All The Child Stars Who Sued Their Parents and Dragged Them to Court!

Family lawApril 12, 2021

Since the Shirley Temple tap-danced her way into our hearts, child stars have been a favorite. They have been under the spotlight from a very young age. We love watching our favorite child artists on screen, and we love them for their amazing performances and their charismatic presence. We watch with bated breath how the adorable young talents grow up to stronger performers or, in some cases, they succumb to the pressures of celebrity life.

However, there is a lot of drama going on in their lives, making their lives difficult to trudge through. Uneasy lies the fame on their vulnerable heads. Here are some celebrity kids who have had to endure a fair degree of controversy in their lives, and they had to drag their parents to court.

Ariel Winter

Ariel Winter shot to fame with her standout performance in ABC’s hit series Modern Family. However, her family situation has been anything but stable. And she has been mired with controversies.

The actress had to step out of her home when she was just 14 years old as she had to endure emotional abuse. She spent the next few years getting in and out of courts as she wanted to break free from her parent’s custody legally. She finally won the court case when she was just 17 years of age. Winter has been fairly candid about her case and never stopped short of sharing it with her fans.

Macaulay Culkin

The 1990s saw the meteoric rise of Macaulay Culkin, who was one of the most popular child actors of that period. Most of his popularity was because of his breakthrough performance from the movie Home Alone. The Home Alone franchise helped the Culkin build a lucrative career in Hollywood.

However, not all was hunky-dory at his home front. His parents separated when he was just 15 years old, and his wealth became the bone of contention in the custody battle. Culkin was at the receiving end as his mother tried to use the $17 million earnings to buy a house for herself. That was the last straw, and he filed a petition to move away from his parents. His mother, however, won the custody and stayed with him till he turned an adult.

Billy Unger

Everyone knows that it is not a good idea to mix family and business. However, Billy Unger learned it the hard way. Billy Unger, the star of the Disney Channel’s Lab Rats, had to endure difficult times because he clashed with his dad.

William Unger, his father, helped him out in the early part of his career as his talent manager and business advisor. Later, Junior Unger sued his father as he claimed that he was using his income for his personal benefit. William even took one-third of his salary as his commission.

Jena Malone

Jena Malone was one of the other successful stars in the nineties who wowed the audience with her performance. Some of her popular films, Stepmom, Contact, and Donnie Darko. Her versatile performances made her a hot favorite among the cine-goers. Like the other stars in this list, she had to brave many problems too.

When she was just 14 years old, she filed a lawsuit against her mother, for spending a whopping $1 million of her fortune. Malone was living alone until her formal separation from her estranged parent. She finally won the suit and found a successful career in Hollywood without her mother’s interference.

Mischa Barton

Mischa Barton became famous as Marissa Cooper on the FOX teen drama, The O.C. Her role as the girl next door who was fighting her battles in a dysfunctional family won people’s hearts. In 2015, Barton’s real-life imitated her reel life as her mother, Nuala Barton, relied on her to fend for herself. Her mom, who was her manager, ultimately stole millions from her in the spate of two decades. However, nearly after a year, she dropped the suit for reasons we are not aware of.

Other child stars on the list have had to face similar struggles, such as Gary Coleman, Jackie Coogan, Leighton Meester, Corey Feldman, and more. Despite courting fame in the early part of their career, their personal life wasn’t as smooth as they would have liked them to be.