Believe it or not, but celebrities are real people too. Many of them get to enjoy the life of fame and fortune as long as they can, but others choose to end the careers which gave them their fame and step away from that world. It may not be the easiest for them to go back to "normality" when the whole world knows who they are, but they give it their best shot. They may even use their former fame to their benefit to reach bigger markets. Check out these 40 former celebrities who now work “normal” jobs, you’ll be surprised to find out what direction they took their careers!
Kirk Cameron
You might remember Kirk Cameron from the sitcom "Growing Pains" where he played the character, Mike Seaver. Earlier in his career, he played in a few other movies and TV shows as a child actor.
What is he doing now? Surprisingly, he is a Christian minister. He trains other Christians in evangelism. If you ask us, it's quite the jump from playing a mischievous teen in a sitcom to being a Christian preacher.
Dylan Sprouse
Don’t confuse Dylan with his twin brother Cole, who is still acting. Dylan is best known for playing “Zack Martin” alongside his twin brother in “The Sweet Life of Zack and Cody”.
Dylan currently owns a brewery where he makes mead, a drink that is fermented with honey and water and sometimes fruits. He co-founded ‘All-Wise Meadery’ and has been working on the business since 2017. It’s a sweet life for Dylan.
George Foreman
Yep, we are talking about George from "George Foreman Grills". Between 1969 and 1998, George AKA "Big George", as he was known, used to be a professional heavyweight boxing champion.
He retired from boxing and became an entrepreneur. He took his love of healthy eating and became the face for fat lowering grills. Although the grills are now somewhat famous, he gets to have some sort of normality with minimum fame as a businessman.
Cameron Diaz
Almost everyone knows who Cameron Diaz is. From “There's Something About Mary” to “Charlie Angels” she made her mark in Hollywood. Her work is loved by many and some even call her an icon.
In 2018, on top of her game, she retired from acting. In her retirement, she has written two health books and has a few more in the making. Diaz also has ventured into making organic wine. She has her own wine brand called “Avaline”.
Michael Maronna
Michael from the Nickelodeon series, "The adventure of Pete and Pete" or perhaps more familiarly, the older brother “Big Pete” from "Home Alone". Today, he has a normal life and wants nothing to do with fame.
Michael left his past life of childhood fame behind to become an electrician. Being closely connected to the movie industry he is mostly an electrician on movie sets. He finds more joy now playing with wires than playing characters.
Kevin Jonas
Since the Jonas Brothers band broke up, they’ve all taken their own paths. While Joe and Nick stuck to making music, Kevin decided to take a different route, from musician straight to businessman.
He founded his own construction company called Jonas Werner. Kevin also took on the role of co-CEO of an influencer marketing company called “The Blu Market”. He is also a husband and a dad to two kids!
Vanilla Ice
Ice Ice baby! Vanilla Ice is known not only for his famous song, but he is also a rapper, actor, and TV host. His music, though, is what brought him his fame.
The confident persona that he portrayed on TV was not what he really was off it. In the mid 90’s he wasn’t sure if his career would be successful in the future and studied real estate. He is still in the show business but he also works as a contractor renovating houses.
Macaulay Culkin
Culkin got his fame after playing a boisterous 8-year-old boy in “Home Alone”. His character had a knack for making creative yet harmful inventions which he used for protection and everyone just loved the character.
After that, he acted in a few more movies but did not continue down the acting path as an adult. He now runs his own blog website called “Bunny Ears” where he shares articles, podcasts, and videos.
Lark Voorhies
Lark Voorhies won the Young Artist Award twice for the character she played in the sitcom "Saved by the Bell" from 1989 to 1993. She also played a short role in other TV shows and movies until 2012.
Since then, she has taken a career as a writer, writing three self-published books. Possibly not the best financial move from an actor, but her books seemed to have had a good response for her newfound career.
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Gellar has been acting since she was 4 years old. Most people remember her from the "Scooby-Doo” Movies as Daphne. In 2015, Gellar moved away from the film industry and co-founded a startup.
