one of his generation’s up-and-coming leading men, but he started as a supporting boy on *Hannah Montana *as Miley’s blind date, Derek. (He wasn’t such a great date, as it turned out.)

Butler previously reflected on how his early career, including bit parts on Nickelodeon shows, allowed him time to hone his talent.

“I am grateful I started young because it allowed me a lot of time to make mistakes. I had so many years of really bad acting,” Butler told PEOPLE in 2023. “I still have so much to learn, but that’s what really excites me about acting is that… it’s like anything, you can improve, and you can get better.”

After breaking through as the Manson family’s Tex Watson in *Once Upon a Time in Hollywood *(2019), he transformed into the King of Rock and Roll for *Elvis *(2023), for which he earned an Oscar nomination.

The rising star went on to steal scenes in *Dune: Part Two *(2024) and *Eddington *(2025). He also headlined *The Bikeriders *(2023) and *Caught Stealing *(2025).

Jackie Chan: Big and Little Wong Tin Bar (1962)

Yes, one of these blurry children is Jackie Chan.

Actors-first-roles322-04292026

Jackie Chan, universally regarded as one of the great martial arts actors, began his career at just 8 years old. In his film debut, 1962's *Big and Little Wong Tin Bar, *he got to sing *and *fight. He landed the role when he was in the Seven Little Fortunes performance troupe at the Chinese Drama Academy.

“In the small world in which we traveled, we Fortunes were stars. Not only were we the academy’s elite, acknowledged by all to be the best and brightest, but we also bore the responsibility of keeping the school alive, because it was our performances that generated the academy’s only revenue,” Chan wrote in his autobiography *I Am Chan*. “The most difficult instruction we had was in the aerial maneuvers that gave Chinese Opera its splendor: flips and somersaults, all learned and practiced without a net or harness… We practiced splits against the walls, against the floor, against everything.”

After years as a Hong Kong star — appearing in the *Police Story *franchise, the *Drunken Master *films, *Project A* (1983)* *and more — Chan crossed over into Western stardom, headlining *Rush Hour *(1998), *Shanghai Noon *(2000), and their various sequels.

Cher: Chastity (1969)

Cher will look much happier once she's working with Robert Altman and Mike Nichols.

Cher is best known for her musical career, both alongside Sonny Bono and for decades afterward as a solo act. Her side hustle as an actress began with little fanfare in the 1969 box-office bomb *Chastity*.

Cher didn’t act for over a decade afterward, but she was ready to make her mark even if audiences didn’t expect it.

“I ran to see [the *Silkwood *trailer]. They say, you know, Meryl Streep and everybody applauds and then they say Kurt Russell and everyone applauds and then they say Cher and everyone started laughing,” Cher said on *The Graham Norton Show *in* *2018. “It was heartbreaking… I got home and I called [director Mike Nichols] and said, ‘They may laugh in the beginning, but they won't be laughing at the end… Then I got nominated for [the] Academy Award.”

That was just the beginning. The pop icon won an Oscar four years later for *Moonstruck *(1987) in the midst of a big-screen run that included *The Witches of Eastwick *(1987), *Mask *(1985), and *Mermaids *(1990).

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Leonardo DiCaprio: The New Lassie (1989)

'You had my curiosity, Lassie - now you have my attention'.

Before becoming one of the biggest stars on the planet, Leonardo DiCaprio got upstaged by a dog on *The New Lassie*. His first role gave him an early and unexpected glimpse at the secrets of, uh, Hollywood magic.

“Lassie was… supposed to be a female dog,” the actor told David Letterman* *in 1995. “They had five different dogs that were all guys to do the tricks. I first realized how fake the whole business was when they had to do the pregnancy scene because they had to tape over Lassie's balls.”

Within a few years, the collie’s human costar was an Oscar nominee for *What’s Eating Gilbert Grape *(1993) and set the world on fire in *Titanic *(1997). Since then, he won an Oscar for *The Revenant* (2015) and forged a legendary partnership with Martin Scorsese, which includes *The Departed *(2006), *The Wolf of Wall Street *(2013), and *Killers of the Flower Moon *(2023).

