Hi guys! It’s Samantha! From the man who saved Rose from a watery grave to a master
in the wizarding world, here are celebrities that dropped out of school!
11. Leonardo DiCaprio
You might not have known that this actor got his name after his mom felt his first kick
when she was pregnant and looking at a DaVinci painting. Leonardo got his professional start
working in commercials. At fourteen, he did an ad for Mattel’s Matchbox cars, which
he has noted as his first role. He also appeared in advertisements for Apple Jacks, Kraft,
and bubble gum. He was attending school in Los Angeles and dropped out after finishing
his junior year, but he attained his GED later on. DiCaprio’s breakthrough came after he
scored the role of Luke Brower in the television series Growing Pains. In 1992, he acted in
This Boy’s Life alongside Robert De Niro. That same year, DiCaprio starred in What’s
Eating Gilbert Grape with Johnny Depp; this part gained him even more recognition, and
he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. He portrayed
characters in movies like Total Eclipse, The Basketball Diaries, and Marvin’s Room in
the few years that followed. It wasn’t until 1997 that DiCaprio rose to worldwide fame.
He played in Titanic as Jack Dawson, a broke young man that gets tickets for the infamous
ship’s third-class section. The movie made nearly two billion dollars at the box office.
DiCaprio has since starred in films like The Departed, Inception, The Wolf of Wall Street,
and The Revenant, for which he won an Oscar.
10. Seth Rogen
This hilarious actor was born in Vancouver and never had an interest in pursuing anything
but comedy from an early age. He later stated, “As soon as I realized you could be funny
as a job, that was the job I wanted.” Rogen started performing at just twelve years old.
When he was in his teens, he did stand-up for various events, including parties and
bar mitzvahs. In fact, at only thirteen, he helped write the first rough draft of Superbad,
which he later wrote and acted in. When he was sixteen, Rogen dropped out of high school
after getting a part in the Television series Freaks and Geeks. He became his family’s
primary breadwinner since his parents were facing financial hardships at the time. After
the show was canceled, Rogen had roles in Donnie Darko and Anchorman: The Legend of
Ron Burgundy, and he started writing for Sacha Baron Cohen’s Da Ali G Show in 2004. In
the following two years, he gained recognition from his parts in The 40-Year-Old Virgin and
You, Me and Dupree. However, it wasn’t until his role as Ben Stone in Knocked Up that he
became a household name. Since then, Rogen has acted in numerous successful films, including
Pineapple Express, The Disaster Artist, and This Is the End.
9. Keanu Reeves
Keanu Reeves is a successful actor and director… and, you might not know this; but, he’s
also a musician and played bass for a band called Dogstar. Reeves was born in Beirut,
Lebanon. In his teens, he attended four different high schools and was expelled from one. Reeves
was never fond of classes, and although he was interested in school sports, like hockey,
he ultimately dropped out to pursue acting. He started his career performing in plays
and made his on-screen debut in a Hangin’ In episode. In 1986, Reeves gained more attention
after taking a role in River’s Edge. Three years after that, he starred in Bill & Ted’s
Excellent Adventure and had a significant role in Parenthood. Perhaps Reeves’ most
well-known part was Neo in the three Matrix films.
8. Rihanna
Also known as Robyn Fenty, this talented woman is a singer, businessperson, actress, and,
as of September 2018, Barbados’ Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. She always
had an interest in music and listened to reggae throughout her childhood. She was interested
in finishing her education but was more interested in pursuing music; so, she dropped out of
school. In the early 2000s, Rihanna was noticed by Evan Rogers, a record producer, and signed
with Syndicated Rhythm Productions soon after. In 2005, she debuted her first single, “Pon
de Replay.” It was very successful, making number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and made
it into the top five in several countries. Rihanna’s first album, Music of the Sun,
came out the same year. She has seven other studio albums, including Good Girl Gone Bad,
Talk That Talk, and Anti. But, Rihanna is also an actress. She gained recognition in
this field through her work in films like Battleship and Valerian and the City of a
Thousand Planets.
7. Daniel Radcliffe
This famous actor is most widely known as the main character from the Harry Potter film
series. He was born in London and first discovered his passion for acting at just five years
old. In 1999, at ten years old, he portrayed Young David in the TV mini-series David Copperfield.
After Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was released in 2001, Radcliffe had
some difficulty in school because the other kids wanted to “have a crack at the kid
that plays Harry Potter.” He continued studying via private tutors; however, he ended his
educational career in 2006 because he knew he wanted to pursue his career in writing
and acting. Radcliffe acted in all eight of the famous wizarding movies and has starred
in other popular films as well, including The Woman in Black, Swiss Army Men, and Victor
Frankenstein. Despite his Hollywood success, Radcliffe has dealt with some personal issues
throughout his career. He told the world in 2008 that he has dyspraxia, a motor skill
disorder that affects his ability to perform simple tasks like writing. He also stopped
drinking alcohol in the early 2010s after admitting his reliance on it, and he said
later on, “It was bad. I don’t want to go into details, but I drank a lot and it
was daily - I mean nightly.” He hasn’t had a drink since then.
