Mayim Bialik rose to fame as Blossom Russo in the 1990s television series Blossom.
Mayim Bialik in the role of Blossom Russo.
Harry Langdon/Hulton Archive Images Provided by Getty Images
Bialik quit acting to pursue a degree in neuroscience before returning to Hollywood to portray Amy Farrah Fowler on “The Big Bang Theory.”
Mayim Bialik on “Jeopardy!”
ABC
Bialik’s return to acting was driven by more than a simple desire to return to the spotlight. She required health insurance as well.
In a 2017 interview with ABC News, Bialik said, “I was running out of health insurance and figured if I could get a couple of acting jobs here and there, and if it was enough to get Screen Actors Guild-AFTRA health insurance, we would at least have insurance.” “My former husband was still pursuing a master’s degree. I taught neuroscience for around five years. And I did not anticipate being a full-time actor. But The Big Bang Theory brought me back to life.”
The series finale of “The Big Bang Theory” aired on May 16, 2019. Currently, she co-hosts “Jeopardy!” alongside Ken Jennings and stars in “Call Me Kat.”
In 1999, Cole (left) and Dylan Sprouse.
The Sprouse twins portrayed Zack and Cody Martin, occupants of the Tipton Hotel, on the Disney Channel sitcom from 2005 to 2008, and its spin-off, “The Suite Life on Deck,” from 2008 to 2011.
After attending New York University, the 29-year-old Sprouse twins have returned to performing in television and cinema.
2019 Dylan Sprouse (left) and Cole Sprouse
Cole accredits his collegiate experience for grounding him.
“Taking time off for college was extremely crucial, and it’s something I’d suggest to every young actor,” he told Variety in 2019. “It helped me to reclaim some privacy, which is quite important. Anonymity is one of those things that enables you to enter a human space with an open heart, move with greater autonomy, and learn about individuals and their experiences without having these preconceived assumptions of yourself carried by others.”
Cole appears in the 2019 film “Five Feet Apart,” and he has been recurring as Jughead Jones on The CW’s blockbuster drama “Riverdale” since 2017. In 2020, he also starred in the horror podcast “Borrasca.”
Dylan returned to the cinema in 2017’s independent film “Dismissed,” and in his most prominent part since his absence, Trevor, he starred in 2016’s “After We Collided.” He has also appeared in two music videos: “Consequences” by Camila Cabello and “Think About You” by Ygo. But he has also expanded into other industries: in 2018, he opened the All-Wise Meadery in Brooklyn, New York, with two business partners, and in 2020, he began publishing a comic book.
Macaulay Culkin is most recognized for his role as the mischievous main character in the “Home Alone” films.
In “Home Alone,” Macaulay Culkin plays the role of Kevin.
Fox 20th Century
The 1990s “Home Alone” films have become holiday staples.
In 1994, he stopped acting to attend high school, but he has since returned to the cinema with appearances in “American Horror Story” and “The Righteous Gems.”
Macaulay Culkin in 2018.
During a 2018 interview on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” Culkin admitted, “I was exhausted by it.”
“I made approximately 14 films in approximately six years. I was frequently away from home. I was absent from class. I needed something else. Taking eight years off was the smartest thing I could have possibly done.”
Anna Chlumsky rose to fame when she played alongside Macaulay Culkin in the 1991 picture “My Girl.”
Anna Chlumsky.
Fryderyk Gabowicz/image partnership via Getty Images
In 1994, Chlumsky starred in the film’s sequel, “My Girl 2.”
Chlumsky got prominent roles in successful television series such as “Veep” and “Inventing Anna” after obtaining a college degree and working in publishing.
Anna Chlumsky in 2019.
HBO’s Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic
Chlumsky obtained a degree in international studies from the University of Chicago and worked as a fact checker for Zagat and an editorial assistant for Harper Collins. Nearly a decade after leaving the profession, Chlumsky felt compelled to return.
In February, she told People magazine, “I saw a lot of Broadway, and that motivated me again.” “It was enticing to apply my creativity to something and construct a story, but based on my own decisions.”
