Flashback! 15 Nickelodeon Stars Who Thrived After Child Stardom — And Some Who Didn’t!

They were the adorable and goofy kids that entertained you when you were a child. But whatever happened to some of Nickelodeon’s biggest stars? Which ones went on to better things and who fell by the wayside?

  Amanda Bynes

She was one of the biggest child stars of her generation, appearing in the Nickelodeon series The Amanda Show, as well as WB’s What I Like About You. But after an initial smooth transition into adult acting with roles in Hairspray and Easy A, Bynes had a nervous breakdown in 2013. Now, after psychiatric treatment, the 28-year-old is living at home with her parents and is studying fashion in Los Angeles.

 Emma Roberts

Julia Roberts’ niece Emma made a name for herself when she starred in the Nickelodeon hit series Unfabulous for three years until 2007. Now 23 her acting career is going strong with roles in American Horror Story and the films Palo Alto and We’re the Millers. Her personal life hit a speed bump, however, when she was arrested in Canada in 2013 after allegedly getting into a physical altercation with her fiancé Evan Peters.

Jamie Lynn Spears

Britney’s younger sister created uproar at the height of her Nickelodeon career by becoming the original Teen Mom. In 2007 – at the age of 16 – the star of Zoey 101 announced that she was pregnant with her first child and the show was subsequently cancelled. Now 23, and a country singer, the young mom married businessman James Watson this year.

Kenan Thompson

You don’t have to search very far to find out what happened to this Kenan & Kel star. The co-star of the Nickelodeon hit series – which ran from 1996 to 2000 – is currently a Saturday Night Live cast member. Along the way he appeared in the Barbershop films and Snakes on a Plane.

Kel Mitchell

Thompson’s comedy partner hasn’t been so lucky since their Nickelodeon days. Despite a 2006 death hoax, he is alive and well, making guest appearances in sitcoms such as The Game and The First Family.

Nick Cannon

Better known as Mr. Mariah Carey, with whom he has three-year-old twins Monroe and Moroccan, Cannon made a name for himself as a teen on Nickelodeon projects like All That and his very own The Nick Cannon Show. But as an actor, writer, producer and all-round entrepreneur he has many strings to his bow, including hosting America’s Got Talent since 2009.

 Melissa Joan Hart

With her cherubic face, Hart was the queen bee of Nickelodeon during the ‘90s, starring in the cult hit, Clarissa Explains It All. Now a 38-year-old mom-of-three, she is appearing alongside another teen idol Joey Lawrence in the ABC Family series Melissa & Joey. She was also a 2009 contestant on Dancing With the Stars.

Ryan Reynolds

Back in the early ‘90s, Reynolds made the hearts of teen girls everywhere melt when he played Billy Simpson in the Nickelodeon drama Fifteen. One of Hollywood’s biggest stars, he is now making grown women swoon in movies like The Proposal and The Change-Up.

 Christine Taylor

Before Arrested Development and Zoolander, Ben Stiller’s wife was a regular as Melody Hanson in the 90s cowboy ranch series Hey Dude.

Larisa Oleynik

The Secret World of Alex Mack was another popular Nickelodeon series from the 1990s. Its star Larisa Oleynik, 33, is still acting appearing in TV shows like Pretty Little Liars, Mad Men and Hawaii Five-0.

Meagan Good

She is married to preacher DeVon Franklin and has appeared in hits like the Think Like a Man movies and Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues. But back in the late 1990s, Good was one of the main characters in the Nickelodeon show My Cousin Skeeter.

Drake

Once upon a time Canadian rapper Drake was known as the actor Aubrey Graham. And he too was a Nickelodeon star, appearing in Degrassi: The Next Generation from 2001 until 2009. Though originally a series in his home country of Canada, it aired on Nick in the U.S.

 Lori Beth Denberg

Denberg was a staple on Nickelodeon’s sketch comedy series All That. But after playing Lydia Liza Gutman on The Steve Harvey Show in 2002, acting roles for this former teen star have dried up. Now 38, she is an ordained minister who officiates weddings.

Jason Zimbler

He played Melissa Joan Hart’s younger brother Ferguson W. Darling in Clarissa Explains It All. As an adult, the University of Notre Dame graduate has co-founded a theater group in Portland, Ore and is currently a New York-based software designer.

David Lascher

Lascher was a regular on Hey Dude before he played Melissa Joan Hart’s love interest Josh Blackhart, in Sabrina, The Teenage Witch. Most recently, he has reunited with his former small screen flame on her latest TV series, Melissa & Joey.