He scored his sixth and seventh acting Oscar nominations for *Once Upon a Time in Hollywood *(2019) and *One Battle After Another *(2025).

Idris Elba: Crimewatch

'A lot of actors don’t like to admit they did Crimewatch, but I’m not embarrassed by it'.

David Cheskin/PA Images via Getty

Idris Elba is a big name now, but his very first role was so small it’s not even on his IMD page. In the early '90s, he played a murderer during a crime reconstruction scene on the British show *Crimewatch. *

“It sounds weird but, at the time, getting a job on *Crimewatch* was the first rung on the ladder,” he said in 2020 prior to receiving a BAFTA Special Award. “A lot of actors don’t like to admit they did *Crimewatch*, but I’m not embarrassed by it.”

The actor and musician broke through as Stringer Bell on *The Wire *before finding a long-term home as maverick detective John Luther in the *Luther *franchise. He’s been a regular in the MCU, won a SAG for the *Beasts of No Nation *(2015), and canceled the apocalypse in *Pacific Rim *(2013).

Elba’s output also includes *Prometheus *(2012), *The Suicide Squad *(2021), *Three Thousand Years of Longing *(2022), and the Apple TV hit *Hijack*.

Harrison Ford: Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round (1966)

Yes, the coolest smuggler and professor in movie history began as a mere bellboy.

In the beginning, Harrison Ford was told he’d never amount to anything. He signed on to a low-paying studio contract and debuted as a bellboy with one line in *Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round*. His boss was less than impressed.

“I was under contract to Columbia Pictures at the time for $150 a week and all the respect that that implies. I was called into the office of the Head of the New Talent program and he told me that I had no future in the business,” Ford previously told *Variety*. “I didn't last that long. It lasted about a year and a half of a seven-year contract. Yeah, I met him later across a crowded room. He had sent me a card on which he had written, ‘I missed my guess.’”

Of course, he went on to play some of the most iconic roles in Hollywood history, from Han Solo to Indiana Jones to Rick Deckard. He scored an Oscar nod for *Witness *(1985) and starred in *Working Girl *(1988), *Presumed Innocent *(1990), *The Fugitive *(1993), and *Air Force One *(1997), among many others.

Recently he’s found a second home on TV with Taylor Sheridan’s *1923* and the hit dramedy *Shrinking*.

Whoopi Goldberg: The Color Purple (1985)

Whoopi Goldberg's film debut was an all-timer.

Warner Brothers/courtesy Everett

Most people don't get Oscar nominations for their first movie, but most people aren't Whoopi Goldberg. It was the actress and comedian's Grammy-winning one-woman Broadway show that caught the attention of Steven Spielberg, who wanted her to audition for his upcoming adaptation of *The Color Purple*.

“At the time I thought, ‘Show Steven the show that he couldn't come see in New York.’ I thought it was just going to be he and I. I step out and it's Quincy Jones and there's Michael Jackson… and I thought where am I? I really felt like E.T. like I stepped off into some new planet,” Goldberg told AFI. “I did the show that I'd been doing on Broadway and then I asked him if I could do an extra character that I had written that was based on E.T. called Blee-T…. I did it and he laughed and he said, ‘I’m gonna be directing *The Color Purple *and we would like you to play Celie.’”

Goldberg later took home an Academy Award for *Ghost *(1990). She also led films such as *Sister Act *(1992) and *Boys on the Side *(1995).

The EGOT winner has been cohosting *The View *since 2007.

Ryan Gosling: Are You Afraid of the Dark? (1995)

One of the biggest movie stars of his generation, back when he was just a dork on Canadian TV.

Before he was just Ken, Ryan Gosling was just a child actor starting out on a classic Canadian horror show. He was Jamie Leary, the mischievous brother of a death-obsessed boy in an episode of *Are You Afraid of the Dark*?

“I’m glad I did it when I was young… I think your brain doesn't fully form until you're 25, so I was 16 and I didn't know any better,” Gosling said in 2017. “It just felt like I didn't realize… how much of an opportunity for failure there was. I think if I had started later on I might not have taken the risk.”

