What Popular Child Models Look Like Now

Child models are just born beautiful — or so it seems — and are practically destined to grace the pages and covers of magazines. These models often become iconic in their youth, in large part due to their good looks and the keen eye of a photographer who manages to catch them in just the right pose, in just the right moment. Many of these lucky few go on to have successful careers into adulthood too, proving they have an innate prowess and, of course, lasting staying power.

That's not the case for everyone, though, as some folks chose to follow a different path upon coming of age and becoming independent entities. Career model or not, though, it's always fascinating to discover what popular childhood models look like when they're all grown up. So, if you're curious about what your favorite famous beauties look like as adults, scroll on down to find out!

If anyone was born to be beautiful as a career, it would be Gigi Hadid. The daughter of real estate mogul Mohamed Anwar Hadid and reality star Yolanda Hadid, Hadid started modeling when she was just 2 years old. But like her friend Kaia Gerber, Hadid took a break after her early modeling gigs to have a normal life. "A lot of people make assumptions about my family, but our childhood wasn't 'Hollywood,'" she explained in an interview with Vogue. "I modeled when I was young but my mom intentionally had me stop before it ever felt like a job."

These days, Hadid is one of the most famous models in the world, with millions of Instagram followers and an insanely successful career. "There are still dreams coming true that I didn't even know I could possibly dream when I started," she continued. She added that a lot of what she does for work feels surreal. That makes sense given there are very few accomplishments that Hadid can't claim as her own.

You might know Lindsay Lohan from her breakout role in the 1998 remake of the classic film The Parent Trap. But before Lohan charmed her way into the hearts of millions as Hallie Parker and Annie James, she was quite the popular childhood model. For one, she appeared in a commercial for Jell-O opposite Bill Cosby in 1996. She also appeared in a host of other advertisements, including spots for Abercrombie & Fitch, Calvin Klein, and Caravan, as noted by BuzzFeed.

It's well-known that legal troubles largely derailed Lohan's career, but that's not something she beats herself up about too badly. "I can't turn back time," she explained to Vanity Fair. "But if I could, I would have listened more to my mother ... and chosen my friends more wisely."

While Lohan relocated to Dubai, she's not quite done with the spotlight just yet. For one, she expressed interest in appearing in a sequel for Mean Girls in an interview on Lights Out with David Spade. She also appeared in the MTV show Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club in 2019.

When Thylane Blondeau burst onto the modeling scene at 4 years old, she was quickly dubbed "the most beautiful girl in the world" by the internet. With her arresting gaze and naturally captivating looks, the child of soccer great Patrick Blondeau and French actress Véronika Loubry was destined to ascend into modeling royalty.

However, along the way Blondeau found herself mired in controversy, thanks to a controversial Vogue photoshoot, which was criticized for sexualizing children. The model's mother staunchly defended her daughter and the publication, telling a French newspaper (via ABC News), "The only thing that shocks me about the photo is the necklace that she's wearing, which is worth 3 million Euros."

Fortunately Blondeau was able to weather that storm and has since cultivated quite the modeling career. As of this writing, she's a brand ambassador for L'Oreal Paris and ultimately has her sights set on Hollywood, according to Teen Vogue. She even founded her own line of apparel, called Heaven May – impressive!

Before actor Robert Pattinson stole the heart of teens and tweens as Edward Cullen in the Twilight films and before he broke out as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, he was actually quite the popular underwear model. "When I first started I was quite tall and looked like a girl, so I got lots of jobs, because it was during that period where the androgynous look was cool," he recalled in an interview with Hello! magazine. But once he began to come into his manhood, the modeling work dried up.

That's okay, though, as Pattinson's destiny was to be an actor. In addition to his breakout, star-forming roles, he was also cast in films like Water for Elephants, The Lost City of Z, and The Lighthouse. He even managed to land the seriously coveted role of Bruce Wayne/Batman in The Batman, proving that he has what it takes to run with the big dogs.

Perhaps the most popular child model of all time is the Gerber Baby, whose playful mug adorns millions of jars of baby food. That famous face belongs to Ann Turner Cook, a retired teacher who lives in Tampa, Florida. "When I was very young, I probably was about three years old when mother pointed out the baby food jar and said that that was my picture," she recalled in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning. Naturally, she thought that was pretty cool.

Cook didn't run around boasting about it though, as the company kept her identity a secret for many years, according to their website. "All the years when I went to college and so forth, I didn't tell people that I was the model for the Gerber Baby," she confessed in an episode of Oprah: Where Are They Now? "That would seem a little self-promoting." 

Supermodel Karlie Kloss was only 13 years old when she was discovered by Mother Model Management at a charity fashion show. Just two years later, she made her big debut at New York Fashion Week, walking the runway for Calvin Klein — though her real focus was elsewhere. "I thought of everything in six-month increments," she recalled in an interview with Porter. "Not to mention I was in high school and my priorities were, 'How can I still get straight As and also do this after-school side hustle called modeling?'"

But it didn't take long for Kloss to realize that she had a real future in modeling, even though she was still juggling it with her educational pursuits. "None of my friends at school understood the magnitude of this other life that I had," she continued.

Kloss has since become one of the most recognizable models in the world and has pretty much done it all when it comes to her modeling bucket list. She's also launched other entrepreneurial endeavors, like her workshop for girls cleverly titled Kode with Klossy.

While Katherine Heigl started acting in the early '90s and cemented her status as a Hollywood It-girl in the mid-2000s, she was actually quite the recognizable child model some time before that. According to BuzzFeed, she graced the inside pages and eventually the cover of Seventeen magazine. As Heigl tells it, though, being a child model wasn't exactly easy. "Oh my god, it was brutal," she confessed on a talk show (via The Independent). "You even understand it, even when you're nine, you're like, 'This is silly and lame' and they're like, 'No, no, it's adorable, do it.'"

While Heigl went on to work in film in television, she's not landing as many roles as she had in the aughts. As of this writing, the star lives on a ranch in Utah with her husband and children. "Josh [Kelley] and I are into this quiet life," she explained in a chat with Good Housekeeping. "Neither of us likes the traffic and the chaos of Los Angeles. It's overwhelming."