Celebrity Big Breaks and How They Got Famous

By Jason Sep. 4th, 2012

Channing Tatum

Hollywood is full of stars we all grow to adore and admire. From the small sidekicks to the movie star that steals the spotlight, we all have our favorites. We see them in the news, on the screen and on the shelves of the stores, but where do they come from? How did they get their start? Some were child stars that grew up on the silver screen while others had a more provocative and interesting break into the movie scene. Let's take a look at the origins of 3 of the hottest stars today.

Channing Tatum:

If you saw Magic Mike, you may have noticed Channing Tatum seemed natural on the stripper stage. That is because his first appearance in the spotlight was as a male exotic dancer in Tampa Florida under the name Chan Crawford. Tatum used to dance while performing odd jobs after dropping out of college.

In 2000 Tatum auditioned and was cast as a dancer for Ricky Martin's video for "She Bangs". He later turned to modeling and eventually broke into the TV scene in commercials for large companies such as Mt. Dew and Pepsi. In 2004 Tatum was cast for an episode of "CSI: Miami" and in 2005 played the role of Jason Lyle in "Coach Carter" with Samuel L. Jackson. His career has shot up from there and he has built a resume filled with blockbuster hits, 7 awards and 19 nominations.

Hilary Swank:

Many of us have seen Hilary Swank's performance in the 2004 drama "Million Dollar Baby", where she played an aspiring boxer trained by Clint Eastwood. What many don't know is her struggle to stardom was a bit rougher than her character. As a child Hilary got her first role on stage in "The Jungle Book", when she was only 9. At the age of 15 her parents separated and Hilary and her mother moved to Los Angeles to follow Hilary's dreams of becoming an actress.

Their start was rough as Hilary and her mother lived in the car until Hilary's mother saved up enough money to rent an apartment. In 1992 Swank received a small part in the movie "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". Her first leading role was in "The Next Karate Kid" in 1994. She won her first award for her role in "Boys Don't Cry", where she was only paid $75 a day and earning only $3000 throughout filming. It did however lead to larger roles, better pay, and her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2007.

Halle Berry:

As a teen, Halle Berry was involved in modeling, winning Miss Ohio USA, runner up to Miss USA in 1986, and was the first African-American Miss World entrant in 1986 as well. In the late 80's Halle's first acting project was on the cable series "Chicago Force". Later she moved to New York City to pursue acting, but quickly ran out of money and was forced to stay in a homeless shelter.

Her stint in the shelter was short lived as she received a role on the ABC series "Living Dolls". During taping however, Halle fell into a coma and was diagnosed with diabetes. After the show was cancelled, Halle moved to Los Angeles where she had a recurring role on "Knots Landing" and was later cast as R. Kelly's love interest in his music video for the song "Honey Love". Shortly after she received her featured role in "Jungle Fever", which sparked her stardom and lead to her continuous success.

Jonathon Mallow is a blogger and aspiring actor who often visits AuditionsIn.com to find acting auditions in his area.