An Exception to the Rule

It's always a surprise to see the route that child and teen stars take. Many a time they wind up doing drugs, dead, or working at a pool concrete business like Christopher Atkins from the Blue Lagoon (no, I'm not making that up). But for every rule, there's always an exception. Dakota Fanning and Miley Cyrus are good examples of this. I could mention Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Stacy Ferguson (Fergie), Jennifer Love, and the bevy of stars now that were once stars in kids shows, like Kids Incorporated! or the Mickey Mouse Club, but they obviously had good management then and now. (What happened to Martika?)

Dakota Fanning has remained consistently good, and was even praiseworthy as an actress when she started out. As she matures into adulthood, she's made some wise choices. Her small stint in New Moon ensures her continued success with her target demographic, while her latest venture in The Runaways seems to be aimed at a mature audience. Dakota's ability to succeed is her genuineness. She isn't a fake studio creation, but a real teen girl. I read online she attends high school even, which it's nice to see a starlet acting normal. I can see her winning an Oscar as an adult.

Whether Miley's 15 minutes run out or she can grow up with her demographic remains to be seen, but a recent interview with Parade Magazine showed the starlet saying some mature things. She said she didn't want to be a studio puppet anymore, like how she was when she was started out, but is comfortable being herself and making her own decisions. She also said how she realized her much publicized romances weren't the be all, end all of her life. She sounded, well, mature. She explained she closed her twitter after receiving hate mail and adopted a different perspective about her religious beliefs.

You never hear about the Harry Potter cast in jail, rehab, or a sex-crazed drunken bender, because despite growing up being the highest paid children actors ever, they remained true to themselves. Here's to you Harry and the Hogwarts gang!

But then again, does anyone else think it's creepy that a 15 year was done up with a Bridget Bardot look?