welcome to the best of WatchMojo the
series that reef features some of our
biggest and best videos that you may
have missed you stepped in the school
and singing schools not for everyone
and these successful celebs proved that
a high school diploma isn’t always
necessary welcome to watchmojo.com and
today we’re counting down our picks for
the top 10 celebrities who never
graduated from high school for this list
we’re looking at celebs who decided to
follow their dreams instead of their
education or who were forced to leave
school because of some sort of hardship
education but in their cases it looks
like things worked out for the best was
I talking about
number 10 Quentin Tarantino mr. Brown
was a little too close to mr. shit you
may know him as the brilliant
screenwriter actor producer and director
behind some of modern cinemas greatest
hits including Reservoir Dogs
however Tarantino’s cinematic background
was not learned in school he dropped out
of Narbonne high school sometime after
the ninth grade and decided to take a
more hands-on approach to his film
education but you know what’s on my mind
right now it ain’t the coffee in my
kitchen he subsequently took on a few
acting classes community theater
worked as an usher at an adult movie
theater and took a video store gig
[Music]
number nine Robert Downey jr. I am Iron
Man
this actor famous for making Charlie
Chaplin and Iron Man come to life and
whose charming persona has broken our
hearts and films like less than zero and
busted our guts in films like Tropic
Thunder never made it to his graduation
around the age of 16
this child actor and son of Robert
Downey senior dropped out of Santa
Monica High School and decided to move
back to New York City to pursue acting
instead let’s face it this is not the
worst thing you’ve got me done 1985
turned out to be a breakout year in his
post academic acting career with roles
in films like tough turf and weird
science foreshadowing the talent we’ve
come to expect from Downey jr. I’ve got
to give it a try otherwise whatever I’ve
been doing number eight
you’re talking to me yes we’re talking
about him although today he’s considered
one of the greatest actors alive with
beloved and critically acclaimed roles
in Raging Bull taxi driver and the
Godfather Part 2 to name only a few De
child of divorced parents he drifted
from school to school in his youth but
even at a young age displayed his
aptitude for acting before turning 17
Bobby deed decided to drop out of high
school entirely and instead studied
acting at the Stella Adler conservatory
and Lee Strasberg actress studio the
number seven Nicolas Cage oh gosh
kind of lots happened since then the
nephew of director Francis Ford Coppola
Cage has shown that he can hold his own
without using his famous family name
with his award-winning performance in
leaving Las Vegas as well as appearances
in Smash Hits like the rock and national
that was brilliant
however few know that at the age of 16
the young Nicholas Coppola obsessed with
James Dean and with big dreams of acting
dropped out of Beverly Hills High School
there we go yes let’s do it to it early
on in his career he changed his last
name to Kage and before long he landed a
minor role in Fast Times at Ridgemont
High number 6
Tom Cruise can you picture this handsome
and successful actor sitting with you in
a confessional that’s almost what
happened to Cruz who grew up poor in an
abusive family and who moved to over a
dozen different schools in his childhood
maybe I’m just too old to be a student
although we enjoyed playing sports like
floor hockey and football
his real aspiration was to become a
Catholic priest going so far as to study
at a seminary but by his mid-teens this
dyslexic student left academics
altogether to pursue acting in New York
City god damned sense makes a difference
on the street his first bit part was in
1981 s endless love and it was only a
few years later that films like risky
business and Top Gun made him a
number five Hilary Swank what you get
suspended for oh it’s a long story I’ll
tell you later
how do young age the athletic Swank was
busy between school community theater
programs gymnastics the Junior Olympics
and the Washington State Swimming
Championships she didn’t have time for
much else after the separation of her
parents however Swank went with her
mother to Los Angeles to pursue acting
though she initially went to South
Pasadena High School her feeling of
isolation from her fellow students
finally compelled her to leave yeah I
should just forget about school forget
about my life I can’t I just lock myself
in my room and listen to music all day
she probably doesn’t look back at her
choice with regret after her first
leading role in the next Karate Kid
she has since won two Academy Awards I
know if you train me right I’m gonna be
a champ I’ve seen you looking at me yeah
out of pity don’t you say that don’t you
say that if it ain’t true
number four Jim Carrey excuse me could
you tell me how to get to the medical
school I’m supposed to be doing a
lecture in about 20 minutes and my
driver’s a bit lost imagine having this
comedy legend in your class when you’re
yes Kari was a class clown go figure
who got straight A’s back in the day
excuse me I’d like to ask you a few
questions however with the onset of hard
times a 15 year old Kari was compelled
to leave school and work as a janitor to
help take care of his family it was only
later that he chose to give comedy a
tribe and are we ever glad he did this
choice led to hilarious classics like
Dumb and Dumber and Ace Ventura as well
as more serious ventures like The Truman
Show and Eternal Sunshine of the
spotless mind in case I don’t see ya
good afternoon good evening and good
night number three Diana Princess of
Wales at the age of 19 you always think
you’re prepared for everything and you
think you have the knowledge of what’s
