I'm In Awe Of The Random Ways In Which These 13 Celebs Were Plucked From Obscurity And Propelled Into Fame

Manifesting that I'll be scouted on my next supermarket trip.

Who hasn't dreamt of being noticed by a talent agent or some big entertainment industry exec, and suddenly being thrust into a world of fame and fortune? Well, for a handful of stars (clearly god's favourites) that's exactly what happened!

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Make no mistake, becoming a star is hard work, and it involves a lot of personal investment. However, for some household names, the beginning of their careers was much easier – and sometimes stranger – than others.

1. Charlize Theron was discovered while in the middle of an argument at a bank.

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Charlize was living in Hollywood at 18 and making just enough money to survive through modelling jobs while waiting for her big break. When a bank didn't accept a check she was trying to cash, she began to argue with the teller. This argument ended up serving as her spiritual first audition!

Charlize told Oprah, "I really needed the money. I began pleading with this teller to help me, and a gentleman came over and tried to help... What I didn’t know is that I was auditioning for a guy who would end up being my manager. On the way out, the man who'd helped gave me his card."

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The man was John Crosby, a talent agent who was representing John Hurt and Rene Russo at the time. In her interview with Oprah, Charlize got very real about the opportunity the universe gave her by saying, "I'd be unbelievably wrong to say there isn't such a thing as the right place, right time — luck. If I hadn't met John, I don't know what I would have done next... There are so many talented actors who don't ever get the chance."

2. Danny Trejo turned his life around by counselling young people recovering from addiction, and one of his clients put him on the path of stardom.

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After being released from prison and getting sober, Danny Trejo started working as a youth drug counsellor close to home in Los Angeles. In 1984, at 40 years old, Danny accompanied an actor he was sponsoring to a Hollywood set to alleviate the actor's fears of relapse while on set. While he was there, Danny was asked if he'd want to be an extra in the film, and he agreed.

In an interview with PBS, Danny told the story of his first role saying, "This guy says, 'do you want to be an extra?' and I say, 'an extra what?' He says, 'can you act like a convict?' I said, 'I'm a professional.'"

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Danny Trejo went on to become the first Chicano action movie star, performing in films like Desperado, Con Air, and Spy Kids, which created his most well-known character, "Machete", and the film franchise about that character. When reflecting on his past, he told PBS host Henry Louis Gates Jr, "By the grace of God, my whole life changed."

3. As the legend goes, Harrison Ford was discovered while doing carpentry but NOT for George Lucas.

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While trying to break into the industry, but needing to make money to support his family, Harrison Ford worked as a self-taught carpenter. His work in carpentry provided him with the financial freedom to actually choose or deny roles he was offered, despite how early he was in his acting career. 

Casting director Fred Roos established a strong friendship and working relationship with Harrison Ford after Harrison did some woodworking for him. From there, Roos began promoting Harrison Ford for various roles, including his breakout role in George Lucas's American Graffiti (1973). 

When asked about Fred Roos, Harrison Ford said, "Fred is a very loyal man. Once he believes in you, he is unrelenting. He kept putting me up for parts and I kept getting rejected. Finally, things worked out."

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With encouragement from Fred Roos, George Lucas ended up casting Harrison Ford as Han Solo in Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope, and Harrison went on to lead the Indiana Jones franchise as well as score other huge roles. 

4. Alden Ehrenreich caught the eye of Steven Spielberg, of all people, at a Bat Mitzvah he wasn't even attending!

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In his teens, Alden and his friends were known by their peers for making short comedy videos for their entertainment. So it made total sense for one of their acquaintances to ask them to record a skit for her Bat Mitzvah. What was wild was that Steven Spielberg was in attendance at the Bat Mitzvah where Alden's comedic clip was shown... And he was impressed!

Alden recalled the event in an interview, saying, "It showed at the [Bat] Mitzvah and Steven Spielberg was there and he saw me. I wasn't there... but then we got a phone call from Dreamworks and they asked me to come in... and that's how I was able to start working."

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Funny enough, Fred Roos was involved yet again in the launching of a future Star Wars alum's career! Steven Spielberg connected the legendary casting director with Alden Ehrenreich, and Fred gave him his first two film roles ever. Since Alden later took on the role of Han Solo in the standalone Star Wars spin-off prequel, Solo, one could say that Fred Roos helped give ~both~ Han's the spotlight.

5. Vin Diesel broke into acting by ~literally~ breaking into a theatre.

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At the age of seven, Vin Diesel (then known as Marc Sinclair) broke into a local theatre with his brother and friends. The director of a play that was showing at that time – Dinosaur Door – decided to go easy on the children, and gave them parts in the play along with $20 pay. From that experience, Vin took a huge interest in acting and decided to pursue it later in life. 

6. Anya Taylor-Joy was walking her dog when she was scouted by the founder of a top modelling agency... Imagine.

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As the story of her unbelievable luck goes, Anya was practising walking in heels by wearing them out with her dog in London. During this excursion, she was spotted by Sarah Doukas of Storm Model Management – the fashion industry legend and former model who started the careers of Kate Moss and Cara Delevingne. She was signed to Storm the next day, and the rest is unforgettable history.

