Just like photography, video and cinema have become a way for us to go back in time and relive other times, moments, and past stories. It’s the screen that offers us to look back at great actors and leading men that marked an entire era, but it also shows them today with the changes that time and the years have made to their appearance.

Bright Side wanted to travel back in time and remember what the leading men of the ’80s and ’90s looked like back then to see how they’ve changed.

1. John Travolta

Multifaceted as they come, John Travolta has conquered generations both through his performances on the big screen and through his dances, productions, and even songs. After leaving millions of viewers open-mouthed with his role in the movie, Grease, he gained fame in the ’80s when watched him in productions like Blow Out and dancing again in Staying Alive. Travolta is still very present on the big screen today with performances in films like Trading Paint and The Fanatic.

2. Richard Gere

Richard Gere is an actor who’s had an impressive career on the big screen. Although his film appearances began in the ’70s, it was in the ’80s when he really rose to fame for his character in the film, American Gigolo. The success he reaped from that film was just a taste of the number of achievements he would continue to collect over the years. In the ’90s, he left no one indifferent with the well-known film, Pretty Woman, and more recently, The Dinner.

3. Christopher Lambert

In the 1980s, movie theaters played several films by Christopher Lambert, an actor of French origin who came to make a name for himself in Hollywood blockbusters. Greystoke, The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, and Highlander are some of his best-remembered roles from that era, but later came other blockbusters, such as Resurrection and Ghost Rider.

4. Kurt Russell

The son of a dancer and an actor, Kurt Rusell began his career in the film world in the 1960s and went on to become one of the most recognizable faces of action movies. In the 1980s, he starred in popular feature films, like Big Trouble in Little China and Tango & Cash, while in the 1990s, we saw him in Stargate and, more recently, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, The Christmas Chronicles, and Fast and Furious 9.

5. Rob Lowe

Rob Lowe’s beginnings were in the world of modeling, but his interest in acting grew when he appeared in several plays. In the ’80s, he starred in movies, but perhaps the film that made him world-famous was The Outsiders, together with other popular actors, like Patrick Swayze, Tom Cruise, Matt Dillon, and Ralph Macchio. More recently, he appeared in other productions, such as Super Troopers 2 and How to Be a Latin Lover.

6. Tom Selleck

He started his acting career in the late ’60s and early ’70s. Selleck is a man who always stands out for his elegance — and his classic mustache, of course. His most popular role was the private investigator protagonist of the ’80s series, Magnum, P.I., as well as his character in Three Men and a Baby. He’s still active today, and you can see him in the TV series, Blue Bloods.

7. Harrison Ford

His path to success and worldwide popularity arrived only in the late ’70s and early ’80s, even though he had already been acting for a while. It was the renowned creative director George Lucas who gave him the opportunity to appear in some of his most beloved and remembered films to this day, like Star Wars. Thus, Harrison Ford became Han Solo, and soon after that, Indiana Jones. And the rest is Hollywood history.

8. Michael Douglas

Son of famed actor Kirk Douglas, Michael Douglas followed in his talented father’s footsteps to become a renowned actor. With appearances in important ’80s and ’90s productions, such as Basic Instinct, he made it clear he had a gift for acting. Perhaps that’s why, even today, at 77, he still appears in major films, like Ant-Man and the Wasp and Avengers: Endgame, as well as in TV series, such as The Kominsky Method.

9. Matt Dillon

Another beloved leading man of the ’80s and ’90s is the actor and film and television producer, Matt Dillon. His roles in films like The Outsiders, To Die For, and There’s Something About Mary were instrumental in making his work critically and popularly acclaimed to this day.

10. Matthew Broderick

He inherited his passion for art and acting from his parents and, almost inevitably, Matthew Broderick ended up being a sought-after performer. Godzilla and Inspector Gadget are some of the films in which we could see him back in the ’90s, and more recently, he appeared in flicks like Lazy Susan.

11. Devon Sawa

He rose to fame in 1995 when he played the human form of the endearing little ghost known as Casper. In 2000, further success followed, and his career continued with Final Destination. In 2022, Devon Sawa shared the stage with stars like Bruce Willis and Luke Wilson in the movie, Gasoline Alley.

12. John Cusack

John Cusack is another name from that era that everybody still knows today. With films of the caliber of Being John Malkovich, Cusack managed to reach millions of people and a well-deserved place among the stars of Hollywood.

13. James Spader

This actor may currently be best known for his role as Raymond Reddington in the popular TV series, The Blacklist. However, his acting career is many years old and has a long history. In the 1980s, James Spader starred in Stargate and Crash.

14. Alan Ruck

Films such as Ferry’s Bueller Day Off, Star Trek: Next Generation and Speed are on the resume of this legendary actor. And most recently, he was seen in the production, The Dropout, alongside actress Amanda Seyfried.

What other leading men from the ’80s and ’90s do you remember? What is your favorite movie from this era?

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