The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face: Big Name Film Stars

The previous editions of this article series have focused on the TV stars who have worked their way up to star status on the small screen. But this time I am focusing on big name film stars who got their break on the small screen. Let’s take a look at the first time ever I saw the face of just some of the household names from the big screen.

Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt

THE FIRST TIME EVER I SAW HIS FACE: One of his first TV appearances was in a November 1987 episode of the popular sitcom Growing Pains, and shortly after that he appeared in four episodes of the original soap opera Dallas in 1987 and 1988.

OF COURSE, he has gone on to appear in countless box office films, including Thelma & Louise, A River Runs Through It, Legends of the Fall, Meet Joe Black, Fight Club, Ocean’s Eleven, Troy, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Inglorious Basterds, Moneyball, World War Z and 12 Years A Slave (among countless others).

Ben Affleck

Ben Affleck

THE FIRST TIME EVER I SAW HIS FACE: His first big TV role was in one of the lead roles of the 1991 Danielle Steel movie Daddy followed up by the critically acclaimed but short-lived TV series Against the Grain.

OF COURSE, he has starred in films such as Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Good Will Hunting (which earned him an Oscar), Shakespeare in Love, Pearl Harbor, The Sum of All Fears, Daredevil, Hollywoodland, The Company Man, The Town, Argo and Runner Runner.

Sandra Bullock

Sandra Bullock

THE FIRST TIME EVER I SAW HER FACE: Her first role on TV was in the 1989 made-for-TV movie Bionic Showdown: The Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman, which was followed by the short-lived TV version of Working Girl.

OF COURSE, she has appeared in the box office flicks Speed, The Net, A Time to Kill, Hope Floats, Practical Magic, 28 Days, Miss Congeniality, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Two Weeks Notice, The Lake House, The Blind Side (which earned her an Oscar), The Heat and Gravity.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio

THE FIRST TIME EVER I SAW HIS FACE: He first appeared in several episodes of the soap opera Santa Barbara and the original short-lived TV version of Parenthood, but it was his role in the final season of the sitcom Growing Pains that caught him attention.

OF COURSE, he went on to appear in the films What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, The Quick and the Dead, Romeo + Juliet, the blockbuster Titanic, Gangs of New York, Catch Me If You Can, The Aviator, The Departed, Blood Diamond, Inception, J. Edgar, Django Unchained and The Great Gatsby (among others).

Amy Adams

Amy Adams

THE FIRST TIME EVER I SAW HER FACE: While she appeared in one episode of Charmed and Providence back in 2000, it was her appearance in an early episode of the long-running series Smallville that caught viewers’ attention.

OF COURSE, she has gone on to star in films such as Catch Me If You Can, Junebug, The Wedding Date, Enchanted, Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day, Doubt, Julie & Julia, Leap Year, The Muppets, The Master, Trouble with the Curve and Man of Steel.

Jeremy Renner

Jeremy Renner

THE FIRST TIME EVER I SAW HIS FACE: While he did appear in the films North Country, S.W.A.T., 28 Weeks Later and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, it was his role in the short-lived TV series The Unusuals that caught my eye.

OF COURSE, he has since appeared in the Oscar-winning film The Hurt Locker, Thor, Mission Impossible: The Ghost Protocol, The Avengers, The Bourne Legacy and Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters.

Are there any big name stars that you first caught on the small screen? If so, please share.