Former Child Actors Who Ended Up Being Super Rich

The world of childhood celebrity is a strange one. Being exposed to that much power and fame at an early age tends to warp a person — sometimes with tragic results. Little ones struggle to cope with that level of prestige, visibility, and wealth, though in their defense, a whole lot of adults can't handle it either. However, sometimes the precocious, adorable child actor who captures the world's heart on a smash-hit TV show or beloved movie moves successfully on to bigger and better things. Those pint-sized stars go on to a life of achievement, awards, multifaceted projects, and, oftentimes, a whole lot of money.

This kiddie-star-to-adult-actor pipeline is so established, in fact, that the modern public barely notices it as a distinct part of the celebrity landscape. An enormous number of current stars got their start in movies and television as child performers: Miley Cyrus might be a mainstream pop star now, but it wasn't too long ago that she was Hannah Montana. With an increasing number of young actors gaining recognition in major films and television — think the kids from Stranger Things – it seems likely that there will be plenty more moving up in the world in the next few years.

We're here to take a look at the child stars who have wound up as success stories. Most have continued to work mainly as actors, but they've often found success in other areas as well. Regardless, they're raking it in as adults.

Sean Astin has worn a whole lot of different hats in his acting career. He's probably best known for his turn in The Lord of the Rings trilogy as Samwise Gamgee, Frodo's stalwart traveling companion and a hero in his own right. But you've probably seen him in plenty of other things since: Stranger Things, No Good Nick, Supergirl, and Charming the Hearts of Men are just a few of the many productions he's been involved in since leaving Middle-earth. You've also probably heard him: Astin does a ton of voice work. He plays Shazam in plenty of DC animated projects, the Narrator and many other roles in various Captain Underpants productions, Raphael on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot, and a whole lot more besides.

Astin's star turn came when he was only 13 years old, when he appeared as Mikey in one of the most beloved kids' adventure films ever made: The Goonies. He went on to find plenty more success over the years, often reinventing himself for roles in projects like Rudy, 50 First Dates, 24 and many more. This versatility has paid off in a major way: Astin's net worth is reported to be around $30 million. Though that's nothing to sneeze at, we're betting that number will only continue to grow, as Astin keeps continuously busy with a wide variety of projects.

Unlike a lot of child stars, Reese Witherspoon didn't really have one massive role that broke her out of obscurity and into the public consciousness. Instead, she worked steadily, finding a lot of success as a teenager, then smartly and capably handling things until she rose through the ranks to genuine superstardom. Nowadays, you could pretty easily argue that Witherspoon is one of the most bankable stars in the world, and her estimated net worth of over $200 million reflects that. Recent years have seen her rise to especially prominent visibility, what with the success of her media company, Hello Sunshine, and its many projects.

Witherspoon's first major part came at the age of 14, when she landed the lead role of Dani Trant in The Man in the Moon. She started to make a name for herself in other film and television roles quickly afterwards, and really hit the big time in the late 1990s and early 2000s with roles in movies like Fear, Cruel Intentions, Election, and Legally Blonde. She continues to land major acting roles today, increasingly on television series like Little Fires Everywhere, Big Little Lies, and The Morning Show.

Much of Witherspoon's recent success stems from her work as a producer. She's often attached as a producer to many of the projects she appears in now, giving her an enviable amount of quality control. She seems poised to continue her domination over the entertainment industry in the coming years.

Drew Barrymore's experiences as a child actor are tragic and infamous. She started acting at a very early age, appearing in a few minor roles in TV movies before landing a lead part in the massively successful E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. That movie, which became a generational milestone and a stone-cold classic, made Barrymore into an overnight sensation. This meant she landed a number of other major roles, but it also meant she fell into the deepest depths of Hollywood's party culture before she was even a teenager: The public would later learn she was introduced to drugs and alcohol at the age most kids are busy learning long division. Barrymore was only 14 years old when she wrote an autobiography entitled Little Girl Lost, which details her struggles with drug addiction and abuse.

Luckily, Barrymore was able to recover from her childhood trauma and has been able to find ever-increasing success in Hollywood. She has appeared in a number of films alongside Adam Sandler, headlined the Charlie's Angels films, and has made millions for a number of other acting roles in films like Ever After and Whip It. She also has her own production company, and has tried her hand at directing. Finally, Barrymore has also expanded into various entrepreneurial enterprises in the worlds of fashion, wine and makeup.

Though she's had her ups and downs, Barrymore seems to be doing quite well for herself. She has an estimated net worth of $125 million.

Christian Bale is one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, having appeared in blockbusters in a wide variety of genres. His major breakthrough role came in his mid-20s, when he starred in the attention-grabbing thriller, American Psycho. However, Bale got bitten by the Hollywood bug long before his bloody turn as Patrick Bateman, Wall Street psychopath. Indeed, Bale had racked up a few minor roles (mostly on TV miniseries) before getting thrown into the deep end of the Hollywood pool as the star of Steven Spielberg's war drama, Empire of the Sun.

Bale continued to find plenty of success following Empire of the Sun: He starred as Laurie in Little Women, voiced Thomas in Disney's Pocahontas, played Arthur in the cult classic Velvet Goldmine, and played Howl in the English dub of the Studio Ghibli classic, Howl's Moving Castle. All in all, Bale was already a major name in Hollywood when he achieved true superstar status in Batman Begins. Since then, Bale has been a bonafide A-lister, appearing in blockbusters and arthouse films alike. He is known for undergoing massive transformations to look the part for his different roles, and has received dozens of award nominations (including an Oscar win for The Fighter) along the way.

Bale has negotiated some massive salaries over his career, and he's still going strong. He has a net worth estimated to be around $125 million, and continues to land roles in major franchises. That number will surely only go up.

It can be easy to forget just how prolific Neil Patrick Harris truly is. He's shown off a wide array of talents over the years, and has found success in both big and small productions. His biggest claims to fame come from television, though theater fans would be quick to tell you he's received major acclaim as a stage actor. You don't get to host the Tony Awards four times if you're anything but a Broadway superstar, after all.

Because Harris has reinvented himself a few times and enjoyed multiple major roles, it can be easy to forget how he started. He had already made a bit of a name for himself with a few film roles when he was cast in the starring role on Doogie Howser, M.D. as a 16-year-old. From there, Harris popped up in plenty of mid-range roles before hitting an even bigger level of stardom as Barney Stinson on How I Met Your Mother. He's been nominated for awards across the board, and even won a Tony for the titular role in Hedwig and the Angry Inch.

Considering his charisma, talent and general likeability, Harris seems like he'll continue to pick and choose roles that interest him and will surely remain relevant for the foreseeable future. He has an estimated net worth of around $50 million. Nice work, Doogie.