coming ahead just because you’re a
princess doesn’t mean you’re a high
honors graduate Diana Spencer who later
became the beloved Princess of Wales was
not considered a very good student at
West Heath girl school in fact when
attempting to complete her ohh level
exams a series of tests given to high
school students in England to determine
their academic ability she managed to
fail all of them twice she did try and I
think she hadn’t a clue why she wasn’t
good I think the underlying troubles at
home in her family just affected her
concentration
despite moving to a finishing school in
Switzerland she never finished the 19
year old became engaged to Prince
Charles and quickly married him
eventually using her newfound status to
champion humanitarian causes
number two nicole kidman how long have
you known when her mother was diagnosed
with breast cancer the
seventeen-year-old Kidman dropped out of
high school to help provide for her
family by working in massage therapy I’m
going to do whatever it takes if I have
to work harder longer hours for Less pay
than I’m willing to do that of course I
am
shortly after she decided to pursue a
career in acting
inspired by Margaret Hamilton’s
portrayal of the Wicked Witch of the
West in The Wizard of Oz it ended up
going back to school to study her craft
although naturally shy she went on to
make her debut in an Australian remake
of the film Bush Christmas though her
breakthrough internationally acclaimed
before we unveil our top pick here are a
few honorable mentions senior bra
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
number one Richard Branson I would say I
had the luckiest person in the world
surely any billionaire must have made
his money thanks to years of intense
schooling right well maybe not this poor
student who suffered from dyslexia and
subsequently received poor grades
eventually dropped out to start up his
own magazine at the age of 16 using that
money I left school and launched this
magazine then a mail-order record
business by the age of 20 and eventually
a chain of record stores called Virgin
Records if you have a passion for what
you’re doing you’re gonna be able to do
it to do it that much better
today he’s the proud founder and face of
virgin group a multinational comprising
over 400 companies and one of the top 10
richest people in the UK fulfilling the
prophecy of the schoolmaster who told
him that he would either end up in jail
or become a millionaire something of the
headmaster of your school said about you
when you were just a teenager What did
he say I think he said I’ll either go to
prison or I’ll become a multimillionaire
do you agree with our list which
celebrity high school dropouts do you
envy the most for more fascinating top
10s published every day be sure to
subscribe to watchmojo.com sure your
waitresses do you agree with our picks
check out these other great clips from
WatchMojo and subscribe for new videos every day
series that reef features some of our
biggest and best videos that you may
have missed you stepped in the school
and singing schools not for everyone
and these successful celebs proved that
a high school diploma isn’t always
necessary welcome to watchmojo.com and
today we’re counting down our picks for
the top 10 celebrities who never
graduated from high school for this list
we’re looking at celebs who decided to
follow their dreams instead of their
education or who were forced to leave
school because of some sort of hardship
education but in their cases it looks
like things worked out for the best was
I talking about
number 10 Quentin Tarantino mr. Brown
was a little too close to mr. shit you
may know him as the brilliant
screenwriter actor producer and director
behind some of modern cinemas greatest
hits including Reservoir Dogs
however Tarantino’s cinematic background
was not learned in school he dropped out
of Narbonne high school sometime after
the ninth grade and decided to take a
more hands-on approach to his film
education but you know what’s on my mind
right now it ain’t the coffee in my
kitchen he subsequently took on a few
acting classes community theater
worked as an usher at an adult movie
theater and took a video store gig
[Music]
number nine Robert Downey jr. I am Iron
Man
this actor famous for making Charlie
Chaplin and Iron Man come to life and
whose charming persona has broken our
hearts and films like less than zero and
busted our guts in films like Tropic
Thunder never made it to his graduation
around the age of 16
this child actor and son of Robert
Downey senior dropped out of Santa
Monica High School and decided to move
back to New York City to pursue acting
instead let’s face it this is not the
worst thing you’ve got me done 1985
turned out to be a breakout year in his
post academic acting career with roles
in films like tough turf and weird
science foreshadowing the talent we’ve
come to expect from Downey jr. I’ve got
to give it a try otherwise whatever I’ve
been doing number eight
you’re talking to me yes we’re talking
about him although today he’s considered
one of the greatest actors alive with
beloved and critically acclaimed roles
in Raging Bull taxi driver and the
Godfather Part 2 to name only a few De
child of divorced parents he drifted
from school to school in his youth but
even at a young age displayed his
aptitude for acting before turning 17
Bobby deed decided to drop out of high
school entirely and instead studied
acting at the Stella Adler conservatory
and Lee Strasberg actress studio the
number seven Nicolas Cage oh gosh
kind of lots happened since then the
nephew of director Francis Ford Coppola
Cage has shown that he can hold his own
without using his famous family name
with his award-winning performance in
leaving Las Vegas as well as appearances
in Smash Hits like the rock and national
that was brilliant
however few know that at the age of 16
the young Nicholas Coppola obsessed with
