Sometimes, you can tell from a young age that someone is going to grow up and be seriously hot. Sometime's you're right, sometimes you're wrong, and sometimes puberty is very nice to some people as they grow older.
Here's a look at 12 young actors who grew up into some seriously attractive men.
No one was prepared for the transformation of Matthew Lewis, who began as a chunky kid in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and appeared in The Deathly Hallows Part 2 as an underwear model. All right, the underwear model days came after Harry Potter, but still… None of us were prepared for the serious level of hotness he suddenly brought to the table.
Alfred "Alfie" Enoch is another Harry Potter actor who is just insanely hot. He’s one of the few on the list who was also a cute child, but his time on How to Get Away With Murder was just downright sexy. It seemed like they took off his shirt every chance they got, which we were never mad about. His portrayal of Raych Seldon in the Apple TV+ series Foundation is also super sexy, and it’s a role that’s allowed him to consider cultural dynamics.
Zac Efron was cute in High School Musical, but his transformation into the ultimate zaddy has been fun to watch since the start. When you’re in the public eye as he is, however, people are bound to notice changes in your physical features, and after rumors swirled in 2021 that the actor had undergone plastic surgery, Efron addressed the speculation in Men’s Healththat a face injury caused the muscles in his jaw and face to fall out of line, something he works with a physical therapist to mediate.
From the cute kids running around hotels and cruise ships on Disney to dapper actors now in their 30s (God that makes me feel old), Cole Sprouse and his twin Dylan are like a fine wine that just gets better with age. Cole also took on the role as Ben on Friends prior to appearing on screen with his twin, and even said he thought the character was killed off in a GQ interview.
Will Poulter played the annoying Eustace Scrubb in Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, but as he gets older, his characters (and his sexiness) just keep getting better. He’s made appearances in shows like Black Mirror and Dopesick, and even had a role in Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3. When people commented on his body transformation in the latter, he addressed the comments with British GQ, saying he had already started working out as a means of dealing with mental health.
Jerry O’Connell has been in the industry for a hot minute now, first entering the fray as Vern Vessel in the 1986 film Stand by Me. He was a chunky kid at the time and has said he was referred to as such for a while, but ultimately grew into his skin and reminds one of Hollywood’s hottest actors. Not that chunky guys aren't hot, too! Because they are!
I’ve personally had a crush on Joseph Gordon-Levitt since 10 Things I Hate About You, but he’s been gracing our screens since the late 1980s with his charm. He took off some time off from acting to be more present with his family in 2018, but made a comeback in Disney’s 2022 Pinocchio remake. He’s an actor that doesn’t seem to age and I, for one, cannot wait until he’s a proper silver fox.
All of the Jonas Brothers have been pretty attractive, but the youngest of the trio, Nick continues to trailblaze the spotlight. It was his time on Broadway as a child that initially led the brothers to their stardom, and they recently did a Broadway residency at the Marquis Theater to celebrate the nostalgia. We'll also always have Camp Rock to visit whenever we want to take a trip down memory lane.
Neil Patrick Harris stole all of our hearts during his four-season run as child doctor Doogie Howser and continues to both entertain us and make us salivate. His relationship with husband David Burtka is serious couple goals, and his family is so cute it should literally be illegal. He also strives to redefine the word “normal” and thinks “one of the most exciting parts about queer culture is being able to live your most fabulous life,” something he is most definitely doing.
Most people remember Jonathan Lipnicki as a child star in movies like Jerry Maguire, The Little Vampire, and Stewart Little. As he grew up, he also became some serious eye candy, and although he’s laying low from the limelight these days, he’s still acting in independent films and has said, “I want to make movies and be happy with my life, so why would I screw that up?”
Josh Peck was an early 2000’s Nickelodeon heartthrob appearing on shows like The Amanda Show and starring in Drake & Josh. Although Josh was chunkier in his youth, as he aged, he started cutting out sugars and carbs and worked to find a middle-ground approach for food, dieting and exercise. He’s still acting, with his most recent appearance in the summer smash hit Oppenheimer.
Ryan Gosling was in one of the most iconic Mickey Mouse Club casts during its revival in 1989. He starred in the first two seasons alongside other notable names like Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Justin Timberlake. His most recent role is none other than Ken in Barbie, and appearing in the song “I’m Just Ken” on the soundtrack made him the 15thMickey Mouse Club cast member to score a Billboard Hot 100 hit.
