A Reddit post titled “Favorite actor who used to be weird-looking but now is apparently incredibly handsome?” under the r/okbuddycinephile subreddit sparked a discussion about actors who underwent dramatic changes in appearance. Commenters offered a long list of actors they thought fit the description.
Jerry O'Connell was one of the first actors mentioned. One commenter wrote, “Jerry also turned out to be a decent person and has a hot spouse, so it appears the universe occasionally rewards people for good behavior.” Another commenter referenced the joke, writing, “No seriously, the fat kid from Stand By Me married a smoking hot model. Doesn't that piss you off? - Family Guy.”
Matthew Lewis was another name that drew attention in the discussion. A commenter shared a photo of Lewis from a Harry Potter film when he was 11. Another user shared a recent snap, to which a commenter wrote, “I can not unsee it now.” Someone defended the comparison, writing, “He's a kid at that moment. I think most kids look weird.”
George Clooney was another actor mentioned in the thread. A commenter shared a childhood photo of the star and wrote, “My guy looked like a l-sbian Alicia Silverstone.” Someone else commented, “That was just called the 60s. People had no idea what they were doing.”
Nicholas Hoult was another name mentioned in the discussion. After someone posted a childhood photo of Hoult and commented on his appearance, another commenter shared their own experience watching him on television. “I was 13 watching skims for the first time and sad as hell that the male lead was so ugly. I was so annoyed by the plot lines glazing him and him having girls fight over him, I was like there’s just no way.”
The commenter also added, “I almost stopped watching because I just thought he was so damn ugly. I continued to think he was weird looking until I saw him in The Great and promptly fell in love. Now, looking back, I think he was actually very handsome in all stages of his life and I don’t see what made my teenage self so repulsed. Perfect answer for this question imo.”
Other commenters added more names. One commenter offered a broader take on the discussion, writing, “I’ve actually made the point that there’s a lot of actors who are viewed as hot only because they’re famous and can have people dressing/styling them well. There’s a number who are just so blandly average that you wouldn’t clock them either way if they were a regular person.”