He became an instant heartthrob thanks to *The Notebook *(2004) and went on to earn three Oscar nominations for his work in *Half Nelson *(2006), *La La Land* (2016), and *Barbie *(2023). In 2026, he helped turn *Project Hail Mary* into a box-office smash.

Tom Hanks: He Knows You’re Alone (1980)

Tom Hanks gets his Screen Actor Guild card and (hopefully) a free scarf.

MGM/courtesy Everett

Tom Hanks is known for many things. What he’s *not* known for is horror. Yet his first role was in the low-budget slasher *He Knows You're Alone*, about a young woman who believes (correctly) that she's being hunted by a serial killer. Hanks played a smart-aleck psychology student. He cheekily referred to this as a “knife rack” movie.

“The innocent girl who's going to get married is washing the dishes in the kitchen and right next to her on the wall is a ‘knife rack’ that has all the knives in one place,” Hanks explained in 2023. “She hears a noise and… goes into the other room to check…. then she goes back to finish washing the dishes and a knife is missing from the knife rack!”

After *Bosom Buddies* and a string of comedies, he scored a hit as the star of *Big *(1988). Back-to-back Oscars for *Philadelphia* (1993) and* Forrest Gump *(1994) followed, not to mention *Sleepless in Seattle *(1993), *Apollo 13 *(1995), *Saving Private Ryan *(1998), *The Green Mile *(1999), and *Cast Away *(2000).

The icon’s more recent work includes *Bridge of Spies *(2015), *A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood *(2019), and *Asteroid City *(2023).

Samuel L. Jackson: Together for Days (1972)

On the left, Samuel L. Jackson in 1993, when he was famous. On the right, his debut in 1972, when he was not.

Ron Galella Collection via Getty

He’s one of the highest-grossing actors of all-time, but Samuel L. Jackson started out in a film that’s almost impossible to find today: the independent Blaxploitation flick *Together for Days*.

Directed by Michael Schultz, who went on to helm classics *Cooley High *(1975) and *Car Wash *(1976), it revolves around the cultural reactions to a radical Black activist entering into a relationship with a white woman. Jackson had a supporting role.

In 2010, Jay Leno told Jackson he looked for it and couldn't find it; the actor revealed it had been re-released under the title *Black Cream*. Then again, in 2017 Jackson offered simple advice for curious fans: “Don't go looking for it.”

Of course, he went on to a prolific career that truly took off in the late 1980s. By now, he has about 150 films to his credit, including decades-long collaborations with Spike Lee, Quentin Tarantino, and Marvel.

The living legend has an Oscar nomination for *Pulp Fiction *(1994) and received an honorary Oscar in 2022.

Michael B. Jordan: The Sopranos (1999)

Michael B. Jordan (center) bullies a little boy named Tony Soprano.

Michael B. Jordan’s road to stardom began with a small part on a classic show. In a season 1 episode of *The Sopranos*, he briefly appeared as a bully who used to torment a young Tony Soprano.

“I was about 12 years old and I was just, you know, one of the extras, one of the background kids. I might’ve snuck in a couple lines,” Jordan told *Vanity Fair*. “At that point I think the most exciting thing about being on set was the fact that I was not in school. I think it was one of the first times that I got a chance to skip school to go to the city and work. At that time *The Sopranos*…* *we didn't know that it was going to be, you know, as epic of a show as it is today.”

From there, he landed on *The Wire *and *Friday Night Lights *before becoming a bonafide movie star thanks to *Creed *(2015). His Killmonger in *Black Panther *(2018) turned him into a formidable big-screen villain, and his dual performance in *Sinners* (2025) landed him an Academy Award for Best Actor.

Jennifer Lawrence: Monk (2006)

Jennifer Lawrence as a mascot on 'Monk.' It was all downhill from there.

Jennifer Lawrence has an embarrassing story about her debut in an episode of *Monk*. While dressed as a cougar mascot at a high school basketball game, Lawrence jumps on the title character’s back. She expected a different role — and even told her fellow churchgoers about it.

“Everybody was like, ‘Oh, we can't wait to watch it.’ [I] find out I'm not playing that part, I'm the mascot, and so everybody watched it after I just told them I was going to have this great, huge part, and I was just the mascot,” she said on *Late Night with Conan O’Brien*. “I've never been back to church since.”

