People tend to get stuck in their ways as life goes on, but there are certain events that are particular catalysts for change. Fame, wealth, and power often make the person act quite differently than they used to. And with the rich and famous, most of us only know them post-stardom. So internet users asked people to share their experiences with celebrities at school or before they became famous and how it changed them. 

So get comfortable as you scroll through, upvote the most interesting submissions, and comment if you have your own stories about celebrities before they became famous. If you want to explore more stories about the stars before they were stars, Bored Panda has got you covered, check out our other piece here. 

#1

My Aunt and Uncle lived next door to Patrick Stewart. He had a terrible childhood. His dad was traumatised during the War like so many were. He changed so much it became untenable and his mum used to send him to relatives to keep him safe. Very sad . He is a lovely man and he keeps in touch with friends he made many years ago.

Image credits: paddyplaistow

#2

I was in the first Harry Potter film as Dan Radcliffe’s body double. So…all the characters had already been announced and were newly famous.

Gets my back up now when people say that this person or that person “seemed like a d**k”.

Genuinely all really nice kids (hopefully still are as adults). Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy) wrestled a little bit with the idea of forever being known as a villain…funny because he was the coolest guy there and got me into Limp Bizkit! We all used to play THPS2 in his dressing room, he would always win.

So yeah…all really nice people.

Image credits: jonnysumthing

#3

I didn’t go to high school with him by my girlfriend’s grandparents used to rent movies from a local blockbuster and this gentleman always suggested some strange movies to them. They said he was really nice but had a weird name. Turns out it was Quentin Tarantino. They watched one of his movies after he got big and they said “Well that explains a lot of the movie suggestions he gave us.”

Image credits: jcarlhays

Imagining one’s self famous is a common fantasy, but in reality, it can be somewhat traumatic. Obviously, being a celebrity could help one fix a lot of financial problems. But fame and fortune are no protection against bad decisions in general. For example, actor Nicolas Cage ended up in over $14 million dollars of debt to the IRS after a long series of bad investments and excessive spending. 

While he has since cleared the debt, fame also brings with it some serious psychological risks. This is most visible with child stars, to the point that “child star” is synonymous with crazy. Many end up suffering from addictions and estrangement since they are often not able to socialize with their peers and just be a kid. Often they will feel a lot of resentment towards parents or guardians who forced them into the profession. So as nice as wealth is, it’s hard to put a price on mental health.

#4

Went to primary school with Hugh Jackman, total class act and always had the makings of someone who would be successful.

Image credits: BoshasaurusChris

#5

I went to high school with Margot Robbie. We were pretty good friends but I haven’t spoken to her in years. She was absolutely lovely. No one had a bad word to say about her, and she is very intelligent.

Image credits: jamesjabc13

#6

Was a freshman when Chris Pratt was a senior. We didn’t interact much, but he was in a lot of the assemblies and I did tech theater for a play he was in.

He was a goofball. Lots of charisma, laid back, class clown. Bout what you’d expect seeing him now.

Image credits: swingkatd

American journalist Rober Caro, when covering election cycles, once said “power doesn’t corrupt, it reveals.” If a person has the potential to be evil, conceited, or downright crazy, giving them power is a great way to find out. Most celebrities, outside of the so-called nepo babies, started as regular people. Fame gives one a lot of freedom to just do what they wanted to do in the first place.

#7

I went to college with Lin Manuel Miranda. I was more of an acquaintance, but we share a lot of the same friends. He is one of the funniest, craziest, most genuine people I’ve ever met. He seems like he hasn’t changed much and is still the same awesome person.

Image credits: freshpicked12

#8

My mom went on a few dates with Nicholas Cage! I’m not sure exactly what year it was but my mom was a professional ballet dancer in New York. Nic Cage’s dad owned the ballet company my mom danced for. So apparently Nic Cage saw my mom and thought she was cute so they went on a few dates. I asked my mom what he was like and she thought for a second and then said “weird”.

Image credits: need-chicky-nuggs

#9

I’m cousins with Cardi B and have known her since we were kids. She’s honestly been the same person, kept to herself and is crazy and funny when she’s comfortable. We still see each other at family parties regularly so it’s nice.

Image credits: TheUglyBarnaclee

Now that we’ve had multiple generations of celebrities, people are catching on to the pitfalls of fame. Some celebrities take conscious steps to stay grounded since stars often totally lose their connection with the average person. Some are very careful with money like actresses Kristen Bell and Halle Berry. Others take the advantages given to them by fame and turn it into a springboard for philanthropy, like Angelina Jolie who works with the UN Refugee Agency.

#10

Not me, a classmate’s son my age went to school with Tom Holland. Apparently he’s super sweet and goofy, little scatterbrained and forgetful.

Image credits: Iximaz

#11

My grandmother had a milkshake with Elvis Presley. She loved him and the day he died she kicked my father out of the house because he was being a brat. Around Christmas time she would always get so sad when “Blue Christmas” played on the radio.

Image credits: fish_the_fred

#12

My old neighbor grew up with John Mayer and was really close with him. While I never got to meet him, my roommate did on a few occasions. Apparently Mayer was fairly laid back and just wanted to hang out.

The thing that really sticks with me is when my neighbor’s wife took her own life Mayer let my neighbor move into his house for several months. It was sad, but said neighbor couldn’t stand being in his own home anymore knowing his wife lived her last moments there. From what I understand she intentionally OD’d on medication while he was home and came to him saying “I don’t feel well” and then collapsed.

