Movies | Pop Culture | 90s
The Story Of What Happened To The Kid From "Jingle All The Way" Will Make You Wonder If He's Cursed
I think we can all agree that watching Arnold Schwarzenegger dress up as "Turbo Man" is a key part of the Christmas season.
Whether you watch it with your kids, a group of friends of just need to make sure it plays at one point during the holidays, Jingle All The Way has made itself a staple on the must-watch Christmas movie list.
Watching Arny run through the streets trying to get his hands on the hottest toy of the year, right before Christmas is something we can all relate to as adults now.
But what ever happened to his son, Jamie Langston? You know, the kid who was fooled by his dad wearing a silly suit of his favorite TV superhero.
Jake Lloyd played the kid who wanted this Christmas gift so badly that he drove his father to extreme lengths for him to get it. After his 1996 role in the much-watched Christmas movie, he went on to play Anakin Skywalker in the 1999 movie Star Wars: Episode I- The Phantom Menace.
His performance was heavily criticized, and the role that many thought was a blessing, soon became a curse for him.
Mark Hamill defended the boy, and even got angry at the backlash the young actor faced.
āIām still angry about the way they treated Jake Lloyd. He was only ten years old, that boy, and he did exactly what George wanted him to do. Believe me, I understand clunky dialog,ā he said.
In 2001, Jake decided to retire from acting and from here on out his story became rather sad.
In 2012, the 22-year-old explained how being a "child star" had made his life a "living hell."
"Other children were really mean to me. They would make the sound of the light saber every time they saw me. It was totally mad. My entire school life was really a living hell ... and I had to do up to 60 interviews a day. I've learned to hate it when the cameras are pointed at me."
He moved away from Hollywood to Chicago, where he studied film and psychology. Unfortunately he ended up dropping out after only a semester. From there, he mostly disappeared from the public eye.
In 2015 however, the 26-year-old made headlines when he was arrested for resisting arrest following a high-speed police chase in South Carolina.
By 2016, he was reportedly "moved from a jail cell to a psychiatric facility" because he was suffering from schizophrenia. His mother, Lisa, later revealed that they were seeing an improvement on his health since the move.
At the time there was no timetable for his release and "his family wants him to take his time to get healthy."
We hope that he makes a speedy recovery!
Source: Daily Mail / Good Housekeeping