A kid who acts on stage, in movies, or on television is often referred to as a child actor or child actress. However, the phrase may also be used to refer to an adult who started their acting profession while they were a youngster. In order to prevent any misunderstandings, the latter is also referred to as a former child actor. Actors who rose to prominence during their adolescent years are sometimes referred to as "teenage actors" or simply "teen actors."
Elizabeth Taylor is one of the most well-known instances of a famous earlier example. She began her career as a child star in the early 1940s in productions such as National Velvet before going on to become a successful film actress as an adult in movies.
When they reach adulthood, many child performers discover that they have difficulty adapting to their new roles, mostly as a result of being typecast. Macaulay Culkin and Lindsay Lohan are two examples of prominent child performers who went on to have a tough time adjusting to the celebrity they achieved at a young age. There are some child actors who go on to have successful acting careers as adults; some famous actors who first gained fame when they were children include Mickey Rooney. Consider Mickey Rooney, Kurt Russell, Jodie Foster, Christian Bale, Elijah Wood, and Scarlett Johansson. Other child performers, such as filmmaker Ron Howard, politicians Lech and Jaroslaw Kaczyski, and singer Jenny Lewis, have gone on to have successful careers in other disciplines after leaving the entertainment industry.