10 Great Child Performances

A central attribute to a film’s success or failure is the performances of its stars as certain characters. Now, while it is usually the adult actors or the adult actresses who are the stand-out stars in a feature film, there are also roles where it is the child that puts a new perspective on the approach to and execution of acting. Like adults, the child stars can adapt from supporting roles to leading.

Their roles are, usually, as one of three character types. One, as the traumatised child involved in straining or difficult situations, two, as the abject child with supernatural powers or evil intentions or, three, the delightful child who projects the innocence of youth. In this list features ten of the greatest child performances, where the actors range from the ages of 7 to 18 years old. It will also discuss the greatness behind each role and how each may contribute to inspiring young people to become actors.

10. Abigail Breslin in Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

In arguably one of the most accomplished and popular road films of all time, Little Miss Sunshine features the members of a dysfunctional family, all in different circumstances. They range from the eldest – a heroin-snorting grandpa – to the youngest child Olive Hoover (Abigail Breslin).

Although credited as a supporting role, the Olive Hoover character is central to the family’s vacation to her beauty pageant contest and to their entire reconciliation. Olive is first considered an Ugly Duckling-like character, but the genuine touch that Abigail Breslin provides to this role shows that it is not only what is on the inside that truly counts but that being yourself is the key to happiness. Breslin received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

9. Thomas Turgoose in This Is England (2006)

The one child performance in contemporary British cinema that may stand above all others is Thomas Turgoose as Shaun in This Is England. We follow Shaun’s unorthodox lifestyle whilst among a gang of skinhead white nationalists. Being at such a young age, Turgoose raises the bar a little in his performance through moments of violence and sexual intimacy.

The film does not necessarily encourage youths to behave like that nor promotes the gang’s white nationalist life. Instead, it reflects on how British youths lived during the 1980’s and the Falklands War period. Turgoose’s role is a memorable one where he gives a very convincing performance that simultaneously exemplifies the peer pressure on childhood innocence and issues around parental negligence. At the British Independent Film Awards, Thomas Turgoose won the award for Most Promising Newcomer.

8. Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone: Lost In New York (1992)

If there is any child actor who immediately rose to stardom after practically stealing the film from their co-stars, it would undoubtedly be Macaulay Culkin in his timeless role in Home Alone and its sequel Home Alone: Lost In New York. This entry includes both films as Culkin’s performances are neither better nor worse than the other. Celebrated as a character of festive spirit across the film industry, Culkin has provided an exceptional role that still makes kids excited for Christmas.

Culkin plays Kevin McCallister, a young boy who is accidentally left home alone by his family when they go on a Christmas vacation, and must defend his house from two idiotic burglars. Culkin even takes the lead role above Joe Pesci (an Academy Award winner who has played many criminal characters), and provides a performance that is considered among the best by any child star. It is possibly the only, as well as the first, real triumph that Macaulay Culkin has had. He received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy.

7. Jodie Foster in Taxi Driver (1976)

Cinema allows a child star to go the distance in terms of either language or particular use of violence. However, in some films, they are controversially portrayed in a sexual manner. Jodie Foster’s staggering performance as Iris in Taxi Driver is a prime example. At just twelve years old, Iris is a child prostitute in New York City. Sport (Harvey Keitel) is her pimp and sells her for his profit. Witnessing two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster as Iris in Taxi Driver is impressive but how we feel about the character is a mixed bag.

The character being just 12 years old is a contributing factor as the age is central to her circumstances as a vulnerable child. For Foster to play Iris may be considered a skill because it would have been so different from her ordinary off-screen lifestyle. She is being herself at the age of 12 but her character is outside of her natural self, and the film industry encourages it. In addition, the timing of Taxi Driver‘s release in 1976 is significant given that it is set immediately after the Vietnam War. The film showed the slums of New York City and the war’s aftermath with Jodie Foster’s role as Iris demonstrating how corrupt America had become. Foster was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

6. Natalie Portman in Léon: The Professional (1994)

Before gaining international fame in the Star Wars prequels and films including Closer, V For Vendetta, and her Oscar-winning performance in Black Swan, Natalie Portman kick-started her acting career at just 13 years old in Léon: The Professional. Portman played Mathilda, a young orphan girl who builds a unique friendship with a skilled assassin, Léon, after her family’s murder. The bizarre bond that Mathilda shares with Léon is one that ignites a unique relationship between adulthood and childhood in shared circumstances.

Portman’s role is also significant in how valuable friendships and emotional bonds can be to us in general society. In this respect, Mathilda is a character who many adolescent individuals can relate to – she’s sweet, she’s cheeky, she’s emotional and, often, she’s a badass! Natalie Portman’s performance in Mathilda was not only her on-screen debut but a role that is arguably among her greatest to date even after over 20 years.

5. Chloë Grace Moretz in Kick-Ass (2010)

We have our child stars in drama, family, comedy and horror genres. Not often, though, have we seen them take part in the action genre. Like the film’s title, Chloë Grace Moretz absolutely kicks ass in her role as Mindy MacCready, also known by her superhero alterego Hit Girl. The film saw Moretz become ultimately explosive in action scenes, as a character who also emits some extreme bad language. For example, the line “Okay, you c**ts, let’s see what you can do now” is perhaps the most shocking ever uttered by a child star.