“Foodstirs”, the name of the start-up, offers baking kits and mixes that can be found in over 400 different stores. She also wrote a cookbook in 2017 called "Stirring Up Fun with Food". Do you think she has the recipe for Scooby snacks in there?
Jon Gosselin
If you don’t know who Jon Gosselin is, perhaps you may know the show he was on instead. Remember the family with eight kids? Yes, this is Jon the dad from "Jon & Kate Plus 8". However, Jon and Kate got divorced in 2009.
Although still a dad to eight kids, he is no longer a TV personality. John became a male stripper and a DJ! He found the change emotionally and economically gratifying for a few years. Now he is an IT manager at Amazon.
Danny Lloyd
From child star in a horror movie to a Biology professor. This one-show star retired from acting at the young age of ten. When Danny got his debut role in "The Shining" he didn't quite know what type of movie he was playing in.
As an adult, he decided not to continue in the line of fame and instead went into academia. Not as scary as horror films, but facing all those students is pretty scary too.
Gene Hackman
Gene Hackman, now 91, was also a famous actor who turned away from the industry to focus on being a writer. Hackman acted in many movies, but the most familiar ones would be in “The French Connection”, “Unforgiven" and "Superman: The Movie ".
In 2004, Hackman retired from acting and turned to writing historical fiction novels. His novels received mixed reviews by critics and were not as good as his acting. But he didn't really care, he found a retirement hobby.
Taran Noah Smith
Taran played Mark Taylor in the 1990's sitcom "Home Improvement". This is quite ironic considering the career path Taran took after he ended his acting career.
Taran moved on to be a carpenter. Now although the sitcom "Home Improvement" had nothing to do with physical home improvements, the name played well with his career change. He was even seen helping those in need to rebuild their homes which were destroyed during Hurricane Harvey.
Tiffany Darwish
American singer, songwriter, and actress Tiffany Darwish started her career that brought her fame all the way back in the '80s. She still has some recent song releases here and there but mostly she is busy running a clothing store.
In 2015, Tiffany opened her own store called "Tiffany's Boutique". The store sells vintage women's clothing. Maybe not a full career change as she still dabbles with her music but still pretty impressive.
Andrew Shue
Andrew played Billy Campbell in the American soap opera "Melrose Place". His character was a struggling writer, and in his real life, he decided to take a similar career path.
He became a writer and is one of the founders of a website called "CafeMoms". The website allows its members to share their stories on childcare and basically anything mom life-related. To us, this sounds like a super exciting career change!
MC Hammer
We all know MC Hammer had his greatest success as a rapper in the late '80s and early '90s. His famous song “U Can't touch this" gave him global fame and made him an icon of the era.
From "hammer time" to “holy time” in 1997 MC Hammer was ordained as a minister! today he mostly concentrates on helping prisoners and young ministries and has even officiated at some celebrity weddings.
Mike Vitar
At 12 years old, Mike made his acting debut as fictional baseball player Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez in the 1993 movie “The Sandlot". Most of his acting career happened when he was just a teenager.
Since 2002, Vitar has been a firefighter for the Los Angeles Fire Department. Over the years Mike saved many people from burning houses, among them were two of his fellow firefighters. From playing a sports hero to being a real-life hero!
Karyn Parsons
In "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air '' Karyn played Hilary Banks, one of the oldest daughters from the Banks family. After the famous TV show ended, she realized that the acting world was not for her.
Karyn now focuses on writing and started a non-profit organization to educate young children about African American history. She has also written and published two children’s books, called "How High the Moon" and "Flying Free".
Ali MacGraw
Ali McGraw gained international stardom after playing the role of Jennifer "Jenny" Cavilleri in the 1970 movie "Love Story". She was 30 years old at the time and at the peak of her acting/modeling career.
Ali had done her last bit of acting work in 2012 as a narrator. In her early 50’s she became a yoga instructor. And today at the fabulous age of 82 she still looks great and continues with her yoga practices.
