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VOICE OVER: Samantha Clinch WRITTEN BY: Jesse Singer
They were in every 2000s teen movie, then these actors disappeared. Our countdown includes Lindsay Lohan, Josh Hartnett, Frankie Muniz, and more!

#10: Tom Welling

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Back in the 2000s Welling starred in both “Cheaper by the Dozen” movies and if you didn’t know him from those, then you probably knew him as Superman. Tom played Clark Kent on “Smallville” for the show’s entire 10 season run. However, when his superhero run came to an end, so too did his time in the spotlight. Since the show ended in 2011 he has continued to work, and he did have a recurring role on the third season of “Lucifer.” That said, fans might be most excited to know that they are working on a potential “Smallville” sequel animated series. #9: Shannon Elizabeth

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Top 10 Teen Idols of the 2000s

In a movie where a guy has, er, an intimate moment with a hot apple pie, it would take something amazing to be more memorable. Well, that amazing something was Shannon Elizabeth and the webcam scene in the first “American Pie” movie. Yes, that was 1999, but it launched her into teen movie stardom for the beginning of the 21st century, from the “American Pie” sequels to “Scary Movie” and “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.” Elizabeth is still acting but has lived in Cape Town, South Africa since 2016 and also runs a non-profit animal rescue organization called Animal Avengers.

#8: Erik Von Detten

In the 90s Von Detten was a child star. He was only 10 years old when he was cast on “Days of Our Lives” and he was 13 when he voiced Sid Philips in “Toy Story.” He continued to do voice work through the late ‘90s and 2000s as well as transitioning to teen movie roles. These include the small screen DCOM classic, “Brink,” and the feature film “The Princess Diaries.” In 2010 he again voiced Sid in a “Toy Story 3” cameo, marking the last Hollywood role on his resume for a long while. As of the end of the 2010s he was a sales manager at a commodities brokerage firm, but he did recently work on a new show called, “The Tonopah Five,” which is currently in post-production.

#7: Frankie Muniz

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In the early 2000s, Muniz's role as the titular Malcolm in FOX’s “Malcolm in the Middle” launched him to stardom and made him “one of Hollywood's most bankable teens.” The decade kept Muniz very busy with roles in numerous films, including the two “Cody Banks” movies, “Big Fat Liar,” and “Extreme Movie.” Outside of acting Frankie raced cars and spent a couple years as a drummer in a band. He also bought a specialty shop in Scottsdale, Arizona called “Outrageous Olive Oils & Vinegars” which he ran with his wife for a few years before the pandemic. And we can’t forget that in 2017 he finished third on season 25 of “Dancing With The Stars.”

#6: Seann William Scott

The actor who brought Stifler to life was paid only $8000 for his role in the first “American Pie” film, but the role launched him to stardom. For the rest of the 2000s it seemed like he was in every teen movie, from multiple “American Pie” sequels to “Final Destination,” “Dude, Where’s My Car?” and “Road Trip.” While we didn’t see as much of Seann in the 2010s, he starred in the two “Goon” movies, the horror-thriller “Bloodline,” and we have heard him quite a bit as the voice of “Crash” the possum in a few of the “Ice Age” movies. In addition, he had a regular role on the “Lethal Weapon” reboot TV series before its cancellation in 2019.

#5: Josh Hartnett

With his roles in “Pearl Harbor” and “Black Hawk Down” Hartnett made a name for himself in big budget war movies in the 2000s. In 2002 he was one of People Magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People.” His good-looks certainly didn’t hurt when it came to the teen comedies and romcoms as fans of “Blow Dry” and “40 Days and 40 Nights” will attest. He was even offered the role of Batman in the Christopher Nolan film, but he turned it down - a move he regrets. For the last decade Hartnett has continued to do good work, starring in “Penny Dreadful” among other things, but he’s had a much lower profile in Hollywood.

#4: Rachael Leigh Cook

She became a teen movie trope in the 90s when she took off her glasses and let down her hair in “She’s All That” and she carried that teen movie momentum into the next decade. In the 2000s we saw Cook in “Blonde Ambition,” “Nancy Drew” and the underappreciated “Josie and the Pussycats.” As she’s gotten older, she’s left the teen movies behind her, and in the last few years has starred in a number of Hallmark channel made-for-TV romantic movies. But in August of 2021 you’ll be able to see her in the Netflix film, “He’s All That” - a genderswap remake of her classic 90s flick. She plays the mother of the popular girl challenged with turning the unpopular boy into a prom king.

#3: Lindsay Lohan

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The Troubled Life of Lindsay Lohan

Lohan was a child star who saw much of her success happen before she was even 20 years old. Born in 1986, Lindsay was signed to the Ford Modeling Agency at 3-years-old, starred in “The Parent Trap” at 12, and was 18 when she reached the height of her stardom with “Mean Girls” in 2004. The first half of the 2000s also saw her in “Freaky Friday,” “Herbie Fully Loaded” and “Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen.” She even released gold and platinum albums and hosted SNL four times. However, the constant tabloid scrutiny, her stints in rehab and multiple arrests all led to her lack of work in the 2010s. In 2019 she was a panelist on the Australian version of “The Masked Singer.”

#2: Andrew Keegan

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Keegan began his teen screen journey in the 90s on TV shows like “Party of Five” and in the teen movie reimagining of Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew,” “10 Things I Hate About You.” In the 2000s it continued with two more teen-takes on the Bard’s work, “A Midsummer Night's Rave,” and “O.” He has continued to work in the 2010s, but none of the films made much of an impact on people. What probably impacted people the most was Full Circle, a community spiritual center Andrew founded in 2014. Some saw it as a “new religion” while others called it a “cult.” Whatever it was, it shut down in 2017.

#1: Amanda Bynes

Amanda became a child star in the late 90s on Nickelodeon and used that stardom to launch a very successful movie career that lasted throughout the next decade starting with 2002’s “Big Fat Liar” and ending with “Easy A.” In between she also took top-billing in the teen movie hits like, “She’s the Man,” and “What a Girl Wants.” However, if you were wondering what movies or TV shows she’s been in since 2010, the simple answer is, none! Legal troubles and substance abuse led the 2000s teen star to take a hiatus from the business in 2010 and although she has stated her interest in returning to TV, she has yet to do so.

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