Image credits: ScottishGigolo

It’s particularly impressive when a celebrity who could theoretically retire at thirty instead chooses to regularly help people. Elton John, for example, started and still maintains an AIDS foundation and hosts an annual ball where he auctions off his own instruments to raise money for research and medication.

#13

Post Malone and I graduated from high school together! I even have a picture from when our art class recreated the Last Supper with McDonald’s for someone’s art project. He posed as Jesus and I was basically Judas. We weren’t friends, but he was always friendly when we did speak. He had a very chill demeanor and always cracked jokes in our history class. I liked the dude!

Image credits: Ryankw777

#14

Obligatory not me, but my mom went to high school with Dave Grohl, knew him pretty casually. Said he was a total stoner, VP of the class, and would play music over the loudspeakers on occasion and was really good. Super nice, super laid back guy, really humble about how talented he was/is.

#15

I went to school with Terry Crews for a couple years. Nice kid and a great artist. He and one other kid used to have drawing competitions before class started. Somebody would yell out a comic book character and he and the other kid (also a great artist) would both draw. I can’t remember who was better because it was a lifetime ago.

He punched me in the chest once at an assembly and totally winded me. I was being a d**k, so I had it coming.

#16

My best friend’s mom went to college with Wes Anderson and yes, he was a total hipster, but he’s this super humble dude. They run into each other in Dallas every once in a while and he says hi and buys her coffee as if he’s not this huge director. Same for Owen Wilson.

Image credits: SunnyCarol

#17

I went to middle school with Drake. He was a year older with my older bro and He cried one time in the boys gym change room bc another boy had some designer sweater or something and he didn’t lol…..I don’t remember him being awful or anything just a little whiney…….I actually got invited to his house last summer and met him and told him we went to middle school together etc. and he was really nice.

mrdannyg21 added:

He went to my high school, though in different grades so I didn’t know him. He was already famous from Degrassi High, and he was hilariously pompous. This school had quite a few rich families, and the rich kids loved him of course.

I mean, he was a very rich kid named Aubrey, living in a rich white/Jewish area. His ‘started from the bottom’ stuff in songs and ‘street’ accent is hilariously fake.

Image credits: arcanceel

#18

My mom went to school with Marilyn Manson. Apparently, in middle school, he went around with a lunchbox of doll heads and his dad affectionately referred to him as Lucifer and the Antichrist.

Image credits: WestTadpole

#19

I went to high school with Nancy Cartwright (Bart Simpson). We hung out as we were both in the marching band. She was nice and had an outlandish personality way back then (late 70’s) but wasn’t snobby or anything like that.

Image credits: level 1 hellothere56734182

#20

Not me, but a good friend of mine was classmates with Anna Kendrick. They weren’t close friends but they hung out a few times and had a bunch of classes together. Apparently she was super shy, not the type of person to demand attention or anything. She’s kind of amazed that Anna went on to be a celebrity just because she seemed too timid to want to do that. She said she was always really nice though, the type of person who got along with everyone.

#21

My mother grew up with Courtney Cox. She was a massive b**ch. The stories are horrible. She’s from Mountain Brook, Alabama.. an incredibly wealthy suburb of Birmingham. (Same town as Natalee Holloway that disappeared in Aruba.)

Image credits: razorbladedesserts

#22

My mam was in the same high school as Gerard Butler. I believe there is 3 years between them, but they also lived on the same street briefly. They both attended the University of Glasgow too, although my mam moved to London with my auntie to another university where my mam got a degree in law. I don’t know why they moved, especially as the University of Glasgow is a Law School I believe.

She always has said he was lovely, cared for a lot of people and was just nice all the time, she’s always went to the cinema in the opening week to see his films. That being said, she was pretty much devastated when Butler’s house was destroyed in the fires in California a couple years back.

#23

Kelly Clarkson’s family and a section of mine were really close before she got famous. I was originally introduced to her as another of my cousins (i have, and know, over 70 first and second cousins, my family reunions are massive). She was pretty cool when we were kids. Shes a couple years older than me but was always really nice, down to earth, and big on church group stuff. My family has old videos of me and her singing together and of her singing for my aunt and uncles wedding, all from before american idol. (No, i couldnt sing worth crap then or now, but her love of music was contagious)

#24

I had a friend who went to church with Ken Jeong. Apparently he comes back to his hometown regularly to see his parents and such. Was told he was a real nice guy and the only thing that changed after the fame was people haranguing him.

#25

You know how they say bullies will end up working in McDonalds and you’ll end up doing bigger and better things? Mine’s a professional NASCAR driver (Noah Gragson) and I just have depression. So that’s sick.

#26

Went to HS with Kesha. She was in marching band, and was mostly quiet.

#27

Went to school with Khalid, he was one of those kids that always pretended to be stoned but never smoked, he acted very flamboyant and used that to always be around girls, never made a move on them though, strange fellow.

Image credits: dinggerdawg

#28

Went to Jr High and High School with Taylor Lautner. Played football together my Freshmen year.

Dude was really nice, and a bit awkward. This was before the whole twilight thing, and he was most famous for Sharkboy and Lavagirl. He seemed pretty much what you expect a theater kid to be like. But really nice dude over all, pretty quiet, played pokemon leaf green together a few times.

#29

My brother went to high school with Taylor Swift. She was actually super mean to people and got booed off the stage at her junior year talent show.

Image credits: cwistopherr69

#30

Several. I worked on Robot Chicken with Ben Schwartz before he became known to the world as Jean Ralphio. We still run into each other every now and then randomly. He was funny and cool then. He’s funny and cool now.

Image credits: ConvenienceStoreDiet

Source: boredpanda.com