Danielle Fishel
Danielle Fishel did most of her acting in her younger years in the ’90s. She loved playing her roles in "The Wizard of Oz", "Peter Pan" and more famously, in the sitcom "Boy Meets World".
Since then, she has been a host for Style Networks "The Dish". After that, she decided to quit acting to take on writing. More recently she became a reporter for "PopSugar" and their YouTube channel "PopSugar Girls Guide".
Phoebe Cates
Cates is a former actress, singer, and model who became a store owner. Most people remember her from the movies "Gremlin", "Drop Dead Fred" and "Fast Times at Ridgemont High". Her last acting job was in 2001.
After some time off, in 2005 she opened her own store "Blue Tree Boutique. The store sells jewelry, clothes, colognes, art, books, and so much more. Leaving fame behind and focusing more on running a business.
Mara Wilson
Mara Wilson can very easily be recognized as the little girl who played Matilda in the movie "Matilda". If you don"t recognize her from there, then you may know her as the child actor from "Mrs. Doubtfire".
Mara now loves to write articles, plays, and even a book called "Am I Now?: True Stories of Girlhood and Accidental Fame". She found her real true superpower in words. Thanks, Matilda!
Jeff Cohen
Jeff didn’t do much work as an actor, but he did become famous from one movie in particular. Jeff played Lawrence "Chunk" Cohen in the 1985 comedy "The Goonies". He last acted in 1991.
While growing up he decided to make a career change and get a law degree. He now works as an entertainment lawyer in Hollywood. He mostly works with celebrities but wants nothing to do with being one.
Angus T. Jones
This is a familiar face was one of the main characters in “Two and a Half Men” with Jon Cryer and Charlie Sheen. Angus became well-known playing “Jake Harper” for many years. However, that’s where his acting career ended.
After the TV show ended he decided to try himself out in business. He now works together with Justin Combs running an event planning business called "Tonite" where they plan remarkable and exclusive events for their customers.
Jonathan Taylor Thomas
Jonathan worked alongside Taran Noah Smith in “Home Development” playing the role of Randy Taylor, but he left the show in 1999. Jonathan wanted to live a normal life and the whole celebrity experience was not for him
Since then, Jonathan has been writing and directing sitcoms. To him, it was a more normal career path to take while still being in show business. In addition to that, Jonathan went to study philosophy and history at Harvard!
Charlie Korsmo
Charlie Korsmo reached his peak of fame playing the young Jack Banning in the 1991 Peter Pan movie "Hook". He was even nominated and won some awards for the role that he played so well.
He decided to pursue a career as a lawyer and graduated from Yale! Oh, we forgot to mention that before getting his law degree he casually got a degree in physics from MIT! This kid sure did grow up.
Jack Gleeson
Jack was one of those actors who realized early on that the Hollywood limelight was not for him. Gleeson played Joffrey Baratheon in the famous series "Game of Thrones" between 2011 and 2014.
Gleeson retired from acting after his character on “Game of Thrones” was killed off. He went on to pursue a degree in philosophy. Recently in an interview, he said that in the future he might attempt to explore other acting options such as theatre.
Josh Saviano
Josh Saviano was a former child actor who played Paul Pfeiffer in the TV show "The Wonder Years". After his few short years of acting, Saviano stopped performing and went to get a Law Degree.
Since 2003 he has worked at different law firms and eventually co-founded his own firm in 2018. Although he stopped acting to pursue his career in law, he did act as a lawyer in a few episodes of "Law and order: SVU".
Nikki Blonsky
Nikki played the bubbly Tracy Turnblad in the 2007 adaptation of the movie “Hairspray”. She has played a few other small parts in some series but in 2011 she got her cosmetology license and was done with acting/
Nikki now works as a hairstylist and makeup artist in her hometown. She still tries to get some acting work now and then, but her career in beauty seems to be her path. Do you think she makes hairstyles that look just like the thickly sprayed hairdos from “Hairspray”?
