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Celebrities Who Gave Up Fame to Work Normal Jobs

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For us ordinary folks, we may think you are set for life if you become a celebrity. Well, it’s not the be-all and end-all for the real celebrities. Some have chosen a quieter life to focus on their family, while others have moved into different careers or expanded their skills that don’t include intrusive paparazzi. Maybe being a celebrity is not all that it is cracked up to be for the following 30 superstars who have forged new paths.

Julia Stiles

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Independent.co.uk

Julia Stiles was top of her game in the nineties taking on multiple roles in award-winning movies. However, since getting married and starting a family, she has decided there is more to being a mainstream actress. Although she has done a few independent projects like Trouble in 2017, she is focusing more on her humanitarian efforts and her children.

Rick Moranis

Variety.com

In his heyday, Rick was a successful actor, screenwriter, comedian, and producer. He even produced music and was a prolific songwriter. Rick is most famous for his roles in the 80s hits; Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Little Shop of Horrors, and Ghostbusters. However, when his wife died in the nineties, he took an acting hiatus to focus on being a single father. He has since chosen to do low-key roles while doing some stints as a stand-up comedian.

Tara Reid

Guardian.com

Tara started her career out with the hit movie American, and she went on to carve out a niche for herself as the teen movie queen, starring in Josie and the Pussycats and American Pie 2. But soon after, her career took off, it was derailed by tabloid drama, poor reviews, and flailing box office returns. In 2007, she decided it was time for a change and opened up a fast-food restaurant in Los Angeles called Ketchup.

Lucy Liu

Artsy.net

Many people don’t know this, but Lucy Liu is not just a Charlies Angel or a hard-talking lawyer in the US comedy, Ally McBeal – she is also a serious artist. These days she spends more time in her art studio than in a movie studio. She has an impressive portfolio of work that includes shows at Cast Iron Gallery, LA’s Purple Gallery, and work exhibited at the National Museum of Singapore.

Ariana Richards

CBSNews.com

Ariana Richards played John Hammon’s granddaughter, Lex Murphy, in the Jurassic Park movies. Since then, she’s had a few screen appearances but then went to Skidmore College to get her degree in fine art and drama and has since become a successful artist. While she still dabbles in a bit of acting, she is more focused on being an artist.

Danielle Colby

History.com

Danielle Colby is an American reality television personality best known for appearing on the History reality show American Pickers. Before TV, she was in a female roller derby team, she was a burlesque dancer, and later owned a burlesque academy in Chicago. She has also owned her own retro clothing company and works as an antique shop office manager.

Karyn Parsons

Ravishly.com

We all know Karyn Parsons as Hilary Banks in the NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air from 1990 to 1996. She had a few acting roles after that, and her most recent role was in a short film, On Monday of Last Week, which aired in 2017. However, she has extended her talent to become the creator of Sweet Blackberry, a line of animated films about unsung black heroes, and she has published two children’s books.

Bo Derek

Pinterest.com

Bo Derek is the seventies bombshell who starred in the sex comedy called 10 (1979). She later took roles in Fantasies, Tarzan, the Ape Man, Bolero (1984), and Ghosts Can’t Do It, directed by her husband, John Derek. He died in 1998 and never remarried. She is a horse owner and activist, a wounded veterans advocate, supports Wild Aid, and has her own pet care brand.

Jim Carrey

LOS ANGELES, CA – MAY 31: Actor Jim Carrey attends the premiere of Showtime’s “I’m Dying Up Here” at DGA Theater on May 31, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)

Jim Carrey is one of the most famous and respected Hollywood stars. Although he started out in stand-up comedy, he soon moved to the big screen and became a household name after his comedies such as Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, The Cable Guy, and Liar, Liar. He’s made millions and had famous loves, but he has been through dark times. He has moved into doing more serious projects such as authoring a children’s book and publishing politically-charged, multi-colored artwork.

Corey “Big Hoss” Harrison

History.com

Corey “Big Hoss” Harrison is one of the stars of the History Channel’s reality show “Pawn Stars.” The show has been one of the most successful reality shows since its debut in 2009. He was a huge success, but in 2014, he had a serious accident damaging his back. While the series has taken a break, Corey continues his work at the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas, which he co-owns with his father.

Angus T. Jones

Pinterest.com

Angus starred as the young Jake Harper for ten seasons in the TV show, Two and a Half Men. He left the show, and he left the limelight, citing religious reasons. Jones said as a devout Christian, and he was at odds with the show that made him a household name. He even went so far as to compare the program to filth and told viewers to stop watching it. After leaving acting behind, he enrolled in the University of Colorado at Boulder to pursue a degree in environmental studies.

Elisabeth Shue

Deadline.com

Elisabeth Shue was one of the fabulous 80s, 90s actresses starring in The Karate Kid, Cocktail, Back to the Future Part II, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress role in Leaving Las Vegas. At 55, she has slowed down her activities on the big screen and spends her time as a devoted mother and wife, with the odd appearance on TV.

Frankie Muniz

Livescience.com

Frankie was the quirky boy who shot to fame with the TV sitcom, Malcolm in the Middle. When the show ended in 2006, he decided to stop acting and instead follow his dream and become a professional car racer. He did appear in Dancing with the Stars in 2017, but his real passion remains in racing.

Chuck Norris

Mentalfloss.com

The iconic Chuck Norris spans the 1970s through to the 1990s, where he was famous in movies like The Way of the Dragon before going onto TV to star in Walker, Texas Ranger. He became a martial artist while serving in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War, and he holds a black belt in Tang Soo Do, Judo, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He left the movie industry to pursue his love for martial arts, but in 2017, Chuck became the celebrity face for Fiat-Chrystler’s Fiat Professional advertisements.

