Haley Osment, the Child Star Who Left Hollywood and Came Back When He Was Ready to Cope With Fame

He was among the most popular kids of the 90s and early 2000s. He had everyone biting their nails in The Sixth Sense and moved many others in Pay It Forward. However, as he grew older, as happens with many child stars, Haley Joel Osment appeared less and less on screen. The thing is that this was not a product of the industry, but rather his own decision.

His fortuitous arrival to showbiz, the influence of his family, and the importance of staying focused are some of the things Bright Side wants to tell you about today.

Building an acting career

Context is important. Being born in an artistic place like Los Angeles, the mecca for those who dream of being on the big screen, already opens the possibility of a talent scout noticing you. Haley Osment’s story begins like this, at the age of 4, when while she was in a store, someone saw that she could look good on camera.

His angelic face caught people’s eye, and he took a significant step in that first audition when he was asked to describe the most remarkable thing he had ever seen. His answer was an IMAX movie screen, and that’s how he landed his first role in an advertisement for Pizza Hut.

The ad was the kick-off of his career. That same year he had a leading role in the sitcom Thunder Alley, which aired from March 1994 to July 1995, and ended due to its low rating after it was scheduled to air on Wednesday nights.

The end of the series could not overshadow the young actor’s talent; he had already landed a role in Forrest Gump as Tom Hanks’ son. The film’s director, Robert Zemeckis, chose Haley for the role after seeing him in the Pizza Hut commercial, and for his performance, he won the Young Artist Award for best performance by an actor under the age of 10 in a film.

During the ’90s, he was a sensation. He appeared in series and movies regularly. But his real breakthrough was The Sixth Sense. The film’s writer and director was initially concerned about how “sweet” Osment was in the audition, but later said the actor “nailed it with the vulnerability and the need ... He was able to convey a need as a human being in a way that was amazing to see.”

Haley Osment, still an 11-year-old boy, received excellent reviews and accolades for this performance, including a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the Oscars.

The actor’s parents, far from pressuring him to become a world star, understood that he was still a child and had instilled in him the idea that if someday acting stopped being fun, he could abandon it without problems. However, by that time, Haley wanted to continue acting, and he remained in the spotlight for a few more years.

He put his voice to video games and animated series and starred in films such as Pay It Forward, A.I., and Secondhand Lions, where he appeared alongside Michael Caine and Robert Duvall. But the actor grew up, and in 2006, he had to decide if he wanted to stay in Hollywood or if his life would take a different direction.

The decision to move away from Hollywood

“What was the driving force behind your decision?” he was asked in a 2014 interview. “It was always college. My mom is a sixth-grade teacher, so staying in school was non-negotiable, plus I wanted to go to school too,” Haley replied with a smile on his face.

“I studied experimental theater at NYU, and it was something I wanted because I was 18, and I think there’s only one time when you can go to college,” he continued, and from what he says, the decision makes sense. He wanted to learn things he hadn’t learned on film sets, where he had spent practically his entire childhood and teenage years.

From 2006 to 2011, he only appeared in one film, Home of the Giants. “There’s not too much on my resume from that time, but it’s the biggest investment I made in acting to date,” the actor said in another interview, concluding, “I was working on my craft, but not in a public way.”

Always ready for a challenge

In college, he discovered a new skill set: playing evil characters. Haley was used to being the “good guy,” so he thought it’d be fun to undertake a new, challenging part and play villains. After graduating, he planned to return to Hollywood, so offers to appear in movies and series came in dribs and drabs.

His process of reinsertion into the industry was successful, though. From 2014 onwards, he appeared in Sex Ed, Entourage, and Ted Bundy (alongside Zac Efron and Lily Collins). He was also cast in series such as The Boys, produced by Amazon Prime, and The Kominsky Method, presented by Netflix.

Down-to-earth

Today, you can even find in newspapers proofs that people are challenging the idea that you always have to win, be the best, and reach for fame. People are getting tired of thinking things can only be measured in either success or failure. Just a few years before, if your place wasn’t the highest you could reach, it was like your life was not complete. But not everyone wants to be the world’s top star, and that’s okay.

Despite being wildly successful at a very young age, Haley Joel Osment stayed focused and thought through every step he took. He was in the center of the world scene and also outside, but always choosing where he wanted to be.

As we said at the beginning, context is essential. If being born in Los Angeles was critical, having an actor as a father and a teacher as a mother also significantly influenced Hayley’s decisions. Even having an actress sister (Emily Osment played Lilly in Hannah Montana), who had a similar story, also played a part in his choices and outlook on life.

“I feel lucky that I was able to do this from a young age and that it continues to be my job now,” Haley said not long ago, and it’s definitely food for thought. We celebrate the actor’s stance and fervently wish to see what the future brings for him.

Which Haley Osment movie do you like the most? Do you agree with his way of looking at life?