Who worked at a zoo cleaning lion’s cages, only to become one of the world's biggest
action stars? Who almost became a lawyer and worked as a postman before he had a breakout
role where they had to set him on fire? Who turned down a drama scholarship in order to
be part of the U.S Military Air Force? Which actress was turned down by agents for not
being pretty enough, but now has countless awards under her belt?
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There are actors who only had successful careers much later on in their lives. Some of these
names might come as a surprise for you, so hold on to your coffee cups Juicers, this
one is going to be a real … well … juicy one.
Sylvester Stallone has always been good at playing the tough-guy in films, and it’s
probably because he had a lot of practise growing up. The action star had a particularly
difficult childhood. At the time of his birth, there was an accident with forceps that damaged
a nerve, resulting in his slurred speech and impaired facial muscles. His parents were
unhappily married and had an abusive relationship which of course ended up affecting Sylvester
and his younger brother, Frank. After his parents divorce, Sylvester and his brother
had to spend some years in foster care.
He struggled emotionally and academically and was expelled from several schools. After
being accepted into a special high school for troubled youth, Stallone eventually went
on to college where he studied drama. As he waited for his acting career to take off,
Stallone took on any work he could find in order to pay
the bills. He ushered at a movie theater and even cleaned up the lions’ cages at the
Central Park Zoo. He also made an appearance in an adult film called The Party at Kitty
and Stud's.
In the meantime, Sylvester had been working on his writing, creating a screenplay about
a thug who struggles for a chance to make it as a professional boxer. The action star
refused to sell the script to anyone unless they allowed him to play the lead role. At
last, Sylvester’s persistence paid off when he found producers that were willing to make
the film and have him as the star! 1976 when Sylvester was 30-years old, Rocky was released
and snagged a whopping 10 Academy award nominations, making the actor an international sensation!
Now, the next actor on our list may come as a surprise to you. He joined the U.S Air Force
after high school to become a pilot. He’s famously freckled and the man anyone would
want to narrate their daily lives, the only man who could play God, Morgan Freeman. It
was by accident that Freeman got himself into acting. An incident occured in high school
when he pulled out a chair from underneath a girl he had a crush on. As punishment for
what he did, Freeman was ordered to participate in the school's drama competition. To everyone’s
surprise, the 12-year-old proved to be an immediate natural on the stage.
Despite his acting talent, the idea of being a fighter pilot was his true passion. After
he graduated high school in 1955, Morgan turned down a drama scholarship and joined the U.S.
Air Force. Unfortunately the military didn’t turn out to be what he expected. Instead of
flying around the skies, Freeman worked as a mechanic and radar technician.
"I had this very clear epiphany," he told AARP Magazine. "You are not in love with this;
you are in love with the idea of this." And so, he left the airforce and decided to finally
pursue his true passion, acting!
After a few minor roles in film and soap operas, he took acting classes and struggled to find
stable work. In 1967, the same year he married Jeanette Bradshaw, Freeman's break into theatre
came when he landed a part in an all African American Broadway production of Hello, Dolly!
However, it seemed Morgan still couldn’t find the breakout film role that he really
wanted. His personal life wasn’t doing too well either, the wanna-be actor found that
his marriage had started to fall apart, and he turned to drinking to help cope with the
stress. Freeman and Jeanette later divorced in 1979.
For the rest of the decade, Freeman took on roles that earned him some praise, but not
the big, powerful roles that would earn A-list status. In 1987, when he was 50 years old,
Freeman's fortunes changed when he was cast in the film Street Smart. The role was a huge
success, earning him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. And the rest is well
… history.
You might not expect the next actress on our list. She might even horrify you … if you
get what we’re saying. You might know her from the successful series American Horror
Story where she played roles that pretty much scared our socks off. It’s the wonderfully
wicked Kathy Bates!
She discovered her passion for acting in high school, and she went on to major in theatre
at University 1969. The aspiring actress made the big move to New York city to start pursuing
her career. However, she wasn’t given the warm welcome that she had hoped. Agent after
agent kept claiming that she wasn’t pretty enough to be cast in films. Um, we’ve heard
that one before. Legend Meryl Streep faced the same dilemma and look at how her career
skyrocketed! Let’s make it clear, we think you’re beautiful Kathy!
"I was never an ingenue," she said, "I've always just been a character actor. When I
was younger, it was a real problem, because I was never pretty enough … It was hard,
not just for the lack of work, but because you have to face up to how people are looking
at you."
But the rejection didn’t stop Kathy from fighting for what she wanted. Over the next
few years, she focused on her theatre career, and she was soon known as one of stage's top
actresses, getting a Tony nomination for her role as a suicidal daughter in Night Mother.
Unfortunately, the actress faced another dry patch in her career, being cast in small supporting
roles in soaps and TV shows.
Finally, after 20 years in the industry, and at the age of 42, it was finally Kathy’s
time to shine. Her role as a psychotic fan in Misery earned her the best actress Academy
Award, and she shot to stardom, becoming a house-hold name and reaching A-lister status.
She commented on the perilous approach of Hollywood casting. "You're either young and
glamorous and you're going to get the lead … or it's the opposite: you're not attractive
enough, so you're playing the friend or the killer or the lesbian or the doctor or whatever,"
You know what they say about saving the best for last, and the last actor on our list is
definitely one of the fan favorites. You might know him as the 40-Year-Old Virgin, or his
role in the American version of The Office. It’s none-other than funny man, Steve Carell.
As a young man, Carell had his sights set on a legal career, taking classes as a pre-law
student. He spent his spare time doing sketch comedy, becoming a member of Burpee's Seedy
Theatrical Company.
"I was actually filling out my law school applications," Carell recalled. "And I got
to the essay question, which was, 'Why do you want to be an attorney?' And I couldn't
answer it. I really didn't know.”
It seemed that the only thing that he loved doing was acting, and it was Steve’s parents
who said that he should pursue a career in acting if he loved it so much.
Before making the move to Chicago for his career, Carell worked as a postal carrier
for four months. “Months later, I found mail under the seat of my car,” he admitted
adding that also it was the hardest job he has ever had. Hmm, do you think that those
people ever got the mail that was left under the seat of Steve’s car? We think that’s
the last place they’d expect it to be!
Carell finally got his big movie break in 2003, when he was 41 years old. He starred
alongside the legendary comedy king, Jim Carrey in Bruce Almighty. It was an exciting moment
in the actor’s career … but it also ended up being extremely dangerous. Steve’s character’s
big moment originally featured a lot more chaos than just the bumbling gibberish that
was shown in the film.
The uncut scenes featured Steve being set on fire with a bloody nose. In an interview
about the film, Carell said “That was basically the first time I was ever in a movie. The
part they cut is when Jim Carrey makes my nose start to bleed profusely. They thought,
‘too mean of him to do as a character’ and then my head bursts into flames.”
Thanks to Steve’s comedic talent, the scene of the babbling anchor is one of the film’s
most memorable moments and just two years later, the actor would nail another two successful
comedic roles that would make him one of the most sought out actors of our time!
If there’s anything that these actors can teach us, it's that it’s never too late
to change your life and have your dreams come true. We get so used to seeing actors grow
up on screen, that we forget that not everyone reached stardome at a young age. Some of the
greatest actors of our time started out a little later than they might have wanted,
but they finally made it, with a little patience, perseverance and of course, a whole lot
of talent!