Back in the day, many people viewed television as the first major step towards earning fame and fortune in the entertainment industry. The idea was that someone could land a successful role on TV, eventually move on to movies (with hopefully as little controversy as possible on their way out), win a few awards, and then do some high-profile guest spots or maybe even land a daytime talk show as their career starts winding down. Of course, the journey these days is very different for every actor.
There are a million different paths to travel in showbiz thanks to social media platforms like X, Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube making people “internet famous.” However, there are still plenty of people who found success in entertainment after spending some time on the small screen — and we’re not just talking about A-list actors, either. These stars have also gone on to become big shot producers, well-respected writers, and even massive musicians. But no matter where they ended up or why, here are five actors who became more famous after they left their hit television programs.
Just like Hilary Duff, Sabrina Carpenter, and Zendaya before her, Olivia Rodrigo got her first big break thanks to Disney. Her first major role for the House of Mouse was on the Disney Channel series “Bizaardvark.” She would then follow in fellow Filipino-American star Vanessa Hudgens’ footsteps by joining the “High School Musical” franchise when Disney+ was rolling out a series about a new generation of East High Wildcats. But as she started to get noticed as Nini Salazar-Roberts in the surprisingly smart and incredibly meta mockumentary “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” the star also started to gain traction as a pop music sensation.
As a singer/songwriter, Rodrigo has topped the charts with three studio albums, starting in 2021 with “Sour” featuring the heartbreaking (and record-breaking) single “Drivers License.” Since then, she has won several awards, including Grammys, Billboard Music Awards, and MTV Video Music Awards. Rolling Stone Magazine even called her “Gen Z’s preeminent rock star” in a 2024 profile. As a result of her thriving music career, however, acting has become less of a priority for the artist. Of course, that doesn’t mean she isn’t popping up on streamers thanks to her documentary “Olivia Rodrigo: Driving Home 2 U” on Disney+, the concert film “Olivia Rodrigo: Guts World Tour” on Netflix, and her three appearances on “Saturday Night Live” available on Peacock.
Eddie Murphy
Speaking of NBC’s groundbreaking sketch comedy show, many “Saturday Night Live” alumni have gone on to become incredibly successful after leaving Lorne Michaels’ ragtag group of performers behind. Tina Fey, Will Ferrell, Bill Murray, Adam Sandler, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus became household names following their stints on “SNL.” Although, the person to arguably find the most success after leaving the hallowed halls of 30 Rockefeller Plaza is Eddie Murphy.
Originally cutting his teeth as a stand-up comedian throughout the late 1970s and the early 1980s, Murphy joined the cast of “Saturday Night Live” during the disastrous sixth season. Despite the series facing hard times, he would become the breakout star of that season and continue to be a popular fixture of the cast from 1980 to 1984. After creating fan-favorite characters like Buckwheat, Gumby, and Little Richard Simmons, he also became the first person to host the show while still a cast member.
After the success of his 1983 HBO special “Delirious,” Murphy made the transition from TV to movies by rounding out the decade with classics like “Trading Places,” “Beverly Hills Cop,” and “Coming to America.” His popularity would continue throughout the 1990s and 2000s thanks to roles in “The Nutty Professor” and “Dr. Dolittle,” as well as lending his voice to iconic characters such as Mushu in “Mulan” and Donkey in “Shrek.” Then, in 2006, the actor demonstrated his dramatic range by appearing in “Dreamgirls,” which earned him his first Academy Award nomination.
No matter which period of his career you best remember him for, Eddie Murphy has become one of the most influential comedians and entertainers of all time.
John Travolta
Modern audiences know John Travolta very well. He’s been a pop culture staple for at least 40 years. Many were first introduced to him as Danny Zuko in “Grease” or Vincent Vega in “Pulp Fiction.” Horror fans may even remember seeing him in “Carrie.” And for the chronically online generations, the actor is probably most well-known for becoming an internet meme after mispronouncing Idina Menzel’s name at the 86th Academy Awards in 2014 — although, he actually got his first big break on a popular ABC sitcom from the mid-1970s.
“Welcome Back, Kotter” featured stand-up comedian Gabe Kaplan as a teacher who returns to his alma mater in Brooklyn, New York to teach a class of slackers who call themselves the Sweathogs. Being one of the original Sweathogs when he was in school, the wise-cracking Mr. Kotter sees them as more than hoodlums and seeks to cultivate their potential. Travolta appeared in all four seasons as Vinnie Barbarino, the cocky unofficial leader of the Sweathogs and resident heartthrob of the school.
In addition to being remembered for Travolta’s breakout performance and its catchy theme song by John Sebastian of The Lovin’ Spoonful, “Welcome Back, Kotter” is fondly remembered for several noteworthy guest stars. John Astin of “The Addams Family,” legendary comedian George Carlin, and Travolta’s future “Grease” co-star Dinah Manoff all appeared on the show with various degrees of fanfare. But it was Pat Morita of “Happy Days” and “The Karate Kid” fame who made the biggest impression as he went on to star in the series’ short-lived spin-off, “Mr. T and Tina.”
Shelley Long
Shelley Long’s breakout role came in 1982 when she joined the cast of “Cheers” as graduate student and barmaid Diane Chambers. Along with Ted Danson’s womanizing ex-baseball player Sam Malone, the duo became one of the most beloved couples in all of sitcom history after a long period of “will they-won’t they.” However, she would leave in 1987 after Season 5 in order to spend more time with her daughter and pursue other creative endeavors.
In her first post-“Cheers” roles, Long starred in “Hello Again” and “Troop Beverly Hills.” Despite neither finding success with critics or audiences at the time, the latter has become a cult classic and is remembered fondly by children of the 1980s. She would later step into another iconic sitcom role when she portrayed Carol Brady in “The Brady Bunch Movie” and its sequels in the late 1990s. This charming and campy film took the original fan-favorite sitcom family of the 1970s and challenged their quaint sensibilities of a bygone era.
Unfortunately, those projects ended up being her most significant outings on the big screen. Long eventually returned to TV to reprise her role as Diane in the series finale of “Cheers,” and its spin-off “Frasier.” She also guest-starred in a number of popular shows including “8 Simple Rules,” “Boston Legal,” and “Modern Family” before acting and producing more throughout the 2010s and 2020s.
Donald Glover
Whoever said that a jack of all trades is a master of none never met Donald Glover. While he was still attending NYU, he performed with sketch comedy group Derrick Comedy. Then, at the age of 21, Tina Fey hired him for the “30 Rock” writers’ room. In 2009, he joined “Community” as former high school jock Troy Barnes. Meanwhile, the actor was also releasing rap music under the name Childish Gambino and honing his stand-up comedy skills. With so many other things going on for him, he left the NBC sitcom during its fifth season (though he still maintains that he’ll return for the prophesied movie).
Following his departure from “Community,” Glover dove into music in a big way. His 2016 album “Awaken, My Love!” debuted at number 1 on the R&B Albums chart. But whether it was music or comedy, he showed off his incredible gift for wordplay and punchlines. It’s good that he kept those muscles toned because he would go on to develop the FX series “Atlanta,” where he served as the executive producer, writer, and star of the show.
Glover earned many accolades in several areas as his stock rose throughout the 2010s and into the 2020s. He even had a few brushes with Marvel thanks to a viral internet campaign to get him to play Spider-Man. Glover ended up appearing in both “Spider-Man: Homecoming” and “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.” Jumping to a galaxy far, far away, he played a young Lando Calrissian in “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” and later voiced Simba in the live-action remake of “The Lion King.” After signing a deal with Amazon Studios, he starred in the TV reboot of “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” and created the series “Swarm.”