6. Drew Barrymore
This star grew up in southern California. She was emancipated from her parents at the
age of fourteen after a troubled childhood that involved substance and alcohol use. She
had her own apartment by fifteen years old. Since her acting career started when she wasn’t
even a year old, Barrymore never finished her education. One of her first major roles
was in E.T. The Extra Terrestrial in 1982, in which she portrayed Gertie; you may not
have known that the film’s director, Steven Spielberg, is Barrymore’s godfather. In
1992, she starred in the movie Guncrazy and received a Golden Globe nomination. Two years
later, she acted in the film Bad Girls. In 1995, she posed naked for Playboy. In 1999
she played in Never Been Kissed, and a year later, she gained significant recognition
after her role in Charlie’s Angels alongside Lucy Liu and Cameron Diaz. She went on to
play in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Duplex, 50 First Dates, and Fever Pitch. In 2009,
Barrymore debuted as a director for the film Whip It, in which she also portrayed Smashley
Simpson. She is also known for the movies Blended and Miss You Already as well as the
Netflix original series Santa Clarita Diet.
5. Tom Cruise
Also known as Thomas Cruise Mapother IV, this star was born in 1962 in Syracuse, New York.
When he was in the fourth grade, he studied drama and put on a play with six other kids.
After his mother left his father, Cruise initially planned on becoming a priest. However, he
ultimately decided to pursue a career in acting and dropped out of high school. He started
out acting in movies like Endless Love, Taps, and Risky Business. The latter film, along
with Top Gun, gained Cruise his stardom. He went on to play starring roles in Interview
with the Vampire, Mission: Impossible, and Jerry Maguire, which he received an Oscar
nomination for. Cruise is also well-recognized for The Last Samurai, Collateral, War of the
Worlds, and American Made. Apparently, he even had the opportunity to take the starring
role in Iron Man and turned it down. But, he portrayed Les Grossman in Tropic Thunder
alongside the Iron Man we all know and love, Robert Downey Jr., in 2008 and was nominated
for a Golden Globe for his performance.
4. Ryan Gosling
Ryan Gosling was born in London, Ontario, Canada and started his career acting on Disney’s
The Mickey Mouse Club television series. He wasn’t a fan of school and, at one point,
took knives from home and tossed them at other kids at recess after watching Sylvester Stallone
in First Blood; understandably, he was suspended. When he was seventeen, Gosling dropped out
of high school to pursue a career in acting. His first serious film role was in 2001’s
The Believer, which gained him some recognition. He then acted in a few other films, like Murder
by Numbers and The United States of Leland, before getting the part of Noah in The Notebook
in 2004, which garnered him widespread stardom. Gosling is also well-known for his work in
The Driver, Blue Valentine, and La La Land.
3. Johnny Depp
This actor was born in Kentucky and moved a lot throughout his childhood. When he was
fifteen years old, his parents got a divorce, and he dropped out of school to pursue a career
as a musician. In 1983, at twenty years old, he was introduced to Nicolas Cage by his then-wife,
Lori Anne Allison. He decided to pursue a career in acting. His first role was in A
Nightmare on Elm Street, in which he played the boyfriend of Nancy Thompson. Depp gained
a lot of fame after getting the part of Officer Tom Hanson in the 21 Jump Street television
series. In 1990, he starred in Edward Scissorhands alongside Winona Ryder and Dianne Wiest, which
began his ongoing work relationship with the film’s director, Tim Burton. Depp went on
to star in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Ed Wood, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
Perhaps Depp is best known for playing Jack Sparrow… I mean CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow…
in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. He gained widespread recognition for the role
and has acted in numerous other successful movies since, including Sweeney Todd: The
Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Alice in Wonderland, The Rum Diary, Into the Woods, and most recently,
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.
2. Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr. was born in Manhattan in 1965. His mother was an actress, and his father
was a filmmaker. You’ve probably heard about Downey’s struggles with substance use. But,
you might not have known that it started when he was six years old when he would do it with
his father. He started acting at five and played in some of his dad’s films. His parents
separated in 1978, and Downey originally moved with his father to California. However, he
dropped out of school in 1982 and moved back to New York to work on his acting career.
Downey initially gained recognition through coming-of-age films like Weird Science and
The Pick-up Artist, which earned him a spot in the Brat Pack. After various arrests and
rehab, it wasn’t until 2001 that Downey turned his life around and got a job acting
in Elton John’s music video for “I Want Love,” and then took roles in Gothika, Kiss
Kiss Bang Bang, and Good Night, and Good Luck, among other films. In 2008, Downey starred
in Tropic Thunder and Iron Man, which earned him a significant amount of recognition. The
latter made over five hundred eighty-five million dollars internationally. Robert is
also known for his work in The Avengers, Sherlock Holmes, and The Judge.
1. Jennifer Lawrence
This actress’ full name is Jennifer Shrader Lawrence. She was born in Indian Hills, Kentucky
in 1990. Throughout her childhood, she participated in a lot of sports, including field hockey,
softball, basketball, and cheerleading. Plus, she even did horseback riding at a horse ranch
near her house. A talent scout spotted Lawrence while she and her family were on vacation
in New York. She signed with a talent agency soon after and began her pursuit of an acting
career. At just fourteen years old, Jennifer dropped out of school and never earned a diploma
or GED. However, it wasn’t until 2010 that she made her breakthrough in Hollywood in
the film Winter’s Bone and received an Academy Award nomination for the role. Perhaps Lawrence’s
most famous role was that of Katniss Everdeen in the Hunger Games trilogy. The movie took
in over six hundred ninety million dollars worldwide, which eventually earned her the
Guinness World Record title of ‘highest-grossing action heroine.” The crazy part is that
she almost turned the part down; she recalled thinking, “Just saying yes to this one thing
could completely change my life, and I don’t know if it’s going to be for the better.”
Luckily for JLaw, things worked out well. In addition to her success as Katniss Everdeen,
Lawrence won an Oscar in 2013 for her starring role in Silver Linings Playbook.
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