21 Child Actors Who Were Legitimately More Talented Than The Adults In Their TV Shows And Films

"It was such a mature and emotional performance. That film gets me every time, especially the scene where he talks about his teacher being the one who stole the milk money. His acting in the scene is phenomenal."

—secretsmile

"She's just incredible! She carries the entire film with nuance and raw emotion, it's honestly so amazing. She's the definition of Black girl magic!"

—anikawarner

"She started off as more of a supporting role, but in the later seasons she was so good. Watching her character develop and grow was so powerful. She really portrayed both the period and the universal feelings of being a teenager so well."

—hazelbrown24601

"She was one of the youngest Best Supporting Actress nominees at age 13 for Atonement. She’s obviously continued to shine and rack up more well-deserved Oscar nominations, but honestly I thought that her Atonement performance was chilling and defied her young age."

—alicebraz

"If she didn’t break your heart in that movie with her performance, you’re lying to yourself. I have followed her career ever since because, in my opinion, she’s probably one of the best actors of her generation. I wish she would do more."

—jonjon34

"Caleb McLaughlin has TONS of talent that is way too often overlooked in favor of his castmates. He's turned Lucas into a complex character even though the Stranger Things writers rarely shed light on him as an individual, and he often flies under the radar even though he plays one of the kindest and funniest characters on the show. He'll be starring in Concrete Cowboys with Idris Elba later this year, which will hopefully allow for more people to appreciate his talent!"

—rangxrs

"It was such an intense role for such a young person to absorb, and I believed every minute of her performance."

—sarahdianna

"I don't think any other 16-year-old could play a 58-year-old time traveler stuck in a 13-year-old's body who is married to a mannequin, period. Simply incredible!"

—tigresssss13

"He's so convincing as an old man trapped in the body of his kid self. Plus he's funny, threatening, and heartbreaking throughout the series. He is super talented and I'm psyched to see him in Season 2."

—spaceface99

"No one else could play Eleven the way she does...the emotions conveyed with a simple look, the personality shift over seasons, the chemistry with Mike (Finn Wolfhard)...She is just incredibly well cast!"

—finnegangc

"Mckenna Grace does an amazing job! She was in Gifted on her own, but usually I see her playing the younger version of another actress. Her most impressive quality, I think, is her ability to match her acting style to whoever she is sharing a character with."

—squish37

"She's perfect at playing every blonde misunderstood child. She gets cast to play so many roles and she seems perfect for every single one of them."

—zarinat3

"Finn as Richie was one of the greatest performances ever, although all of the kids in It were incredible."

—rachelm4fbeb15db