Child star Mara Wilson, 37, left Hollywood after ‘Matilda’ as she was ‘not cute anymore’

The world first fell in love with the endearing Mara Wilson in the early 1990s. She was a child actress best remembered for her roles as the bright young girl in beloved family films like Miracle on 34th Street and Mrs. Doubtfire.

The rising actress, who turned 37 on July 24, seemed poised for greatness. However, as she matured, she lost her “cute” factor and gradually vanished from the big screen.

She later explained, “If you’re not cute anymore, if you’re not beautiful, then you are worthless. Hollywood was burned out on me.”

To find out what happened to Wilson, continue reading!

When five-year-old Mara Wilson played Robin Williams’ youngest kid in Mrs. Doubtfire in 1993, she captured the hearts of millions of fans.

The siblings from ‘MRS DOUBTFIRE’ have reunited over 30 years after the film’s release. pic.twitter.com/igfg92AlN9

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) May 2, 2024

The California native, who had already appeared in advertisements, was invited to star in one of the highest-grossing comedies in Hollywood history.

“My parents grounded me even though they were proud of me,” Wilson recalled. “My mother would always tell me that I’m just an actor if I ever said something like, ‘I’m the greatest!’ You’re just a kid,” the now 37-year-old remarked.

Following her big-screen debut, she was cast in 1994’s Miracle on 34th Street as Susan Walker, the same character Natalie Wood had played in 1947.

Wilson described her audition as follows: “I read my lines for the production team and told them I didn’t believe in Santa Claus,” she wrote in an essay for The Guardian. “But I did believe in the tooth fairy and had named mine after Sally Field,” referring to the Oscar-winning actress who portrayed her mother in Mrs. Doubtfire.

Backstage at @OkaytoSayTX supporting #mentalhealth awareness and destigmatization! pic.twitter.com/IqfFkuRiPj

— Mara Wilson (@MaraWilson) March 8, 2018

A Tragic Loss and a Struggling Identity

Next, Wilson starred with Danny DeVito and his real-life wife Rhea Perlman in the 1996 film Matilda as the magical girl.

Tragically, in that same year, Suzie, her mother, lost her battle with breast cancer.

“I wasn’t really sure of my identity,” Wilson admitted. “I was two different people before and after that.” Regarding her profound grief following her mother’s passing, Wilson explained, “She was like this omnipresent thing in my life.”

“I found it kind of overwhelming,” she continued. “I mostly just wanted to be a typical child, especially in the wake of my mother’s passing.”

Having a rad time at #90sCon! pic.twitter.com/WMEEPpIBRr

— Mara Wilson (@MaraWilson) March 11, 2022

The young girl confessed that she was “the most unhappy” and that she was exhausted from the demands of fame.

She reluctantly took on her final significant role in the 2000 fantasy adventure film Thomas and the Magic Railroad at the age of 11. “The characters had too little age,” she admitted to The Guardian. “I reacted viscerally to [the] writing at 11 years old. I thought, ugh. I love it,” she said.

The End of Her Hollywood Career

Her decision to leave Hollywood wasn’t solely due to her mother’s passing.

As a young teenager, Wilson was going through puberty and growing out of the “cute” mold that had defined her career. Consequently, the roles were no longer coming in.

“Just another weird, nerdy, loud girl with bad hair and teeth, whose bra strap was always showing,” was how she was described.

“When I was thirteen, no one had complimented me on my appearance or called me cute—at least not in a flattering way,” Wilson recalled.

The pressures of celebrity and the challenges of becoming an adult in the public eye took a toll on her. Her changing image played a significant role in her decision to leave Hollywood.

“I had this Hollywood notion that you are worthless if you are not attractive or cute anymore,” she explained. “Because I connected that directly to my career’s downfall. Rejection still hurts, even if I was kind of burned out on it and Hollywood was burned out on me.”

A New Chapter: Author and Activist

Before becoming a writer, Wilson penned her first book, Where Am I Now?: Accidental Fame and True Tales of Childhood, published in 2016.

The book explores her journey from accidental fame to relative (but happy) obscurity, covering everything from what she learned about sex on the set of Melrose Place to discovering in adolescence that she was no longer “cute” enough for Hollywood.

In addition, she wrote the memoir Good Girls Don’t, which examines her experiences living up to expectations as a young performer.

In her Guardian column, she stated, “Being cute just made me miserable.” It was always my expectation that I would give up acting, not the other way around.