From Lindsay Lohan and Hilary Duff to Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez, Disney has been a training ground for many of today’s stars.
But some who were thrust into the limelight while working for the mouse decided to live more low-key lives when their respective shows and film franchises came to an end.
From careers in law and nursing to working with wildlife, let’s take a look at the Disney stars who turned their backs on fame.
© Getty ImagesAdam Lamberg
One of the most famous Disney sidekicks of the 2000s, Lizzie McGuire fans will remember Adam Lamberg, 41, as Lizzie’s best friend Gordo.
He starred in both seasons of the beloved series and also joined his co-star Hilary in The Lizzie McGuire Movie in 2003.
Since then, Adam has largely retreated from the spotlight, with his last screen credit being the 2008 film Beautiful Loser.
According to his LinkedIn profile, the former actor went on to study geography at UC Berkeley and later became the Development Associate for New York's Irish Art Centre. He is now a freelance special events consultant.
© InstagramKay Panabaker
One of the most dramatic career changes belongs to Kay Panabaker, who appeared in several Disney Channel productions including Phil of the Future and Read It and Weep along with a role on the WB drama Summerland.
Kay, 36, retired from acting in her 20s and studied an 18-month animal programme at Santa Fe College. She was later hired as an animal keeper at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
The former actress later admitted she didn’t ‘earn a fraction’ of what she used to but ‘couldn’t be happier’ in her new career.
She told Naperville magazine: “You have to love your job because you spend so much time there. So that's what I've done. And I just want people to love what they do, whatever that is. Happy people have a huge impact on the world. And with all the negative things in the world and how much the Earth itself is being impacted, I just want to be a light in the world."
© WireImageErik von Detten
Disney fans will remember Erik von Detten for his role as Anne Hathaway’s crush Josh Bryant in The Princess Diaries.
He also voiced the role of Sid in the original Toy Story film and made appearances in several shows, including ER, Days of Our Lives and 7th Heaven.
Erik, 43, left Hollywood in the late noughties, however, to lead a more private life. He went into finance and worked for Rosland Capital, a precious metals asset management firm, in 2018.
He married luxury real estate agent Angela that same year, and the couple are parents to three children; two sons and a daughter.
© Getty ImagesLalaine
Another Lizzie McGuire alumna who has largely retreated from the spotlight is Lalaine, who played Lizzie’s other best friend Miranda Sanchez.
The actress, 39, left the show before its conclusion to pursue music and other projects, which also led to her absence from The Lizzie McGuire Movie
She appeared in the 2003 Disney film You Wish! and had a recurring role in the final season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer but now lives a quieter life out of the spotlight, with her last film appearance being Definition Please in 2020.
© WireImageAshlie Brillault
Another Lizzie McGuire star who decided to leave Hollywood behind is Ashlie Brillault, who played Lizzie’s rival and bully Kate Sanders.
Ashlie, 39, decided a career in front of the camera was not for her and later studied law at the University of Denver.
The former actress became a criminal defence lawyer and according to her Avvo.com profile, she was admitted to the California Bar in 2015.
© Disney Channel via Getty ImagesBridgit Mendler
Bridgit Mendler became known to Disney fans when she starred as Juliet van Heusen on Wizards of Waverly Place from 2009 to 2012.
She also appeared in the movie Lemonade Mouth for the channel and branched out into a music career with her album Hello, My Name Is… in 2012.
In a dramatic career pivot, Bridgit, 33, and her husband formed Northwood Space, a satellite data group in 2023. The company had raised $100 million from investors by 2026.
Speaking to her Lemonade Mouth co-star Naomi Scott in Hero magazine, Bridgit explained her career change by saying: "I think I started to feel a bit of that disconnect with what I was doing in my day-to-day, in entertainment and started to put out feelers into more of the research domain.
“Then visiting the MIT media lab, I just felt like it was such fertile territory to explore something about an impact that would go into a different space, and beyond. I palpably remember that point in the transition, because music is always my first love, I love it so deeply, but I remember being at South by Southwest and just feeling… Lonely. Finding your artistic community can be so hard.”
© Getty Images North AmericaRaviv Ullman
Raviv Ullman became known to millions for his lead role as Phil Diffy on Phil of the Future.
Unlike his co-star Kay, Raviv, 40, is still involved in the world of entertainment but has taken a much more low-key approach to his career in the years since.
He created the documentary Standing Ground about the Standing Rock Sioux Nation. This year, he directed the comedy-horror film Drag, which premiered at the SXSW Festival.
