Gawky To Hottie 15 Celebs Who Grew Up To Be Babes

Being a teenager is tough, and even the rich and famous aren't exempt from the worst parts of it. Bad hair, bad skin, lumpy features, awkward clothes, and a body that doesn't look quite right affect all of us - and we all have more than a few embarrassing photos to prove it. If you're like these many celebrities, there are probably too many photos for your liking, documenting the worst, most awkward parts of your adolescence for the world to see. But, while being a teenager makes every moment feel like it belongs to the most dramatic of movies, once we come out clean on the other side, we know we're better for having had such a hard time. You see, there is nothing quite so satisfying as growing up an ugly duckling and later transforming into a swan.

If you're one of those girls who was always poised and perfect, maybe you can't relate; but for those of us who didn't peak in high school, these celebrities are living, breathing, beautiful proof that even the most goofy-looking among us can become major hotties once we grow up.

15 Justin Timberlake

While Justin Timberlake may have been considered a heartthrob during his NSYNC days (because you always had to pick one to be your favourite), there's no denying that he was still kind of goofy-looking. A victim of the late '90s and early '00s fashions, JT was stuck with Ramen-noodle hair, tinted sunglasses, diamond earrings, and too-wide collars over what looks like a corduroy or denim suit. This photo doesn't even do the horrible fashions of his boy band days justice, however, because it fails to include his time spent in multi-coloured furs, double denim, and patent leather. Not to mention all the bandannas!

Fortunately, even though Justin was considered a hottie early on, he definitely outgrew his awkward, over-styled teen years to become one of the sexiest men alive, with Michael Jackson moves and a buff body littered with tattoos. His cleaned-up look with just a hint of scruff to roughen up his baby face have made him a ridiculously hot grown-up with far more ~adult~ vibes.

14 Avril Lavigne

When Avril Lavigne first arrived on the music scene in the early 2000s, she was pretty cute. With her pin-straight hair, men's ties, skater shoes, and raccoon eyeliner, she was the alternative girl that guys couldn't wait to get their hands on. Before that, though, she was definitely more than a little awkward-looking, with a puffed-out bob (a far cry from her straightened locks) and the small glasses everyone had. She looks innocent and a bit plain, with no shred of the attitude we've come to associate with her.

Fast-forward to now and Avril, into her second marriage, is all grown up! She's still got the layers of dark eyeliner, but they're applied in a smokey way rather than like a girl with a grease pencil. Her ironed brown hair has now lightened up and let loose, and while she still definitely has a bit of an edge, Avril is far sexier than any of us ever saw coming when she was sneering in music videos.

13 Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt has been considered one of the sexiest men alive since he hit the Hollywood scene in the early '90s (making waves as a shirtless cowboy con artist in Ridley Scott's Thelma & Louise), but he wasn't always such a golden, gorgeous god.

Back when he was in high school, Brad skewed a little more chipmunk than Chippendale, with feathered hair and chubby cheeks that make the resemblance between him and daughter Shiloh all the more striking. He wasn't immune to the fashions of the decade, often decked out in powder blue suits and the afore-mentioned hair. Now, however, Brad is daddy hot, with wrinkles that suit him and the same smirk that gives him a whiff of devilish charm. He's had quite a few decades of being one of the hottest men alive, and with his recent split from Angeline Jolie, Brad's back on the market as one of the hottest SINGLE men alive. The lineup reaches to the back, ladies!

12 Charlize Theron

Another golden-haired hottie, the fact that this South African actress first started her career as a model might be a little hard to believe, based on that before picture. Growing up as a child, Charlize Theron had a difficult home life and was sent to boarding school at 13, where she began to pursue a career in the arts.

Now considered one of the most beautiful women in the world (she even scored a role as the notoriously beauty-hungry Evil Queen Ravenna in the live-action Snow White films), Charlize's beauty was a little harder to see behind that 1980s secretary hair and huge glasses. You can still see that she's a cutie with cheekbones to die for, but there's definitely quite a way to go before she reaches the sculpted majesty of Charlize today. With her striking green eyes and legs for days, Charlize has certainly shed any history she had as an “ugly duckling”!

11 Ryan Seacrest

You may have already seen an earlier photo of Ryan Seacrest, back when he was an overweight, brace-faced, glasses-wearing kid, but the photo on the left here is proof that Ryan still hadn't quite outgrown his awkward stage by the time he reached high school.