Peter Ostrum
Peter Ostrum only ever acted in one movie. Yes, one. You may not recognize who he is if you saw him now, but if you’ve ever watched the 1971 version of "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory", you’ll know that young Peter was actually Charlie.
With only one role making him famous, his whole life was still ahead of him. Peter knew shortly after playing that role that he wanted to be a veterinarian. And that’s what he became!
Lisa Whelchel
Lisa Whelchel is an actor, singer, songwriter turned author, and public speaker. Most people know her as a fourteen-year-old Blair Warner from the '80's “The Facts of Life” or as a Mouseketeer from “The New Mickey Mouse Club”.
After the TV show “The Facts of Life” ended Lisa got married and became a mom. She decided to focus on her writing career and parenting. She has made many reality TV appearances but never returned to full-time acting.
Erik Estrada
Erik Estrada has acted in over 70 movies during his acting career between 1970 and 2018. His most famous role was in the TV series “CHiPs” where he played officer Frank Ponch for 6 years.
Estrada eventually took his role in CHiPs and turned it into a reality. He became an officer in 2016 and worked as an investigator for internet crimes against children. Some probably confused his new job duties as him acting a part for CHiPs again.
Angelina Pivarnick
Angelina was a main cast member in “Jersey Shore” between 2009 and 2010. The show involved a lot of drama, drinking, and partying. She left the show and decided to pursue a career that involves less partying.
She completed an EMR course and became an emergency medical technician! Working for the New York Fire Department and saving lives instead of being in a silly reality TV show sounds like a more fulfilling life.
Al Green
Al Green is known for his soul hit tracks, such as “Take Me to The River” and “Let's Stay Together”. In 1979, he had a bad fall and for him, that was a message from God and that became the turning point for his music career.
Green started concentrating on Gospel music and opened the “Full Gospel Tabernacle Church” in Memphis. He has been a pastor since then. Although he no longer pursues music as a career, he does sing Gospel in the church. Hallelujah!
Willa Ford
Willa Ford became well known after the song “I wanna be bad” hit the charts after she recorded and released it. Her music career didn’t get much better after that though.
Willa also acted in a few TV shows but didn’t enjoy the attention that fame brought. Instead of being a singer or actress, she decided to become an interior designer! She now runs her own company called “WFord Interiors”.
Michael Schoeffling
Schoeffling was an up-and-coming actor and model in the ’80s. He gained sudden fame for his role as Jake Ryan in “Sixteen Candles”. However, in 1991 feeling fed up with the movie industry Schoeffling retired from acting.
Schoeffling went back to his hometown in Pennsylvania to live with his wife and raise their two children. He is now the CEO of his own hand-crafted furniture store and enjoys his quiet small-town life.
Amanda Bynes
From “The Amanda Show” to “Easy A”, Amanda Bynes has played her fair share of characters. But when Bynes started getting into trouble with drug abuse, she took a break from acting.
After becoming sober she dedicated all of her time to studying fashion design. In 2018 she graduated from college and gained a degree in Merchandise Product Development. With no intention of returning to movies, she enjoys working in the fashion industry.
Geoffrey Owens
Geoffrey Owens acted as Elvin Tibideaux in “The Cosby Show” for 44 episodes. This role is what made him famous. He did play other roles for other movies and shows but nothing to the same magnitude as Elvin.
Owens is now the owner and artistic executive of “The Brooklyn Shakespeare Company”. His company mainly teaches people theater acting. He also does work as a guest teacher for colleges, theatres and runs acting workshops.
Rick Moranis
His name might not ring a bell, but his all too familiar face will definitely bring back memories from the movies he acted in. His best-known acting roles were in classic movies such as “Ghostbusters”, “Honey I Shrunk the Kids” and “The Flintstones”.
After his wife passed away at an early age in 1991 he became a single dad. He made a decision to fully focus on raising his kids and quit acting. Being a full-time dad might not be a “job” but he definitely deserves to be on this list.