12 Child Stars Gone (Very) Bad
It’s not breaking news that a staggering amount of money, power, and fame at a very young age can cause child stars to feel invincible and, as a result, make some not-so-good decisions. We’ve seen it happen with promising young talents like Lindsay Lohan, Amanda Bynes, Justin Bieber and—most recently—Shia LaBoeuf, who’s been making headlines for some very disturbing behavior.
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After a few previous erratic episodes (like walking around with a paper bag over his head at movie premiere), the 28-year-old actor—a former star of Disney Channel’s “Even Stevens”—was arrested last week and charged with harassment, disorderly conduct and criminal trespass after disrupting a performance of ‘Cabaret’ on Broadway. According to reports, Shia was slapping performers on their bottoms, smoking a joint in the theater, falling out of his chair, and screaming at cops who came to escort him out. Before the show, Shia chased after a homeless man, demanding he hand over a McDonald’s bag in Times Square. So yeah, not so normal.
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Obviously, Shia and the modern-day stars mentioned above are only a few in an extensive history of child stars gone bad (and by “bad,” we’re talking real-deal falls from grace thanks to legal issues and substance abuse, not simply making over their image like Miley Cyrus.)
Here, we’ve compiled 12 child stars gone bad—some of whom managed to conquer their demons and emerge triumphant, some that we’re still watching with concern, and some who passed away before their time.