While he now appears more confident than ever, high school Ryan seemed to still be trying to find his footing, with a smile that seemed to hold a few things back, puffy hair that was fashionable at the time, untamed eyebrows, and a double chin that you know he was self-conscious of. Now, Ryan has nothing to hide behind, as his grin has been plastered all over TVs and magazines for years as part of his long-time gig as the host of American Idol. If only he could tell his former schlubby self that not only would he be one of the most recognizable people on the planet, but that he'd also be dating other certified hottie and Victoria's Secret model, Adriana Lima!

10 Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift has been in the public eye since she was a teenager belting out country hits and carrying a bedazzled guitar across the stage, but there was a time when even this Princess of 'Style' (see what I did there?) was awkward just like the rest of us.

This photo shows a very young T-Swift with her trademark blond hair when she still wore it in waves, and an expression that doesn't seem all that innocent - and perhaps points towards her more conniving public image that has appeared later in life! Taylor Swift now is absolutely gorgeous, whatever you may think of her personality. With a stylish wardrobe and legs that any woman would kill for, Taylor is H-O-T. But in the photo on the left? Well, she just looks like a sweet girl who maybe wouldn't stop talking about boys and horses, and who you later ignored because she got annoying. Cute and plain, Taylor definitely outgrew this awkward stage!

9 Adam Levine

Another former awkward teenager who landed a VS model (this time in wife and mother of his daughter, Behati Prinsloo), Adam Levine has been pretty open about his past as a teenage ugly duckling. Thanks to his deal with Proactiv, Adam has spoken about his adolescent issues with acne, and judging from both photos, he clearly had started to use something to help his skin along! However, just because his skin cleared up, doesn't mean Adam all of a sudden became the suave and sexy singer we now know him to be. Instead, this photo on the left shows a goofy kid trying his best at “bedroom eyes” while sporting a badly-advised lump of scruff on his chin. Adding to that look are the stringy bits of hair he had when he chose to grow it long, which is - thankfully - not the look Adam goes for today. Sorry, kid on left, but you never would've scored a supermodel looking like that!

8 Zooey Deschanel

Zooey Deschanel is one of those hot girls that even guys who don't use the word “hot” like. She has cartoonishly-large blue eyes, dark hair, and a vintage style that makes her simultaneously cute, gorgeous, sexy, funny, and smart. She's used her look as a Manic Pixie Dream Girl to her advantage, of course, in roles like that of Summer in (500) Days of Summer - but, this was not always the case for Zooey.

While she's always had her big doe eyes and dark hair, Zooey was the kind of awkward teen a lot of us are, in that she held on to her baby fat longer than she'd probably have liked. Her tangled hair looks like she just came in from running around outside, and the absence of her trademark red lipstick is striking (and not in a good way). One of the most talented adult beauties on this list, Zooey definitely came into her looks, which gives hope to the rest of us!

7 Drake

Is that Drake or your 45-year-old aunt/guidance counsellor? Who would've believed that the goofy kid on the left and the steamy stud on the right were, in fact, the same person?!

Drake spent a lot of his younger years in the spotlight, playing the wheelchair-bound Jimmy Brooks on the hit Canadian TV show Degrassi. At that time, he looked like any other cute kid in oversized sweats and a mini afro. But in this picture? Er, not so much. We all know that Drake is a bit of a dork (just look at his dancing in the video for 'Hotline Bling'), even though he's one of the sexiest hip-hop stars alive, and it seems that this early teenage photo is proof that he's been a dork since day one! From the oversized jean jacket to the tiny glasses to the barely-there unibrow, Drake is serving up more awkwardness than he is sex appeal! Unlike that jean jacket, it seems that Drake finally grew into his looks!

6 Jennifer Garner

Jennifer Garner's facial structure hasn't actually changed that much between these two photos (which is completely unfair), but it's the stuff on top of that face that makes her a prime example of when awkward teens grow into hot people.

With her mega-watt smile, extra-large dimples, and overall likeability, Jennifer has always been an action hero kind of hot - especially when you take into account her incredibly fit body! But, to equate her with the teenage girl on the left? I don't think so. Another teen afflicted with terrible glasses, Jennifer accessorized her extra-large frames with some of the worst curled hair ever, and the type of sweater that wouldn't look out of place in an episode of The Cosby Show. Here, Jennifer looks like the type of nerdy gal who would ask for extra homework for the whole class before she ran off to band practice (the last of which is actually true - she played the sax!). Definitely not the hot mom and actress we now know her to be!

