Shaliene Woodley leads a pack of 23 young actors and actresses in this month’s Vanity Fair. It’s exciting to imagine what these “Next Wave” up-and-comers, photographed by Mark Seliger, will accomplish over the next decade. But—as a wise elder might counsel a teenage protagonist at the climax of a summer action flick—when looking forward, one must, at the same time, look back.
What better time, then, to revisit the teenage luminaries selected for V.F.’s July 2003 Young Hollywood issue? A surprisingly large number went on to enjoy success—even greatness—and a select few achieved something even more uncommon: worldwide notoriety!
Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen
THEN: At 17, these two were already running an empire, and their “ongoing projects” were listed in the magazine as “Lifetime Network production deal, Columbia Records albums, Wal-Mart clothing and fragrance line, etc.” Also of note in their spread: Mary-Kate picks Britney over Christina, and Ashley reveals she owns a “lot” of Juicy Couture outfits. Her excuse? “[They’re] from two years ago, when they were hot.”
NOW: Acclaimed designers (their line The Row recently took home a C.F.D.A. award) and legit katrillionaires, the two have mostly hung up their performing gloves. Also, Mary-Kate is engaged to 44-year-old Olivier Sarkozy.
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NOW: Acclaimed designers (their line The Row recently took home a C.F.D.A. award) and legit katrillionaires, the two have mostly hung up their performing gloves. Also, Mary-Kate is engaged to 44-year-old Olivier Sarkozy.
Evan Rachel Wood, Hilary Duff, Lindsay Lohan
THEN: Now this is a fun trio. Wood was starring in Once and Again at the time, about to have her “big break” in Thirteen. She was also something of a rebel (Number of Juicy Couture outfits? “Never heard of them.” Britney or Christina? “Alanis.”) Duff was queen of the Disney Channel, known to tweens worldwide as Lizzie McGuire. And Lohan was on the cusp of superstardom, with Freaky Friday set to hit theaters that summer.
NOW: Wood has established herself as a highly accomplished actress, though her off-screen exploits (she’s been romantically involved with both Marilyn Manson and Billy Elliot) have threatened to eclipse her credits of late. Duff is about to star in a TV Land show and is reportedly recording an album, though she is mostly visible to the public via a steady stream of paparazzi pictures of her walking around Los Angeles (Yes, they must read ONTD!). Lohan, for her part, has barely made a headline in the past decade; our yoga instructor says she heard Lindsay’s been leading a quiet existence on a ranch in New Mexico. Sounds about right!
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Mandy Moore
THEN: Moore broke out with “Candy” in 1999 (it’s impossible to read that previous string of words and not want to immediately hear the song, so we’ll save you some time). She also starred in 2002’s A Walk to Remember, a seriously important film for anyone born in the 80s.
NOW: Moore has been linked to a few different pilots in recent years, and is set to appear in the upcoming CBS sitcom Good Session. She’s also married to Ryan Adams, with whom she is reportedly working on a new album.
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Raven
THEN: The former Cosby Show actress was set to star in the second season of The Disney Channel’s That’s So Raven.
NOW: Raven recently fronted the short-lived 2011 ABC Family comedy series, State of Georgia, and presumably fields an overwhelming number of “I thought you could tell the future!” jokes in her daily life.
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Alexis Bledel and Amanda Bynes
THEN: These two—both with the same initials!—were starring in two very different shows: Bledel on Gilmore Girls and Bynes on The Amanda Show.
NOW: Bynes recently enrolled in fashion-design school after a stint in rehab. Bledel appeared on Mad Men and is now engaged to Vincent Kartheiser, who plays Pete Campbell. (Don’t trust him if he says he wants an apartment in the city “for business purposes,” Alexis!)
NOW: Wood has established herself as a highly accomplished actress, though her off-screen exploits (she’s been romantically involved with both Marilyn Manson and Billy Elliot) have threatened to eclipse her credits of late. Duff is about to star in a TV Land show and is reportedly recording an album, though she is mostly visible to the public via a steady stream of paparazzi pictures of her walking around Los Angeles (Yes, they must read ONTD!). Lohan, for her part, has barely made a headline in the past decade; our yoga instructor says she heard Lindsay’s been leading a quiet existence on a ranch in New Mexico. Sounds about right!
Mandy Moore
THEN: Moore broke out with “Candy” in 1999 (it’s impossible to read that previous string of words and not want to immediately hear the song, so we’ll save you some time). She also starred in 2002’s A Walk to Remember, a seriously important film for anyone born in the 80s.
NOW: Moore has been linked to a few different pilots in recent years, and is set to appear in the upcoming CBS sitcom Good Session. She’s also married to Ryan Adams, with whom she is reportedly working on a new album.
Raven
THEN: The former Cosby Show actress was set to star in the second season of The Disney Channel’s That’s So Raven.
NOW: Raven recently fronted the short-lived 2011 ABC Family comedy series, State of Georgia, and presumably fields an overwhelming number of “I thought you could tell the future!” jokes in her daily life.
Alexis Bledel and Amanda Bynes
THEN: These two—both with the same initials!—were starring in two very different shows: Bledel on Gilmore Girls and Bynes on The Amanda Show.
NOW: Bynes recently enrolled in fashion-design school after a stint in rehab. Bledel appeared on Mad Men and is now engaged to Vincent Kartheiser, who plays Pete Campbell. (Don’t trust him if he says he wants an apartment in the city “for business purposes,” Alexis!)