Platoon (1986)
Oliver Stone collected an impressive stable of talent for his Oscar-winning film Platoon. Charlie Sheen was a star on the rise, but most of his roles had been in supporting roles. Tom Berringer and Willem Dafoe, who play dueling sergeants, were also very early in their careers. Add that young actors like Johnny Depp, Kevin Dillon, Forest Whitaker, and John C. McGinley and it adds up to one amazing cast.
School Ties (1992)
1992’s School Ties is everything this list is about. Not only was it Brendan Fraser‘s first lead role (other than Encino Man), but it had young stars in the making named Chris O’Donnell, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Cole Hauser, and Anthony Rapp.
Boyz n the Hood (1991)
Director John Singleton rocked the world with his debut feature Boyz n the Hood, and the cast he assembled was impressive. Cuba Gooding, Jr., Morris Chestnut, Angela Bassett, Nia Long, and Regina King were all very early in their careers, and Ice Cube proved he could jump from hip hop icon to actor with acclaim.
The Faculty (1998)
The Faculty was Robert Rodriguez‘s follow-up to From Dusk Til Dawn, and while it doesn’t have the same rep that his first few movies have, it’s still an underrated gem of a teen horror movie. It boasts a cast that included a young Jordana Brewster, Clea DuVall, Josh Hartnett, Elijah Wood, and Shawn Hatosy, not to mention Jon Stewart in one of the earliest, and biggest, movie roles of his career.
Empire Records (1995)
Like a lot of coming-of-age teen dramadies, Empire Records has an impressive cast of young actors destined for stardom. Actors like Liv Tyler, Renée Zellweger, Robin Tunney, Rory Cochrane, Ethan Embry, and Debi Mazar.
National Lampoon’s Animal House (1978)
The biggest star in Animal House is, without a doubt, John Belushi. He was already one of the most famous comedic actors in the country due to his success on Saturday Night Live. However, Animal House was his very first starring role, and he was joined by other young actors who were on their way up, like Karen Allen, Stephen Furst, Tim Matheson, Tom Hulce, Bruce McGill, and, of course, Kevin Bacon, in his first-ever movie role.
The Outsiders (1983)
Francis Ford Coppola‘s iconic The Outsiders has to be on this list. The cast, almost all of whom were in one of the earliest roles of their careers, would go on to become some of the biggest stars in Hollywood. Stars like Tom Cruise, Ralph Macchio, Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe, Diane Lane, Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillion, and C. Thomas Howell. Nothing more really needs to be said.
The Goonies (1985)
Any movie with a list of young actors like Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Corey Feldman, Martha Plimpton, and Ke Huy Quan belongs on this list. The Goonies is an iconic Gen X movie, and the cast grew up with the same generation and became icons in and of themselves.
Saving Private Ryan (1998)
The biggest stars in Saving Private Ryan, like Tom Hanks and Tom Sizemore, were already well established in their careers, of course. The supporting cast, however, was filled with young up-and-comers like Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Barry Pepper, Nathan Fillion, Jeremy Davies, Adam Goldberg, and, of course, Matt Damon as the titular Private Ryan.
Diner (1982)
Barry Levinson has become one of the most revered directors in Hollywood, and his first movie included a lot of young actors who were headed for big careers. Ellen Barkin, Mickey Rourke, Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, and Tim Daly all joined Paul Riser, who was making his film debut in Diner.
Dazed And Confused (1993)
Director Richard Linklater’s 1993 classic Dazed and Confused is the prototype for a list like this. The teen comedy set in the ’70s but helped define ’90s cinema includes one of the most stacked casts of young actors ever. There are huge stars like Ben Affleck and Matthew McConaughey (in his first major role), Parker Posey, Yellowstone star Cole Hauser, Anthony Rapp, Adam Goldberg, Milla Jovovich, and even Renée Zellweger as an extra.
Fast Times At Ridgemont High (1982)
There are few teen comedies more beloved than Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Not only is the movie hilarious, but it also features some major stars in the making. Stars like Judge Reinhold, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Phoebe Cates, and Forrest Whittaker. Then there are the stoners in the movie, led by Sean Penn. His buddies in the movie were played by Anthony Edwards and Eric Stoltz. And don’t forget Nicolas Cage (billed as Nicolas Coppola) in his first appearance on the big screen as an extra.
The Big Chill (1983)
There is no more iconic Baby Boomer nostalgia flick than The Big Chill. While most of the actors in the ensemble cast have established careers, none could really be called stars until after the success of the movie. Actors like William Hurt, Meg Tilly, Tom Berenger, Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, Kevin Kline, and maybe the most famous “cast member,” Kevin Costner. Costner played the corpse of their dead friend, and while his face isn’t even seen on screen, he counts, right?
Do The Right Thing (1989)
Spike Lee burst onto the Hollywood scene in the late ’80s, and his 1989 joint Do The Right Thing changed the rules of filmmaking forever. It helps that he assembled a cast that included young actors like Giancarlo Stanton, John Turturro, Samuel L. Jackson, and Rosie Perez.
Basquiat (1996)
Jeffery Wright had his breakout role as the artist Jean-Michel Basquiat in Basquiat. He was joined by a lot of established stars like David Bowie, Dennis Hopper, and Gary Oldman, but there were quite a few young stars on the move, too. Actors like Benicio del Toro, Claire Forlani, Parker Posey, and even Sam Rockwell in a small role as a street hood,
Stand By Me (1986)
Stand By Me doesn’t have a big cast, but almost everyone in the movie became a big star after its release. There’s the older group of guys led by Keifer Sutherland and Casey Siemaszko, but it’s the group of kids that really got famous from the movie. Wil Wheaton, Corey Feldman, Jerry O’Connell, and the late River Phoenix all have breakout roles. Plus, there’s a bonus with John Cusack as Wheaton’s character’s dead brother in flashbacks.