5 George Clooney

Another regular on Hollywood's Hottest lists, George Clooney is the type of bachelor who makes ladies of all generations swoon - before human rights lawyer Amal pinned him down. With his salt-and-pepper hair, trademark smirk, warm eyes, and devilish reputation, George has left his fair share of broken hearts.

Imagine telling that to the kid on the left! While the smirk is still definitely there, it's hard to notice it amid the thick brows, WTF-worthy hair, and Hawaiian-print shirt that is definitely not appropriate for a school picture. In this left photo, teenage George looks more like the kind of guy you'd avoid when you went to your locker, instead of the guy you'd hope you ran into between periods. There's an awkwardness to him, but not in a charming way, and you desperately want to tell him to do something with his damn hair. Fortunately, George ditched the shirt in favour of smart suits and the rest is (hot) history.

4 Zac Efron

Since his time in High School Musical, Zac Efron has gone the JT route and been considered a bonafide hottie since boyhood. However, when you compare these two photos, you can really see that what you may have once considered hot is NOTHING compared to the abtastic Adonis he is today!

In the first photograph, it seems as though he's decided to crimp his hair for some strange reason, although Zac's hair has actually been a major part of his image, like when he wore it long and brushed to the side during the mid-2000s and now, when it's usually styled up and lightened. Either way, definitely better than that crimped monstrosity.

Then we have his teeth. While 2016 Zac has beautiful white sparklers that he flashes at any occasion, teenage Zac's teeth are not as hot, with a big gap between the front two and weird spacing throughout. Add the new Zac's face to an incredible, drool-worthy body and you definitely have a guy who shed his awkward stage a long time ago.

3 Nick Jonas

Nick Jonas was always the littlest Jonas with the biggest hair, playing in the shadows of the considerably hotter Joe Jonas and older brother Kevin. But my, my, how the tables have turned! While Joe is still gorgeous and finding success with his band DNCE and Kevin is living life as a happy family man, Nick has made our collective jaws drop when he embarked on a solo career - and provided a series of steamy photos to boot!

Before, Nick was a cute kid with a baby face and too much mousse in his hair. Now, he's ditched the promise ring and stripped down for multiple photoshoots and videos so that we can ogle his sculpted body. The youngest Jonas is all grown up - and DAMN, he's grown up well! While Nick may not have had an awkward stage per se, it's his radical transformation from Christian cutie to hands-down hottie that makes him so worthy of a spot near the top of our list.

2 January Jones

And you thought your school picture was bad! Full disclosure: this image of actress January Jones was taken on the cusp of teenagehood, but it was too memorable - and shocking - not to include. From the gappy smile to the weird printed shirt to the blond mullet haircut, it's almost impossible to believe that that little urchin on the left grew into one of Hollywood's hottest actresses. In fact, you may actually need to stare back and forth between the two a few times before you really believe it!

January isn't shy about sharing her awkward childhood years. Instead, she's the master of Throwback Thursdays, showing off her early modelling shots and gems like this one to prove that any ugly duckling really can become a swan. A gorgeous TV staple, January's starring roles on Mad Men and The Last Man on Earth have let her work both her beauty and her acting chops. No matter how awkward a teen you are, or how bad your hair is, just look to January Jones for solace.

1 Matthew Lewis

Could this really have been anyone else? Matthew Lewis grew up before our eyes through the Harry Potter films, but it wasn't until after he'd left Hogwarts that he became the sex on legs we know now. A victim of awkward adolescence, Matthew dealt with greasy hair, bad skin, oversized features, and terrible teeth throughout his time on set, but now he's become one of the best-looking young stars in Hollywood!

He's so hot, in fact, that his transformation into a sex symbol has been dubbed “Longbottoming”, which, according to Urban Dictionary, is the “surprising transformation of someone from decidedly unattractive to hot as hell”. We can't think of anyone who is better deserving of having a term named after his (fictional) moniker! With abs that you could grate cheese on and a thatch of chest hair that shows that Matthew is, most definitely, a man, this is one teen that we are truly, truly thankful for reaching adulthood.