5 Young Celebrities Who Legally Separated From Their Parents to Work Longer Hours in Hollywood
Hollywood divorces are so common that they rarely surprise anyone anymore. The same can’t be said about underage entertainers who legally separate from their parents to work longer hours without violating child labor laws. Here’s a look at that particular type of celebrity scandal and five young celebrity children who did just that.
How child labor laws are supposed to work
Most states, California included, have child labor laws that are quite specific where underage workers are concerned. Minors aspiring to the Hollywood entertainment industry must provide appropriate documentation from approved school districts to the Labor Commissioner to receive a theatrical employment permit, explains the Department of Labor (DOL).
Other extensive requirements for underage theatrical employment include a cap on school absences and a limit on allowable successive workdays. If a young actor becomes emancipated, these strict child labor laws no longer apply.
5 underage celebs who ‘divorced’ their parents to work longer hours
Sometimes, underage celebrities obtain legal adulthood to devote longer hours to their craft. However, taking this route to skirt child labor laws isn’t necessarily the first choice of most young celebs.
Alicia Silverstone
Alicia Silverstone told Rolling Stone that when she was 15, movie producers demanded she be emancipated to land the part of creepy nymphet Adrian Forrester in The Crush. At the time, her only screen credit was a one-time appearance in a 1992 episode of The Wonder Years.
Obtaining legal emancipation for a minor in Los Angeles was fraught with red tape. So, the hopeful actor and her dad appeared before a judge in Oakland, California, where Silverstone told less than the whole truth.
“I had to stand before a judge and tell him I was living on my own, which was not true, and also tell him I was self-supporting, which was true. And then after sophomore year, I quit high school.”
Silverstone went on to earn her GED. The San Francisco native also received dual honors at the 1994 MTV Movie Awards for her performance in The Crush.
Juliette Lewis
Juliette Lewis is another talented youngster who legally separated from her parents so she could work more than 8 hours per day. Lewis admitted that her home life was fine and that her parents were “radical, hilarious, and artistic.”
In fact, her parents helped her become emancipated when she was just 14, reports TooFab. Lewis was already an employed actor portraying Kate Farrell on the TV series I Married Dora. After friendly emancipation from her parents before she turned 18, Lewis filmed numerous TV shows and movies, including her powerful part in Martin Scorsese’s Cape Fear.
Laura Dern
Born to actors Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd, Laura Dern grew up in the Hollywood counterculture and made her first film appearances as a young child. With her dad being more or less out of the picture, Ladd objected to her teen daughter spending time on the Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains movie set. For this reason, Laura sought and received emancipation at age 13, according to her IMDb bio.
Melissa Francis
The 1980s child star Melissa Francis‘ story is different, as her emancipation at age 15 involves both working hours and an unhappy home life. In her 2012 memoir, Diary of a Stage Mother’s Daughter: A Memoir, seen on Amazon, Francis revealed a neurotic, controlling mother who was more of a competitor than a nurturing presence.
“I was hostage to her moods, her violence, her praise, her favor, all doled out in random doses and with confusing inconsistency, which had been designed to control me, training me to crave her attention like a starving dog.”
Michelle Williams
Years before she attained legal age, Michelle Williams was commuting from San Diego to LA for auditions and acting jobs with her parents’ blessing. By age 15, she had her own apartment in the San Fernando Valley and legal control over her own affairs.
Admitting that she “didn’t know what she was taking on,” Williams’ emancipation had nothing to do with bad parental relations and everything to do with working longer hours. She told GQ that at 15, she no longer required a tutor and was ready to work adult hours.
Young celebs granted legal remedy for heinous at-home conditions
In 2003, Aaron Carter’s parents split up, leading to the discovery that his manager-mom, Jane, had misapplied many thousands of his hard-earned dollars. The 16-year-old Carter was emancipated the same year, reported CNN.
Drew Barrymore was born into proverbial Hollywood royalty, but her childhood was an admitted bummer. In fact, the domestic lifestyle provided by her single mom was so unacceptable that Barrymore filed for emancipation at the tender age of 14.
Jena Malone, Ariel Winter, and Corey Feldman each have their tale of abuse that led them to legally split from their parents before they turned 18. Jaden Smith, son of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, requested emancipation in 2021 but changed his mind before going through with the plan.