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2010)
The cast of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World is a who’s who of 2010’s stars. Sure, Michael Cera had already begun making a name for himself, but there are a slew of others on the rise. Actresses like Aubry Plaza, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Anna Kendrick, Alison Pill, and Brie Larson make up a bulk of the cast. Kieran Culkin and a pre-Captain America Chris Evans also show up.
Young Guns (1988)
Just like the title says, Young Guns isn’t only about a bunch of young gunfighters in the late 19th Century like Billy The Kid, but the cast was also a bunch of young guns in Hollywood. Emilio Estevez leads a cast that also includes his brother Charlie Sheen alongside Kiefer Sutherland, Lou Diamond Phillips, Dermot Mulroney, and Casey Siemaszko. In the sequel, they were joined by Christian Slater, Balthazar Getty, and Bradley Whitford, among others.
Love Actually (2003)
Guys like Colin Firth and Hugh Grant were already big names when they starred in Love Actually, but much of the rest of the cast were in the very early days of their careers, most notably Chiwetel Ejiofor, Andrew Lincoln, Kiera Knightly, January Jones, Shannon Elizabeth, Denise Richards, and Martin Freeman.
Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
From the minds of The State came the now-iconic teen summer camp romp Wet Hot American Summer. It’s like a little bit of the 1980s in the early 21st Century. It also features a cast who have gone on the big things in Hollywood, including Bradley Cooper in his first role, where he was joined by Amy Poehler, Paul Rudd, and Elizabeth Banks, alongside vets like David Hyde Pierce and Janeane Garofalo.
St. Elmo’s Fire (1985)
This list would be incomplete without mentions the famous 1980s “Brat Pack,” and St. Elmo’s Fire is where almost the whole crew was in the same movie. Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, Demi Moore, Andrew McCarthy, Judd Nelson, and Ally Sheedy lead the cast list. Andie McDowell also appears in one of her earliest roles.
American Pie (1999)
Like so many other teen romps before and after it, American Pie is loaded with future stars. Jason Biggs leads the cast as Jim, and he’s joined by Shannon Elizabeth, Alyson Hannigan, Seann William Scott, Tara Reid, Mena Suvari, and Natasha Lyonne. Not to mention the well-established stars like Eugene Levy and Jennifer Coolidge.
Black Hawk Down (2001)
2001’s Black Hawk Down from director Ridley Scott has a mix of established stars like Ewan McGregor, Jason Isaacs, Tom Sizemore, and Sam Shepard and young soon-to-be stars like Eric Bana, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Orlando Bloom, Tom Hardy, Hugh Dancy, and Ty Burrell.
Catch-22 (1970)
In 1970, the book Catch-22 was adapted on the screen for the first time and had some of the biggest stars of all-time in it, like Orson Welles, but if also had some future stars like Alan Arkin, Charles Grodin, Bob Balaban, and a young Martin Sheen in one of his first major roles.
Private Parts (1997)
In the mid-1990s, Howard Stern was the “King of all Media,” and he proved it with his hit movie Private Parts, based on his first memoir. The movie starred most of the Stern crew from his radio show, but they were augmented by young actors like Paul Giamatti in his breakout role, Mary McCormack, Allison Janey, Edie Falco, and Leslie Bibb.
Superbad (2007)
It’s fair to say that Superbad helped launch a bunch of careers into the stratosphere. Micheal Cera got his breakthrough role, and so did Jonah Hill. They were joined by Seth Rogan, who was already on the rise; Bill Hader, who was in one of his earliest movie roles; and Emma Stone, who was in her very first movie role. It’s a stacked cast, to say the least.
Matthew Modine was the biggest “star” in Stanley Kubrick’s Vietnam War classic Full Metal Jacket, but he was hardly a big star at the time. The rest of the cast includes Vincent D’Onofrio, in his first major role, Adam Baldwin, and R. Lee Ermey, who was originally brought in as a consultant and ended up launching an acting career.
American Graffiti (1973)
George Lucas burst onto the Hollywood scene with his first major production, American Graffiti, in 1973, and he helped bring attention to a lot of future stars in some of their earliest roles, most famous Harrison Ford, of course. Ron Howard was already famous from Andy Griffin, but this movie would help him transition to older roles. The film also helped make stars of Richard Dreyfuss, Mackenzie Phillips, Cindy Williams, and Suzanne Somers.
Midnight Madness (1980)
Midnight Madness is one of the most forgotten Disney movies, but in the early ’80s, it was a staple of cable TV. The cast included, most notably, Michael J. Fox and David Naughton in their first movie roles. It also included up-and-comers like Simpson’s cast member Maggie Roswell and Animal House cast member Stephen Furst. Paul Rubens also has a small role in one of his first movies as well.
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels is still most remembered for being director Guy Ritchie’s first film, and it also includes some young actors who’s careers also blew up after the movie. Most notably, Jason Statham, but also Nick Moran, Jason Flemyng, former soccer player Vinnie Jones, and Steven Mackintosh.
Not Another Teen Movie (2001)
Yet another teen movie – or in this case Not Another Teen Movie – helped launch a bunch of careers like Chris Evans in his first starring role and Josh Radnor in his first role ever. Jaime Pressly, Mia Kirshner, Chyler Leigh, Lacey Chabert, and Eric Christian Olsen join them.
Can’t Hardly Wait (1998)
1998’s Can’t Hardly Wait falls in that sweet spot where it’s beloved by young Gen Xers and elder Millennials. It’s easy to see why, with a cast that includes up-and-coming stars like Jennifer Love Hewitt, Ethan Embry, Seth Green, Jason Segel, Clea Duvall, Seann Patrick Thomason, Donald Faison, and Selma Blair, among others.