The Kentucky native scored an Oscar nomination for her performance in 2010's *Winter’s Bone*, which paved the way for her star turn as Katniss Everdeen in the *Hunger Games* franchise.

Lawrence later won an Academy Award for *Silver Linings Playbook *(2012) and went on to further acclaim in *American Hustle *(2013), *Mother! *(2017), and *Die, My Love *(2025).

Rita Moreno: So Young, So Bad (1950)

Rita Moreno serenades her fellow reform school rebels in 'So Young, So Bad'.

After a run of small gigs, Rita Moreno earned her first major role at 18 years old in 1950’s *So Young, So Bad, *as a chronic reform school runaway.

“I’d put on my flat shoes and I’d literally walk and visit these little agencies. I was 13, 14, 15 and I would go there, meet the receptionist, and I’d say, ‘I would like to leave my picture and my resume with you,’” Moreno told *Elle*. “Once in a while, I would get a gig dancing, and little by little, some of the agencies began to know me. And eventually that led to being in my very first movie.”

She booked supporting parts in *Singin’ in the Rain *(1952) and *The King and I *(1956) before landing her Academy Award-winning role as Anita in *West Side Story *(1961).

With an EGOT under her belt, she returned as a new character in Steven Spielberg’s remake 60 years later.

Jack Nicholson: NBC Matinee Theater (1956)

Jack Nicholson, seen here in 1958, offically debuted two years earlier on NBC's live drama, 'Matinee Theater'.

Herbert Dorfman/Corbis via Getty; NBC

Another GOAT candidate, Jack Nicholson spent years under the radar before making it big. His first onscreen role was in an episode of NBC’s daytime drama *Matinee Theater*, “Are You Listening?”

He was acting on stage during those years as well — for cheap.

“I made $14 a week. During the run I got my first agent, as well as some work on *Matinee Theatre, *a live TV daytime drama.” Nicholson told *Film Comment *in 1985. “While I was doing this, I got the lead in my first movie, *Cry Baby Killer*… I read for it just like every other actor in town. I screamed and yelled — I know I gave the loudest reading, if not the best. And when I got the part I thought: ‘This is it! I’m made for this profession.’ Then I didn’t work for a year.”

He now has three Oscars under his belt — for *One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest *(1975), *Terms of Endearment *(1983), and *As Good As It Gets *(1997) — in addition to era-defining classics like *Easy Rider *(1969), *Carnal Knowledge *(1971), *Chinatown *(1974), and *Reds *(1981).

Brad Pitt: Another World (1987)

A very young Brad Pitt on 'Another World.' He booked a McDonald's commercial not long afterward.

Before becoming a Hollywood sex symbol, Brad Pitt was just another hunk on a soap opera. His first role came as basketball player Chris in two episodes of *Another World*.

“I did a few weeks on *Another World*,” Pitt told *Tiger Beat* at the time. “I had to go to New York for that, and I had never been there. Then I got* Dallas*, and in between filming those, I did a *Growing Pains* episode. I did a Mountain Dew commercial — got to waterski in Florida. And I just got a McDonald’s commercial today! My mom is so proud!”

Pitt eventually got his breakout in *Thelma and Louise *(1991), which led to acclaimed turns in *Seven *(1995), *12 Monkeys *(1995), and *Fight Club *(1999). The Oklahoma native took home an Oscar in 2020 for *Once Upon a Time in Hollywood*.

Meryl Streep: The Deadliest Season (1977)

Meryl Streep's debut in 1977. Then she starred in back-to-back Best Picture winners.

In 1977, Meryl Streep made her onscreen debut in the TV movie *The Deadliest Season*, playing the wife of a hockey player (Michael Moriarty) on trial for accidentally killing someone during a game.

She had faced plenty of rejection already, even being told she wasn’t pretty enough for *King Kong *(1976).

“I walked in and [producer Dino De Laurentiis’ son] was sitting there very excited that he brought in this new actress and the father said to his son in Italian… ‘Why did you bring me this ugly thing,’” Streep told *The Graham Norton Show *in 2015*. *“So I said to him [facetiously]… ‘I understand what you’re saying. I’m sorry I’m not beautiful enough to be in *King Kong*.’”

