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Lauren Clark

32 pictures of celebrities as teenagers you need to see, from Reese Witherspoon to Kate Moss

Pictures of celebrities as teenagers.

While they may often seem like they're from another planet, the best pictures of celebrities as teenagers are proof that they are actually just like the rest of us. Indeed, while they may have natural good looks and plenty of talent, the rich and famous also once had to endure the awkwardness of youth.

On our trip down memory lane, you'll see the fresh-faced stars you know so well before they stepped into the spotlight or just as they were finding career success. From a 15-year-old Kim Kardashian looking uncomfortable at a showbiz party to Gwyneth Paltrow on the red carpet as her then-better-known mother's plus one, you'll be amazed at the transformation.

What's more, there are some stars - from Pamela Anderson and Bella Hadid to Demi Moore and Naomi Campbell - who you will hardly even recognise. We're particularly loving the throwback fashion...

The best pictures of celebrities as teenagers

1. Kate Moss

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Kate Moss was scouted at JFK International Airport at the age of just 14 and started modelling professionally two years later aged 16 - when her star quickly soared. She appeared at the Beverly Hills outpost of Calvin Klein - a brand she famously appeared in campaigns for - at the age of 19 in 1995. 

2. Gwyneth Paltrow

(Image credit: Getty Images)

As the daughter of actors Bruce Paltrow and Blythe Danner, it was in some ways obvious that Gwyneth Paltrow would become a Hollywood star in her own right. The actress was pictured at a Los Angeles premiere - for her mother's film The Prince Of Tides - aged 19 in 1991.

3. Olivia Wilde

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Olivia Wilde made her TV debut as a teenager in 2003 in the series Skin - and the following years went on to appear in the show The O.C. and film The Girl Next Door. The actress was pictured, aged 19, attending a theatre event in Los Angeles.

4. Taylor Swift

(Image credit: Getty Images)

From the age of 12 years old, Taylor Swift was writing her own songs and learning to play the guitar. The singer was 15 when signed her first record deal and attended the Country Music Awards in Los Angeles aged 17 in 2006.

5. Zendaya

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Zendaya found fame as a Disney Channel star at the age of just 14 and became the youngest person to compete in Dancing With The Stars aged 16. The actress was pictured, aged 15, at a premiere in Los Angeles in 2011.

6. Kim Kardashian

(Image credit: Getty Images)

With her dad Robert Kardashian's involvement in the OJ Simpson trial and then-step-dad Bruce Jenner a celebrated Olympian, Kim Kardashian was in the spotlight from a young age. She was pictured looking a little uncomfortable at an event in 1995 - aged 15 - but seemed to embrace fame as friend Paris Hilton's assistant a few years later.

7. Jennifer Aniston

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Jennifer Aniston is immediately recognisable in her 1987 yearbook picture from LaGuardia High School of Music and the Arts, taken when she was 18. Her father was an actor, appearing in the soap Days Of Our Lives, and she had started performing on stage while at school.

8. Angelina Jolie

(Image credit: Getty Images)

It was perhaps unsurprising that Angelina Jolie - the daughter of actors Jon Voight and Marcheline Bertrand - would go on to find success in Hollywood. She began acting professionally from the age of 16, and sat for a portrait that same year in 1991.

9. Drew Barrymore

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Drew Barrymore famously came to public attention as a child star in Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T. By the time she had reached her teens, the actress - who posed for a series of portraits in 1992 aged 17 - was a household name.

10. Leonardo DiCaprio

(Image credit: Getty Images)

While his breakout role would be in Baz Luhrmann's film Romeo and Juliet in 1996, Leonardo DiCaprio already had screen credits under his name as a teen. He starred, aged 17, in the 1991 to 1992 season of show Growing Pains.

11. Emma Watson

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Emma Watson was just ten when she began shooting the first Harry Potter franchise, and spent much of her teens on film sets and red carpets. She was just 17 at the Los Angeles premiere of the Order of the Phoenix instalment in 2007.

12. Pamela Anderson

(Image credit: Getty Images)

While Pamela Anderson would become known as a blonde bombshell in Baywatch and on the cover of Playboy, she was a short-haired brunette growing up. The star was pictured looking almost unrecognisable, aged 16, in her 1984 yearbook picture from her high school in Canada.

13. Blake Lively

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Blake Lively was catapulted to fame with the series Gossip Girl, which began in 2007. However, the actress already had several films under her belt by the time she was pictured at Nickelodeon's 18th Annual Kids Choice Awards in 2005 aged 18. 

