However, as many people approach midlife, it sometimes seems like the window of opportunity for fulfilling their dreams begins closing rapidly. Just look at celebrities, for example. Sure, there are the Justin Biebers of the world who were discovered by talent agents or hit the jackpot with a lucky YouTube video.
But by and large, a more common success story in Hollywood comes from folks who achieved it the old-fashioned way: through hard work and perseverance. On top of that, most of them at one point or another were told that their goals were crazy or just pipe dreams.
Some of these people managed to prove others wrong right away. Others, however, had to wait until later in life—some in their 40s, 50s, and even 60s. Yet when they finally did, the success tasted all the more sweeter. Although many of these people had been working at their craft for years, none of them had a big breakthrough until midlife, most of them not until they were at least 40 years old.
Take a look at their stories to gain some inspiration and for a reminder that it really is never too late. You may also like: Late bloomers in sports. Award-winning author Toni Morrison spent the first part of her life working as an English professor and editor at Random House publishing. During this time she used to wake up at 4 a. The author died in at 88 years old. Cranston played the infamous Walter White, a chemistry teacher who sold drugs and descended into darkness.
I was always afraid that the parade was passing me by—so much so that I would miss out on what was great about the moment I was in. British actor Helen Mirren was a well-recognized name in theater early in life, but her face was hardly known to the rest of the world. The fact that Morgan Freeman has been so wildly successful for 30 years makes it easy to forget that the Tennessee native was 50 when it all started. After that, however, it was swift success as the comedian continued riding the wave from the show.
After that, Dench shot to fame, receiving seven Academy Award nominations and winning for Best Supporting Actress at age However, even that show didn't air its first episode until , when the comedian was Lucille Ball is another comedian who's been a household name for so long that it seems hard to believe there was ever a time when she wasn't famous. She quickly made up for lost time, however, earning 13 Emmy Award nominations, four of which she won, and a Governor's Award.
First, he spent more than 10 years mostly failing and coming close to quitting. Vera Wang had a completely different life prior to becoming a world-famous fashion designer—two of them, in fact. First, she was an ice skater with her eyes set on the Olympics. However, she failed to land a spot on the U. Olympic team and shifted to journalism, where she spent most of her 20s and 30s as an editor at Vogue.
At age 40, she found her true calling when she designed her own wedding dress, launching what would become a long and successful career as an independent bridal designer. Ridley Scott was virtually unknown in the public eye for the first 40 years of his life. She launched her bridal collection when she was 40 and almost immediately became the go-to for celebs tying the knot. Christoph Waltz had been consistently booking roles in German films and TV shows since the '80s. But her big break came in , when she won an Oscar for her role in The Help , at the age of Oh, and Spencer is also a children's book author.
Just as the U. The now iconic workplace show premiered when he was Gervais went on to create and star in Extras , Derek, and After Life , among other series.
Kathy Bates was a major theater actor in the '70s and '80s, and even picked up a Tony nomination along the way in But her big Hollywood break didn't come until she was 42, though, when she played a terrifying kidnapper in the Stephen King adaptation Misery. Comic book legend Stan Lee passed away in at the age of 95, known to the whole world for basically being the imagination behind Marvel as we know it.
But though he'd penned many comics before that, Lee and co- Jack Kirby didn't create the hugely popular Fantastic Four until Lee was More and more iconic heroes and villains would follow, and in , the Marvel Cinematic Universe would launch with the premiere of Iron Man, making the characters even more famous than they were on the page. But he became a household name when he booked the role of Phil Dunphy on Modern Family , at the age of The series ran for 11 years.
For more celebrity trivia sent right to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. Yes, it feels like Betty White started to bless the world with her comedic chops since before any of us can remember. But the queen of TV didn't get started until she was in her 40s.
But while theater fans were familiar with his work, he wouldn't become a household name until he joined the cast of the Cheers spinoff Frasier in , taking on the role of Frasier's dad, Martin Crane, when he was 53 years old.
Jane Lynch was 43 when she landed her first big gig in Christopher Guest 's mockumentary Best in Show, and later gained even more fame after a side-splitting role in The Year-Old Virgin at the age of Regis Philbin 's career didn't exactly hit the ground running.
It wasn't until , when he was 57 years old, that Live! With Regis and Kathie Lee premiered and made him a household name.
But in , when she was 55, she joined The View , which she's co-hosted on-and-off ever since. Sir Patrick Stewart kicked off his career on the British stage circuit.
Dame Judi Dench also became famous on the stage in England earlier in her career. But she didn't cross the pond and become a Hollywood name until she played M in the James Bond film GoldenEye at age Three years later, she scored an Oscar for Shakespeare in Love.
Though Tommy Lee Jones picked up minor roles throughout the '70s and '80s, it was his turn in 's The Fugitive— for which he received an Oscar nomination—that really ushered him into stardom. He was 47 at the time.
After minor appearances on the big and small screens in the early s—on The Parkers and in The Fighting Temptations — NeNe Leakes gained national fame at 41, thanks to the reality series The Real Housewives of Atlanta. She continues to be an all-time Housewives fan-favorite.
But even that breakout role didn't come about until he was In , she was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame. In the '50s, the late Rodney Dangerfield worked as an aluminum siding salesman. Then, in , he gave stand-up a shot. After booking a slot on an episode of The Ed Sullivan Show , he became a sensation at the age of 46; over the following four years, he made more than a dozen appearances on the program, and then went on to film.
On Aug. By using the site, you agree to the uses of cookies and other technology as outlined in our Policy, and to our Terms of Use. Skip to content. Share Tweet Pin Email. Ewan McGregor celebrated his 50th birthday on March On July 1, rapper Missy Elliott blew out 50 candles on her birthday cake.
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