In no time, Streep had her first of three Oscars, this one for *Kramer vs. Kramer *(1979). She now has a record 21 acting nominations, including wins for *Sophie’s Choice *(1982) and *The Iron Lady *(2011).

Her illustrious career includes *Defending Your Life *(1991), *The Bridges of Madison County *(1995), *Adaptation *(2002), *The Devil Wears Prada *(2006), and *Mamma Mia* (2008).

Reese Witherspoon: The Man in the Moon (1991)

Reese Witherspoon makes her debut in a coming-of-age gem alongside Jason London.

Reese Witherspoon’s Hollywood career began thanks to an advertisement in her local newspaper. After starring in a few commercials, she auditioned for the starring role in the coming-of-age drama *The Man in the Moon*.

“There was an ad in the local paper that said, ‘Do you want to be in a movie? We're looking for a 14-year-old Southern girl. Do you think you could act some of the lines or read one of the scenes?’ I was like, ‘Yes I think I can!’ I auditioned that day, but then I didn't hear anything for a month,” she recalled on Instagram in 2020. “I came home from softball practice and my mom said, ‘Reese, I need to talk to you. They're calling and asking if you'll go to Los Angeles for a screen test.’”

Her performance paved the way for her breakthrough roles in *Pleasantville *(1998), *Election *(1999), *Cruel Intentions *(1999), and *Legally Blonde *(2001). She won an Academy Award for *Walk the Line *(2005) and earned another nomination for *Wild *(2014).

In recent years, the Louisiana native has found small-screen success with *Big Little Lies* and *The Morning Show*.

Michelle Yeoh: The Owl Vs. Bombo (1984)

Michelle Yeoh makes her debut alongside George Lam.

Fortune Star Media Limited

Before ascending to Hollywood’s A-list, Michelle Yeoh was a Hong Kong action star. It all began with the low-budget *The Owl vs. Bombo*, about two thieves blackmailed by a detective into becoming teachers at a reform center. Yeoh plays Miss Yeung, a fellow teacher.

The young actress, who had a dance background, wanted to try her hand at the stunts.

“I went up to my producers and I say… ‘How about you let me try to do some action?’” Yeoh told *Vanity Fair *in 2025. “I was new in town and they thought, ‘What have we got to lose? Right?’ Because action comedies were the biggest sellouts in Hong Kong cinema at the time.”

Yeoh’s physical chops paid off. She went on to star in action classics like *Yes, Madam! *(1985), *The Heroic Trio *(1993), and *Police Story 3: Supercop *(1992). Years of international success led her to become a Bond girl in *Tomorrow Never Dies *(1997). The Malaysian actress later co-headlined *Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon *(2000) and took on supporting roles in *Memoirs of a Geisha *(2005) and *Sunshine *(2007).

In 2023, she won an Oscar for her performance in *Everything Everywhere All at Once*.

Zendaya: Shake It Up (2010)

Zendaya, just a few years away from being one of the biggest stars on the planet.

She’s far from the only superstar whose career got launched on the Disney Channel, but Zendaya may be the biggest. Alongside Bella Thorne, she was one half of a backup dancing duo on *Shake It Up*’s show-within-a-show. The slapstick sitcom was just the ticket for the burgeoning star.

“I am [a Disney kid] and to a degree, I am grateful for that. That’s where I started, and I learned so much from that experience,” Zendaya told Carey Mulligan in a *Variety* Actors on Actors interview. “It’s just kind of been this slow progression, and I am happy that it’s all been to prove it to myself and not to anybody else… I embrace it a little bit. It’s part of my heritage.”

After continuing with Disney for *K.C. Undercover*, Zendaya won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her less-than-wholesome performance as drug-addicted teenager Rue on HBO's *Euphoria*.

She launched her movie career as MJ in the *Spider-Man *franchise, which led to the *Dune *trilogy and widespread acclaim for *Challengers *(2024). After her buzzy role in *The Drama *(2026), the Oakland native is set for Christopher Nolan’s *The Odyssey *(2026).

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