19 Celebs That Starred In Commercials In The Early Days Of Their Careers

Drew Barrymore started appearing in commercials when she was just a baby!

Sophia

• Published in Film & TV
• July 23, 2022

Achieving success in life does not really have a shortcut (unless you're born in a life where everything is handed on a silver platter and your well-being is already taken care of for the next 50 years), and we all have come from somewhere. When you are already successful, it's always great to look back on what you were initially doing when you were just starting out, and see how far you have already got yourself throughout the years.

Celebrities are no exception to this (unless, again, they're born into the spotlight and their parents are already ultra-famous celebrities). They had to go on auditions after auditions just to get their first acting credit that isn't "Girl #2" and after years of hard work, some of them did have their well-deserved breakthrough and are now living the Hollywood life they dreamed of.

Most celebs just started out small, starring as extras, being involved in a music video, and then moving their way up into getting featured as minor characters in a film or in this case, acting in commercials. Even if it may seem like their fame skyrocketed in just a couple of months, they had to go a long way before achieving this much success today.

Here are 19 celebs who are living proofs that starting small is just the beginning of a successful career:

1. Zendaya starred in an iCarly toys commercial under her modeling jobs with Macy's and Old Navy. This was way before she got her own show on Disney.

Watch the video here:

She then landed a role in Disney Channel's Shake It Up, playing Rocky Blue from 2010 to 2013. She's now also known for her role as Rue in Euphoria and as Tom Holland's MJ in Spider-Man.

2. Drew Barrymore was in a dog-food commercial at just the age of 11 months. She was set to become a Hollywood star the moment she came out of the womb!

Watch the video here:

She then landed her role of Gertie in E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, which cemented her reputation as one of the most famous child stars back then.

3. Mila Kunis landed her first gig in 1993 and got featured in Barbie and Lisa Frank commercials.

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After that, Kunis had a few minor roles in TV shows and movies. In 1998, she landed her role as Jackie Burkhart in That '70s Show.

Fun fact, the character required the actor to be 18 years old, but Kunis was just 14 at that time. When the producers found out her actual age, they still kept her because she was the perfect fit for the role.

4. Before Paul Rudd became ultra-famous, he appeared in a 1991 commercial for the Super Nintendo.

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Rudd then appeared on Sisters. In 1995, he landed his first role in a film as Josh in Clueless.

5. Steve Carell worked as a mail carrier for USPS before making it big. In 1989, he starred in a Brown's Chicken commercial.

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Not long after that, he landed his role as Gary on the comedy sketch, The Ambiguously Gay Duo, on The Dana Carvey Show/Saturday Night Live in 1996-2011. He is know famously known as Michael Scott on The Office (2005-2011).

6. Ben Affleck starred in a Burger King commercial in 1989 before he had his big break.

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His first lead role was in Dazed and Confused (1993). He further cemented his rep as an actor in Good Will Hunting (1997), Armageddon (1998), Daredevil (2003), and many more.

7. Leonardo DiCaprio is one of the most famous Hollywood actors, but way back in the late 1980s, the early days of his career were spent starring in commercials such as Bubble Yum bubble gum.

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After starring in commercials, DiCaprio started landing huge gigs, including Romeo in Romeo + Juliet (1996) and Jack Dawson in Titanic (1997).

8. After modeling for companies like Abercrombie & Fitch, Channing Tatum started his career in TV by doing Pepsi and Mountain Dew commercials in 2002. He used to model for Abercrombie & Fitch, and other companies.

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Tatum's role in Step Up (2006) cemented his status as a reputable actor in the industry.

9. Ryan Reynolds appeared in Pop Pops commercials in the early '90s before he making it big.

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Later on, Reynolds would land roles in Two Guys, Girl, and a Pizza Place (1998), The Proposal (2009), and Deadpool (2016), among many others.

10. Matt LeBlanc first appeared on TV in a Heinz ketchup commercial.

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Not long after, LeBlanc became known as the wholesome hunk Joey Tribbiani in Friends. He was in the show for the whole ten seasons, plus the spin-offs made for his character.

11. Amanda Bynes started her Hollywood journey by being in Buncha Crunch commercials back in 1993.

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In 1996, she rose to fame when she starred in Nickelodeon's All That (1996-2000). She landed even more major roles in various movies, including Big Fat Liar (2002), The Amanda Show (1999-2002), What I Like About You (2002), and of course, She's The Man (2006).

12.Sarah Michelle Gellar also started out her acting career doing commercials.

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As she grew up, Gellar started to get huge roles, such as Kendall Hart in All My Children (1993), Daphne Blake in Scooby-Doo (2002), and of course, Buffy Summers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003).

13. Before Tobey Maguire became one of the most loved actors in Hollywood as he is today, he first worked in various commercials, such as this one for the Atari Lynx in 1990.

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He then landed roles in Pleasantville (1998) and Wonder Boys (2000). In 2002, Maguire became the ever-iconic Spider-Man/Peter Parker.

14. Anne Hathaway first starred in a Better Homes and Gardens commercial when she was just 14.

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Four years later, Hathaway landed the role of Mia Thermopolis in Disney's The Princess Diaries. It marked her remarkable journey to becoming one of the most famous actresses worldwide today.

15. Madison Pettis first did TV commercials for products like FurReal Friends, aside from modeling, when she was just starting out in Hollywood.

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She then landed her first big role on the Disney film, The Game Plan, in 2006.

16. Kirsten Dunst starred in TV commercials, including Baby Uh Oh dolls, before having her big break.

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She has definitely come a long way, especially when she' starred in huge blockbusters like Jumanji (1995), Bring It On (2000), and Spider-Man (2002).

17. Kat Graham also appeared in TV commercials, such as Barbie and Pop-Tarts. At 17 years old, she was in Fanta's promotional campaign, playing a member of the "Fantanas."

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She then appeared in Lizzie McGuire (2001–04), The Parent Trap (1998), and Hannah Montana (2006–11). In 2009, she became known for her role as Bonnie Bennett in The Vampire Diaries.

18. Keanu Reeves starred in Coca-Cola commercials in 1983 when he was just starting out.

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He started to become famously known for his role as Neo for The Matrix series in 1999.

19. Brad Pitt started out by doing Pringles commercials in 1988.

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In 1991, he started getting recognized for his talent when he had a role in Thelma & Louise (1991). He then starred in many commercially successful movies such as Ocean's Eleven (2001), Troy (2004), Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), and a lot more.

It's definitely great and crazy to see the old selves of these huge Hollywood stars just doing all these little projects back then, knowing how far they have come from when they were just initially starting out. The fame and success they have now are definitely well-deserved!

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Sophia