As a juvenile actor in “The Goonies” and “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” Ke Huy Quan grew to stardom.
Ke Huy Quan is featured in “The Goonies.”
Warner Bros. Films
The film “Indiana Jones” was his first on-screen appearance. In the 1990s, he portrayed Jasper Kwong in “Head of the Class.”
This year’s film “Everything Everywhere All at Once” marked Quan’s victorious return to acting after a twenty-year absence.
Ke Huy Quan in 2017.
Photograph by Joshua Blanchard/Getty Images
Quan told People magazine that he decided to leave performing in the early 2000s because Asian-American actors had little possibilities.
“It was difficult,” he stated. Rarely did the phone ring as I waited for it to do so.
Quan studied film at USC and became an assistant director and stunt coordinator before moving behind the camera. After viewing “Crazy Rich Asians” in 2018, he was inspired to try acting again and obtained a leading role in “Everything Everywhere All the Time.”
“I was content working behind the camera, but I suffered from severe FOMO,” he told the publication. I desired to be beside my fellow Asian actors!
Ben Savage got his big break in the 1990s as Cory Matthews on “Boy Meets World.”
Ben Savage during the first season of “Boy Meets World.”
ABC
Before “Boy Meets World,” he appeared in several other television shows, including “Dear John” and “A Family for Joe.”
Savage returned his renowned role in the spin-off “Girl Meets World” after focusing on his education for some time.
Ben Savage in 2016.
Emma McIntyre/Getty Photographs
After the end of “Boy Meets World,” Savage studied political science at Stanford.
In 2014, he told Rolling Stone, “I was 19 years old and had been on the show for seven years.” “I was quite committed to attending college. I was accepted to Stanford two years earlier, but I had to defer my enrollment. When the show finished, I was fixated on attending college and being a normal teenager for a long.”
Since the end of “Girl Meets World” in 2017, he has also appeared in films like “Love, Lights, Hanukkah!” and “Girl in the Shed: The Kidnapping of Abby Hernandez.”
In the 1980s, Jason Bateman began his career on sitcoms such as “Little House on the Prairie,” “Silver Spoons,” and “It’s Your Move.”
In “Silver Spoons,” Jason Bateman portrayed Derek Taylor.
NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal Images Provided by Getty Images through Getty Images
Bateman’s first television job was as James Cooper Ingalls in “Little House on the Prairie” when he was 12 years old.
In the 1990s, Bateman almost gave up acting for good, but a succession of popular films such as ” Arrested Development ” and ” Juno ” revived his career.
Jason Bateman.
Getty Pictures
Bateman told The Guardian in January that he didn’t perform much in the ’90s because he wanted to “get the wiggles out” and make up for experiences he missed out on as a child actor.
“Having thought, ‘This is really fun,’ and staying at the party a little bit too long, I’d lost my place in line in the business,” he said.
At the end of the 1990s, attempts were made to regain that position, but there were not many positive reactions.
Bateman finally achieved success with “Arrested Development” in 2003, starring in the series until its conclusion in 2019. In “Ozark,” he now portrays Martin “Marty” Byrde.
From 1987 until 1995, Andrea Barber portrayed Kimmy Gibbler on “Full House.”
Andrea Barber on “Full House” on ABC.
ABC
Prior to “Full House,” she appeared in small roles on television programs like “Days of Our Lives,” “Our House,” and “Growing Pains.”
She did not act again until 2016, when she returned her “Full House” role in the “Fuller House” reboot.
Andrea Barber.
Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
After “Full House,” Barber received a master’s degree in women’s studies from University of York and studied English at Whittier College in her hometown. She completed an internship at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, and then worked in international education until the entertainment industry called her back.
“I never imagined returning to acting,” she told People magazine in 2017. “Possibly for a split second, I pondered, “Do I really want to do this?” Then I considered the audition procedure. As a child performer, the auditions were always the most difficult aspect. So I concluded, “I’ve discovered new passions in college.””
When “Full House” creator Jeff Franklin asked Barber whether she wanted to repeat her iconic role in “Fuller House,” she said, “It’s a no-brainer.”