Sarah Michelle Gellar

Hellomagazine.com

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Sarah Michelle Gellar is best known for her role as Buffy Summers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and she kept appearing in various films and TV shows after that. But following the birth of her daughter in 2009 and a second child in 2012, she decided family comes first. She has kept herself busy with charity work and her cooking and lifestyle brand, Foodstirs.

Nikki Blonsky

Hollywoodreporter.com

Nikki Blonsky was the breakout star of one of the most popular movie musicals, Hairspray, in 2007. But she completely disappeared from the big screen and worked at a retail store in New York City and later worked as a cosmetologist at a hair salon. She is due to appear in smaller TV roles but prefers to keep her life low-key after Hairspray’s great success.

Chris Owen

Hollywood.com

Owen first appeared in the comedy American Pie as Chuck Sherman, and he reprised his role in all of the American Pie movie franchise’s sequels. A few years after the acting role offers disappeared, he started working as a waiter at a sushi restaurant in Santa Monica. In an interview, he said, “life doesn’t always go the way you planned. I love acting, and this job lets me stay in the fight.”

Michael Schoeffling

Biography.com

Michael Schoeffling is a former actor and model known for playing the role of Jake Ryan in Sixteen Candles. He left the razzle and dazzle of Hollywood after realizing the roles were coming in too slowly to support his family, so he turned to carpentry. He now owns a store in Pennsylvania where he makes and sells hand-crafted furniture.

Fabio Lanzoni

Si.com

Fabio Lanzoni, known as Fabio, is an Italian-American actor and fashion model who made a big name for himself during the 90s. As his acting career stalled, he starred in commercials for ‘I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!’, Old Spice, and was a spokesman for the American Cancer Society. He has since launched a women’s clothing line, wrote a fitness book, and launched his own company selling protein, glutamine, and colostrum products.

Jack Gleeson

Youtube.com

Remember Godfrey from Game of Thrones, the one we loved to hate? He became the most hated character in the series, which shows what a brilliant actor he was. After such a promising start to his acting career, it seemed the young man came to the sad realization that acting was no longer for him. Speculation was it was the stress and public abuse he received because of his character. He left GoT and went to pursue an academic career instead.

Marisa Tomei

Pinterest.com

Marisa Tomei had her breakthrough in the blockbuster My Cousin Vinny and then got top roles in Untamed Heart, What Women Want, The Big Short, and The Ides of March. Although she has recently starred in a Netflix thriller, she has taken breaks throughout her career by slowing down on taking big film projects. She wants to focus on Broadway and work on a fitness and diet routine for over-fifties.

Cameron Diaz

Pinterest.com

Cameron Diaz is a retired actress and model who earned many awards throughout her career, such as Golden Globe Award nominations, Screen Actors Guild Award, New York Film Critics Award, and was at one point, the highest-paid actress in Hollywood. She has published a health book and has invested in health and biotech startups. But her real passion is being a mother and wife, and she has no intention of returning to the big screen.

Tony Danza

Pinterest.com

Tony from the 80s show, ‘Who’s The Boss,’ has enjoyed a successful acting career and was honored with a star Hollywood Walk of Fame. However, acting had run its course, and Danza was keen to take other avenues to show off his talents. He is also a tap dancer, boxer, and teacher, and he co-authored a cookbook with his son.

Rebecca Ritters

DW.com

Rebecca started her career when she was eight years old as Hannah Martin in the soap opera Neighbors. After she left the show, she worked in theatre and had a brief role in the British soap opera Coronation Street. She left showbiz for good and worked as a receptionist before enrolling at the University of Melbourne to study Politics and International Relations and later went into journalism.

Mara Wilson

Independent.co.uk

Mara Wilson was the sweet little girl who starred in Matilda, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Miracle on 34th Street. She went on to enjoy varied roles in films and theatre up until 2015. However, in the following year, she retired from acting and has become a prolific writer and has already published two books.

Jeff Cohen

ABCNews.com

Jeff Cohen was the child actor in the eighties movie buster, The Goonies. But acting wasn’t to be his destiny. He used his contacts from the film industry to land summer jobs in the business side of movie production and later pursued a legal career. He went on to become an entertainment lawyer and co-founded a law practice.

Jon Gosselin

Onecountry.com

TV personality Jon Gosselin rose to fame after his wife gave birth to sextuplets. They already had twins making him a father of eight. The Discovery Health Channel offered the couple a reality show detailing their hectic lives with their large brood. He co-wrote a book with his wife that made the New York Times Bestseller List. After their acrimonious divorce, Jon installed solar panels and now works as an IT technician at Amazon.

Dylan Sprouse

NYDailynews.com

Twins Dylan and Cole Sprouse teamed up as youngsters and starred as Zack Martin in the Disney Channel series, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and The Suite Life on Deck. When the series ended, Dylan decided it was time to explore other careers. He obtained a four-year degree in video game design from the New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study.

Jason Zimbler

Thefw.com

Former actor Jason Zimbler is remembered for his role in Nickelodeon’s Clarissa Explains It All. When the show ended, he had a few minor roles before leaving the world of acting to study. He obtained an undergraduate degree in Business Administration and a graduate degree in Theatre Directing and is currently a software designer with HBO.

Dylan and Blake Tuomy-Wilhoit

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Realfinalpost.com

Dylan and Blake Tuomy-Wilhoit were twins who took on the role of Jesse and Becky’s twin sons, Nicky and Alex Katsopolis, in the TV Full House and later on Fuller House was aired on Netflix. After their stint in acting, they went on to other careers, such as venturing into the food truck business. When that didn’t work out, Dylan became a sound effects artist, and Blake tried out fire fighting but ultimately landed a job in audio engineering.

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