James Dean and with big dreams of acting
dropped out of Beverly Hills High School
there we go yes let’s do it to it early
on in his career he changed his last
name to Kage and before long he landed a
minor role in Fast Times at Ridgemont
High number 6
Tom Cruise can you picture this handsome
and successful actor sitting with you in
a confessional that’s almost what
happened to Cruz who grew up poor in an
abusive family and who moved to over a
dozen different schools in his childhood
maybe I’m just too old to be a student
although we enjoyed playing sports like
floor hockey and football
his real aspiration was to become a
Catholic priest going so far as to study
at a seminary but by his mid-teens this
dyslexic student left academics
altogether to pursue acting in New York
City god damned sense makes a difference
on the street his first bit part was in
1981 s endless love and it was only a
few years later that films like risky
business and Top Gun made him a
number five Hilary Swank what you get
suspended for oh it’s a long story I’ll
tell you later
how do young age the athletic Swank was
busy between school community theater
programs gymnastics the Junior Olympics
and the Washington State Swimming
Championships she didn’t have time for
much else after the separation of her
parents however Swank went with her
mother to Los Angeles to pursue acting
though she initially went to South
Pasadena High School her feeling of
isolation from her fellow students
finally compelled her to leave yeah I
should just forget about school forget
about my life I can’t I just lock myself
in my room and listen to music all day
she probably doesn’t look back at her
choice with regret after her first
leading role in the next Karate Kid
she has since won two Academy Awards I
know if you train me right I’m gonna be
a champ I’ve seen you looking at me yeah
out of pity don’t you say that don’t you
say that if it ain’t true
number four Jim Carrey excuse me could
you tell me how to get to the medical
school I’m supposed to be doing a
lecture in about 20 minutes and my
driver’s a bit lost imagine having this
comedy legend in your class when you’re
yes Kari was a class clown go figure
who got straight A’s back in the day
excuse me I’d like to ask you a few
questions however with the onset of hard
times a 15 year old Kari was compelled
to leave school and work as a janitor to
help take care of his family it was only
later that he chose to give comedy a
tribe and are we ever glad he did this
choice led to hilarious classics like
Dumb and Dumber and Ace Ventura as well
as more serious ventures like The Truman
Show and Eternal Sunshine of the
spotless mind in case I don’t see ya
good afternoon good evening and good
night number three Diana Princess of
Wales at the age of 19 you always think
you’re prepared for everything and you
think you have the knowledge of what’s
coming ahead just because you’re a
princess doesn’t mean you’re a high
honors graduate Diana Spencer who later
became the beloved Princess of Wales was
not considered a very good student at
West Heath girl school in fact when
attempting to complete her ohh level
exams a series of tests given to high
school students in England to determine
their academic ability she managed to
fail all of them twice she did try and I
think she hadn’t a clue why she wasn’t
good I think the underlying troubles at
home in her family just affected her
concentration
despite moving to a finishing school in
Switzerland she never finished the 19
year old became engaged to Prince
Charles and quickly married him
eventually using her newfound status to
champion humanitarian causes
number two nicole kidman how long have
you known when her mother was diagnosed
with breast cancer the
seventeen-year-old Kidman dropped out of
high school to help provide for her
family by working in massage therapy I’m
going to do whatever it takes if I have
to work harder longer hours for Less pay
than I’m willing to do that of course I
am
shortly after she decided to pursue a
career in acting
inspired by Margaret Hamilton’s
portrayal of the Wicked Witch of the
West in The Wizard of Oz it ended up
going back to school to study her craft
although naturally shy she went on to
make her debut in an Australian remake
of the film Bush Christmas though her
breakthrough internationally acclaimed
before we unveil our top pick here are a
few honorable mentions senior bra
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
number one Richard Branson I would say I
had the luckiest person in the world
surely any billionaire must have made
his money thanks to years of intense
schooling right well maybe not this poor
student who suffered from dyslexia and
subsequently received poor grades
eventually dropped out to start up his
own magazine at the age of 16 using that
money I left school and launched this
magazine then a mail-order record
business by the age of 20 and eventually
a chain of record stores called Virgin
Records if you have a passion for what
you’re doing you’re gonna be able to do
it to do it that much better
today he’s the proud founder and face of
virgin group a multinational comprising
over 400 companies and one of the top 10
richest people in the UK fulfilling the
prophecy of the schoolmaster who told
him that he would either end up in jail
or become a millionaire something of the
headmaster of your school said about you
when you were just a teenager What did
he say I think he said I’ll either go to
prison or I’ll become a multimillionaire
do you agree with our list which
celebrity high school dropouts do you
envy the most for more fascinating top
10s published every day be sure to
subscribe to watchmojo.com sure your
waitresses do you agree with our picks
check out these other great clips from
WatchMojo and subscribe for new videos every day
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