In an interview with James Corden, Anya said, "my actions were very stupid and I don't suggest that anybody does what I did... A car was following me and I started running, and this guy says, 'If you stop you won't regret it'... and I stopped."

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7. Speaking of Sarah, a squabble Kate Moss and her father had at an airport secured her a modelling contract at just 14 years old.

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Kate Moss was discovered by Sarah Doukas and Doukas' brother at JFK Airport in New York City. The soon-to-be-supermodel was spotted by the modelling agency CEO arguing with her father about having to wait three days for standby seats back home to England. The siblings were also on Kate's flight, and after being impressed by something in her, Sarah had her brother approach her on the aeroplane "as soon as the seat belt sign switched off."

Kate Moss shared this in an interview about the opportunity, "I was smoking, I was 14 and I'd just lost my virginity. So I thought I was the bee's knees. I was in the airport puffing away. I'd got on the plane and then Sarah's brother came up to me and said, 'Have you ever thought about being a model?'"

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She went on to say that she'd "never" considered a career in modelling due to her insecurities about "being short and having crooked teeth". However, despite that, Kate Moss went on to become one of the most iconic models of the supermodel era.

8. Jason Statham was selling more-than-likely counterfeit jewellery on London street corners when he got discovered.

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A brief modelling stint put Jason Statham in contact with director Guy Ritchie, who was already very keen to cast Jason upon learning about his past in the bauble black market. Guy Ritchie offered him his first role in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels as a man selling contraband out of a briefcase. 

Despite participating in a variety of athletic activities in his younger years, Jason "had no intentions of becoming an actor", let alone an action movie star, especially considering his past selling knock-offs.

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9. All Rosario Dawson had to do to get noticed by Hollywood was to stay home.

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When a commercial started filming outside of 15-year-old Rosario Dawson's home, she decided to camp outside on her porch to get the attention of an attractive crew member who had caught her eye. Her scheme definitely worked because not only did she get that crew member's attention, she also caught the eye of the future writer-director of the film Kids, who was completely taken with her!

Harmony Korine apparently told Rosario upon seeing her for the first time, "Oh my God, I wrote this character for you without even realising. I didn't even know you. You're perfect for this character, you have to come in."

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Not only did Rosario end up in the commercial that was being shot outside of her childhood home, she also landed her breakout role of Ruby in Kids.

10. Pamela Anderson got her first modelling job by attending a football game.

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While supporting her home football team – the British Columbia Lions – at one of their games with her friends, Pamela Anderson was featured on the venue's Jumbotron. Pam was wearing a Labatt's Beer T-shirt, and after her image was projected to everyone at the venue, it somehow got back to Labatt's Beer themselves.

She was instantly invited to be their spokesmodel and soon she became known as the "Blue Zone" girl. After that, Pam started to be featured in Playboy Magazine becoming "Playmate of the Year". From there she was put into contact with agents who kickstarted her acting career in Home Improvement and of course, Baywatch.

In Netflix's Pamela, a love story, she goes into more detail about her lucky start and subsequent life being "reluctantly famous".

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11. A deliveryman ~delivered~ Mandy Moore to a recording contract. No, really.

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While working on a music demo at 13, FedEx worker and part-time talent scout, Victor Cade, overheard Mandy Moore's singing and was extremely impressed by her. As fate would have it, Victor Cade was friends with the guy at Epic Records who had signed The Backstreet Boys, so Victor sent him a copy of Mandy's unfinished demo. She ended up being signed by Epic Records and debuted under them at the age of 15.

12. Ashton Kutcher never considered fame before he was scouted at a bar near his home in Middle America.

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Ashton was in the middle of studying biochemical engineering at the University of Iowa when he was spotted by Mary Clarke – co-founder of Mother Model Management – at a bar not far from where he lived. He was actually pursuing his degree with the goal of finding a cure for cardiomyopathy, an ailment that his twin brother experienced due to his cerebral palsy. 

However, with some persuasion from Mary, he decided to give modelling a try. Ashton won a modelling contest later that year which opened him up to a world of opportunities that eventually led to acting.

Despite his university ambitions, Ashton Kutcher later told Howard Stern in an interview that he had "wanted to be an actor" since the beginning.

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Ashton had had a love of performing since high school, but didn't see a path to pursue a creative career until Mary convinced him that modelling could open the doors to acting. Winning the "Fresh Faces of Iowa" contest gave him the push to leave university and pursue modelling and acting.

13. Lastly, Charlie Hunnam was scouted while drunkenly Christmas shopping.

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In the late '90s before he was discovered, Charlie was a film school student just waiting for his shot at becoming an actor. One Christmas Eve – after spending hours at a nearby pub – he managed to catch the eye of a production manager on Byker Grove while drunkenly shoe-shopping for his brother. After a cheeky first impression where Charlie blew the woman a kiss, she invited him to audition for the show, where he luckily landed his first role as Jason on the kids' drama.

Charlie explained on The Graham Norton Show how he flirted his way into his first TV role, saying, "She said, 'I think you're quite lovely' and I said, 'Oh, I do too!'"

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Who do YOU think has the most unbelievable fame story? Let us know in the comments!