These celebrities were more famous as teenagers than they are now

Life in the spotlight can be tough for any star, but dealing with fame at a young age has proven to be a pitfall. The teenage years can be some of the most difficult in life, and while it can be tough for most of us, celebrity teenagers have to go through a lot. They make the transition from child to adult in front of millions of people, and it’s enough to put some off Hollywood for life.
Others have always known they wanted to be a star and being famous in their teenage years was meant to be the start of an amazing career. Fame doesn’t last forever, and for some celebrity teenagers, it runs out as soon as they hit their 20s. Others remain famous, but nowhere near the same level as they enjoyed in their youth.
These are some of the biggest teenage stars to ever make it, and how they’ve faded from the limelight since those days. They are the celebrities who were more famous as teens than they are now.

Sarah Michelle Gellar

For some people, Sarah Michelle Gellar is still hugely famous because they’re constantly rewatching the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series. Sarah Michelle Gellar played the high school heroine who kept the world safe by protecting the residents of her hometown, Sunnydale.

Since Buffy ended Gellar has struggled to find roles with the same profile, and she hasn’t reached the heights of fame she once had. Now Gellar chooses to focus more on family than fame.

Britney Spears

Okay, huge Britney fans might see this as a bit of an insult to their hero, but she isn’t as famous as she once was. Sorry. When she made her debut with the hit track “…Baby One More Time” Britney was just a teenager who rose all the way to the top of the charts.

She was pretty much the most famous teenager on the planet, and for many years afterward, she had huge chart success. Eventually, she went off the rails a bit and lost her way. Britney isn’t gone though and had continued success with her Vegas residency.

Dustin Diamond

Fans of the teen sitcom Saved by the Bell will definitely remember Dustin Diamond as the one-and-only Screech. While he wasn’t the star of the show, he was the loveable sidekick whose fans were always secretly rooting for. He was most famous as Screech, and even though he continued playing the character into his adult life, Diamond struggled for success once class was dismissed.

Diamond is a writer, actor, comedian, and musician, but he couldn’t shake being typecast as his former character which hampered his career opportunities. He tried hard, but Hollywood just wasn’t welcoming Diamond with open arms anymore.

Winona Ryder

Winona Ryder was the go-to teenage actress for directors in the late ’80s, and she starred in some huge hits. Her roles in Beetlejuice, Heathers, Mermaids, and Edward Scissorhands propelled her into the spotlight, but the pressure proved too much. Ryder struggled with the attention of being a huge star and had to take a hiatus from acting following her shoplifting scandal.

Since coming back to Hollywood after several years, Ryder’s level of fame isn’t the same as it was in her teenage years. She has recently enjoyed a renaissance, however, thanks to her role in the sci-fi Stranger Things.