Former Child Star Explains How Early Fame ‘Stunted’ Her
By Movieguide® Contributor
Looking back on her early life in the spotlight, Selena Gomez shared how entering the entertainment industry so young impacted her personal development.
“I have no regrets and I have a fantastic family and there were rules laid down by my parents and I’m appreciative of that. However, I don’t think I would’ve done it very young if I was thinking of myself now,” Gomez told ELLE.
“There were a lot of things that I felt stunted by. Then adding a lot of pressure from a lot of people didn’t help me develop a sense of self in my twenties. It was a very difficult time,” she added. “I live with it every day. I try my hardest to stay positive about everything and focus on things like this [movie] that really make me happy. But I would just say maybe wait and have a little bit of a life.”
Her career kicked off with BARNEY at the age of 10. At 15, she starred in Disney’s WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE followed by ANOTHER CINDERELLA STORY, RAMONA AND BEEZUS and MONTE CARLO.
“In 2021, the pop star reflected on how she ‘signed my life away to Disney at a very young age,’ admitting that she was ‘just running around on set’ without fully understanding the industry,” Blast reported.
In July 2022, while celebrating her thirtieth birthday, the actress reflected on the ways that all of her life events have impacted her.
“My twenties were a journey through good, hard and beautiful moments that I will never forget,” she wrote on Instagram. “Each of them has shaped me into the person that I am today. I am someone who is still learning, but is more certain about what matters and what she wants. Someone who is grateful for every single gift and every single lesson along the way.”
“I am walking forward encouraged by so many strong, empowering people around me… I want to try my best to take the beautiful and the painful one day at a time and let it all make me into the very best me that I can be for myself/others/you,” Gomez continued.
“After a few days of celebrating, my heart feels full, grateful and I can say that I’m starting to really like 30,” she added. Thank you SO much for being a part of my life, here’s to another decade! Love you all inside and out so much it hurts!”
Other former child actors have similar feelings about entering the industry so young. Though they are often thankful for the opportunities their work has given them, they don’t know if they would choose the same path for their kids given the choice.
READ MORE: FORMER CHILD STAR GRATEFUL MOM PROTECTED HER ON SET
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