Despite this, Moretz pulls off the performance and ultimately shows it doesn’t make the character dislikeable. The issue of childhood innocence being pushed away is addressed in the film, though. Being the sidekick of Nicolas Cage, and his character’s daughter, Hit Girl/Mindy may be a controversial character, but she helps Kick-Ass prevail in its determination to provide overwhelming entertainment and be resilient in taking violence and language to extreme levels.

4. Ivana Baquero in Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)

As stated in the introduction, there are three types of child performances. Ivana Baquero in Pan’s Labyrinth immediately falls under the traumatised innocent within difficult circumstances. Baquero plays Ofelia, a girl caught up in the Spanish Civil War who, along with her pregnant mother, is sent to live with her stepfather Captain Vidal. During her journey, Ofelia encounters a mysterious faun and is tasked to complete three requests to fulfil immortality.

The film simultaneously focuses on the traumatic circumstances of a child being involved in a horrendous war, including at the hands of Captain Vidal, as well as the innocence of childhood. Only from the imagination of Guillermo Del Toro could there be a film to depict an honest interpretation of the Spanish Civil War and a uniquely original side story. Pan’s Labyrinth is very much from Ofelia’s perspective, and Ivana Baquero beautifully balances both the emotional assets of trauma and innocence that makes her performance so captivating in capturing the film’s dark yet eccentric nature.

3. Linda Blair in The Exorcist (1973)

Out of any child performance that is both brilliant and shocking at the same time, the best would be Linda Blair’s role in The Exorcist as Regan MacNeil. The film follows Regan gradually becoming possessed by a demon called Pazuzu, and the techniques used to bring her back. The Exorcist was released in an era when Hollywood was rapidly changing in terms of storylines, themes and industry production. In this sense, The Exorcist is a valuable item of this phase. Linda Blair’s performance, in particular, is one of art by breaching beyond what a child at such a young age is capable of while also being true to the film’s horrifying structure.

Interestingly, Regan’s demon voice was not Blair’s. In fact, Oscar-winning actress Mercedes McCambridge provided the voice with Blair synchronizing the actions. Therefore, in some ways, possessed Regan was like a mute performance from Blair as it heavily relied on physical expression. Linda Blair’s performance perhaps makes Regan stand out as the most famous horror character of all time, and so deserves to be among the greatest by a child star. Linda Blair won the Golden Globe award for Best Supporting Actress and was nominated for the Academy Award in the same category.

2. Haley Joel Osment in The Sixth Sense (1999)

If there is any child star whose role will always be remembered among the greatest and most timeless in acting, it would be Haley Joel Osment’s outstanding performance as Cole Sear in The Sixth Sense. Cole is a young boy with seemingly psychological issues, but eventually reveals that he sees dead people in a famous sequence. Osment portrayed the innocence of tormented childhood and the genuine horror of seeing deceased neighbours. Much of the film relies on Osment’s performance and how children deal with such traumatic and terrifying issues.

Cole is a deeply emotional child but is also surprisingly intelligent. Particularly in the “I see dead people” scene, we witness (only from Osment’s expressions in close-up) the pure horror of his visions and how much it is mentally damaging him.  Horror elements are left mainly to what our overactive imaginations see through Cole’s eyes, particularly the corpse-strewn world that he can see. The Sixth Sense is perhaps the only truly successful film by M. Night Shyamalan and Haley Joel Osment’s performance was a valuable asset to the film’s success. Osment was nominated for the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor.

1. Leonardo DiCaprio in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

Although DiCaprio had reached nineteen years old at the time of What’s Eating Gilbert Grape’s release in 1993, it is still safe to say that his supporting role as an eighteen year old during production is quite possibly the most breathtaking performance by any young star. Unknown at the time, DiCaprio portrayed teenager Arnie Grape, a character with complex developmental disabilities. Many critics have stated that Arnie shows symptoms of autism, and even people who have autistic relatives have considered DiCaprio’s performance a very accurate depiction.

The attention to detail that DiCaprio brings to the character is extraordinary, as he ties the symptoms of vocal tics and bodily contortions to become authentic. It was convenient that DiCaprio was not the global star then like he has become today, because it added further realism that he really was this average person with mental disabilities. Arnie Grape was not strictly DiCaprio’s breakthrough performance on a global level, but it certainly kick-started what has since become a very successful career. Leonardo DiCaprio was nominated for the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor.

Conclusion

From this list of ten great child performances, we can clearly establish that children can deliver a career-defining performance at a young age, and that it isn’t only adults that can achieve it. Some of the discussed roles have since been the stars’ finest, and perhaps only, achievement (Macaulay Culkin, Haley Joel Osment, Linda Blair). On the other hand, there are others who have progressed to become bigger and stronger stars (Leonardo DiCaprio, Jodie Foster, Natalie Portman, Chloë Grace Moretz) as adults.

Nevertheless, the premise of this article has been that youngsters can provide such strong performances in roles. Some may often commit themselves to extreme measures but, like their characters, the stars are still very much in the mindset of their own child self during that period.

Honourable mentions:

Anna Paquin in The Piano, Justin Henry in Kramer Vs Kramer, Henry Thomas in E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Mara Wilson in Matilda, Jean-Pierre Léaud in The 400 Blows, Jamie Bell in Billy Elliot, Danny Lloyd in The Shining and Freddie Highmore Finding Neverland.

Have you got any other suggestions that I didn’t include? Do you think child performances have become more significant in approaches to acting?