14. Demi Moore

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Demi Moore was just 19 years old when she first broke into acting. The actress starred in the teen drama Choices and was cast in the soap opera General Hospital in 1981 - the same year she had her portrait taken.

15. Paris Hilton

(Image credit: Getty Images)

While still a teen, Paris Hilton was already making a name for herself as a hotel heiress on the Hollywood party scene. The future reality TV star was pictured, aged 19, at an event in Las Vegas in 1999.

16. Jennifer Lawrence

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Jennifer Lawrence was still looking for her big break when she attended the Movieguide Faith and Values Awards, aged 17, in 2007. The actress would go on to make her film debut in Garden Party just a year later.

17. Britney Spears

(Image credit: Getty Images)

When her debut single 'Baby One More Time' soared to number one in 1999, Britney Spears was just 17 years old. The singer was photographed that same year at the Teen Choice Awards in Los Angeles.

18. Brooke Shields

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Brooke Shields started modelling at 11 months old before gaining widespread attention aged 12 for her leading role in the controversial film Pretty Baby. By her teens, she was a household name - and was pictured aged 18 in 1983.

19. Zac Efron

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The world was properly introduced to Zac Efron as a teenage heartthrob in the High School Musical franchise. The actor, who already had some TV credits under his belt, was pictured - aged 18 - at an event in 2005, a year before the first film came out.

20. Beyoncé

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Beyoncé Knowles famously first began her singing career as a member of the girl group Destiny's Child, and was part of the band from 1990 until 2006. She was seen performing on stage with the group in 1998 at the age of just 17.  

21. Bella Hadid

(Image credit: Getty Images)

We were first introduced to model Bella Hadid when her mum Yolanda Foster starred on the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in 2012. A year later, aged 17, she was pictured attending her step-dad's David Foster Foundation Benefit Concert in Toronto.

22. Scarlet Johansson

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Scarlet Johansson's breakthrough role was in Lost In Translation in 2003. However, before that, the budding actress was pictured - aged 17- at a screening of the film Ghost World in the Czech Republic in 2001.

23. Miley Cyrus

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The world was introduced to Miley Cyrus - the daughter of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus - aged 13 when she was cast in the Disney Channel series Hannah Montana. She was pictured on the red carpet of Hannah Montana: The Movie in London in 2009 at the age of 17.

24. Katy Perry

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Katy Perry released her iconic first single 'I Kissed A Girl' in 2008. However, the then-budding singer was pictured at LA Fashion Week in 2003 when she would have been 19 years old.

25. Naomi Campbell

(Image credit: Getty Images)

It was at the age of just 15 years old that Naomi Campbell was scouted in London. She went on to become one of the most celebrated models of the 1980s and was pictured in a Calvin Klein campaign aged 18 in 1988.

26. Cheryl Cole

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Cheryl Cole was just 19 when she soared to fame on TV talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. The singer won the series as part of the band Girls Aloud, who would go on to experience huge pop success.

27. Priscilla Presley

(Image credit: Getty Images)

At just 16 years old in 1960, Priscilla Presley had already come to widespread attention for her blossoming romance with Elvis Presley - and was pictured while he was away fighting in the army. The couple, who had a ten-year age gap, eventually married in 1967.

28. Reese Witherspoon

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Reese Witherspoon was pictured at an event aged 17 in 1993. The actress made her screen debut as a teen in the 1991 film The Man In The Moon; however, her breakthrough wouldn't come until 1999's Cruel Intentions.

29. Helena Bonham-Carter

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If there is one celebrity who has hardly changed over the decades, it's Helena Bonham-Carter. The actress, who made her acting debut in a TV commercial aged 16, posed for a portrait as a teen in 1986 - the year of her first lead role in the film Lady Jane.

30. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are two of the most famous child stars of all time. By their teens, the actresses were household names, and they were pictured promoting a new pocket planner in 2000 at the age of 15.

31. Elizabeth Taylor

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Elizabeth Taylor found fame as a child star in the films National Velvet and Lassie. The actress was pictured, aged 17, while bathing her dog Amy shortly after starring in the 1949 film Little Women.

32. Selena Gomez

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The world was first introduced to Selena Gomez as a teen star in the Disney Channel sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place. The actress and singer was pictured at a charity event in Los Angeles, aged 17, in 2009.

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