Former child star Jonathan Lipnicki said there was a long period where he just wasn’t a very good actor, which led to a split from Hollywood.
After the 31-year-old actor came into the business as a child star in the 1990s Jonathan Lipnickic has opened up about why he isn’t seen as much in Hollywood movies these days. Lipnicki appeared alongside Tom Cruise and made his feature film debut with a key role in the 1996 sports drama Jerry Maguire. He can also be remembered for his starring roles in The little vampire and the Stuart Little movies.
In a new interview with /Movie, Lipnicki spoke about what he is doing today. He has worked quite steadily both on stage and in various indie productions. Lipnicki said he is naturally fond of acting and pointed out that he is not one of those child stars who were pressured into acting, always pushing for more roles with the full support of his parents.
“It’s interesting because my first movie was actually Jerry McGuire. And when I got on the set and I really had those days… It’s interesting. As you get older, you don’t remember that much. But I do remember I had a feeling of really loving it and not really knowing what that feeling was Just loving every day, feeling fulfilled to do it I went from reading Go, Dog Go! to scripts It was just in me rooted. And it was always my choice. My parents asked me after every project if I wanted to keep doing it. And the answer was always yes.”
Jonathan Lipnicki says his acting skills have declined
If Lipnicki likes acting, what happened to his acting career? One might assume he simply chose to step back from Hollywood to focus on school. As Lipnicki explains, that’s often the story told with former child stars who disappear from the national spotlight as they get older.
“It went from just being something I liked doing, probably thinking about the profession early on and whatnot. Maybe 10? The first few things I did, I really started to become a fan of other people’s work and try I really like to dive in. The biggest transition for me was… I haven’t worked in a long time. And people always put that in like, “Oh, I went to high school,” and stuff. And that’s the story people tell sometimes when they’re not working, or if they’re a child actor or whatever, they’ve taken time off.”
Lipnicki then takes the blame for the drying up of the movie offers, stating that he started losing focus on what makes an actor great growing up.
“I did take time off, in the sense that it wasn’t the only priority I had. But I didn’t work because I just didn’t work. I didn’t get any real roles for a while. And I’m honest about that. And that was because I wasn’t such a good actor at one point. Because the beauty of being young, being a kid, is that there’s an inherent childlike miracle. And that’s why a lot of the kids you see are quite talented. And filters come in and you get nervous, or… The world comes into play. And so for me I went from just doing the natural thing, to trying to be like my favorite actors.”
The actor says that being known as a former child star can be both beneficial and a hindrance when it comes to finding new work, but he is grateful for everything that comes his way. Lipnicki says he always auditions for different projects and isn’t quite sure what’s coming, but concludes by saying so.
“Good stuff is good stuff. I like to explore different things. I like to challenge myself. But in the end, I just love acting, man.”