Celebrity

Actors Who Got Their Start in Mary-Kate and Ashley Movies

Spencer from Pretty Little Liars was 100 percent in Billboard Dad.
by Christopher Rosa

Before these nine actors (including Megan Fox and Michael Cera) hit the big time, they worked with legendary detectives/world travelers/soccer titans Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen on a string of flawless, Oscar-worthy projects. Eric McCormack, let’s be real: Your greatest accomplishment is Double, Double, Toil and Trouble, not Will & Grace.

  • 1 Sara Paxton
    Getty Images
    She starred in the recent film Cheap Thrills (2013) and made appearances in How to Get Away with Murder and Stalker. She’s also rumored to be joining the cast of Gotham as Bette Kane. (Though this hasn’t been confirmed.) Plus, who could forget her gruesome role in The Last House on the Left (2009)? [/item
  • 2 Sara Paxton
    Dualstar
    But before that, Paxton played Patty in You’re Invited to Mary-Kate & Ashley’s Christmas Party (1997). [/item
  • 3 Theo Rossi
    Getty Images
    He’s best known for playing Juan Carlos “Juice” Ortiz in Sons of Anarchy, which ended last December. Rossi is currently filming When the Bough Breaks (2016), alongside Regina Hall and Morris Chestnut. [/item
  • 4 Theo Rossi
    Warner Bros./Dualstar
    But do you remember when he competed with the Olsen twins in The Challenge (2003)? One of MK and Ash’s most underrated films, tbh. [/item
  • 5 Jesse Spencer
    Getty Images
    Spencer makes a living sexing it up alongside Lady Gaga’s fiancé Taylor Kinney as Lieutenant Matthew Casey in NBC’s Chicago Fire. [/item
  • 6 Jesse Spencer
    Warner Bros./Dualstar
    However, he once pined after Mary-Kate as Lord James Browning, Jr. in Winning London (2001). “Need a tour guide?” Hell yes, we do. [/item
  • 7 Ethan Peck
    Getty Images
    You may remember him as Patrick Verona in the ABC Family 10 Things I Hate About You reboot. Peck recently worked with Anne Heche in the 2013 horror film Nothing Left to Fear. [/item
  • 8 Ethan Peck
    Warner Bros./Dualstar
    But in 1999, Peck courted a young Mary-Kate in Passport to Paris. (He played Michel.) [/item
  • 9 Eric McCormack
    Getty Images
    He won an Emmy and Screen Actors Guild Award for playing Will Truman in the beloved series Will & Grace. [/item
  • 10 Eric McCormack
    Warner Bros./ABC
    But early in his career, he played the Olsen twins’ father in Double, Double, Toil and Trouble (1993). [/item
  • 11 Troian Bellisario
    Getty Images
    She plays the quick-witted Spencer Hastings in ABC Family’s cult hit Pretty Little Liars. [/item
  • 12 Troian Bellisario
    Warner Bros.
    But LOL when she was the Olsen’s swimming teammate in Billboard Dad (1998). [/item
  • 13 Austin Nichols
    Getty Images
    Nichols currently plays Spencer Monroe in The Walking Dead. Plus, he starred in HBO’s John from Cincinnati and portrayed Julian Baker in One Tree Hill. [/item
  • 14 Austin Nichols
    Warner Bros./Dualstar
    But his second film role ever was Griffen Grayson in Holiday in the Sun (2001), the king of Olsen movies. [/item
  • 15 Michael Cera
    Getty Images
    Cera is one of Hollywood’s favorite actors, starring in flicks like Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), Superbad (2007), and Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist (2008). [/item
  • 16 Michael Cera
    Warner Bros.
    His greatest role, however, is Taylor in Switching Goals (1999). [/item
  • 17 Megan Fox
    Getty Images
    The sex symbol’s recent credits include Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014) and This is 40 (2012). [/item
  • 18 Megan Fox
    Warner Bros./Dualstar
    But her first EvEr~* documented acting role was queen biotch Brianna in Holiday in the Sun (2001). Flawless. [/item
@chrisrosa92