By ETonline Staff
3:05 PM PDT, July 12, 2021
Before they struck it big in Hollywood, these celebrities were from suburban towns and cities across the U.S. just like you. Kanye West, Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Lopez and Janelle Monáe all had to start somewhere. Some have major hometown pride like Chris Evans and Jennifer Lawrence. You might be shocked to discover where Emma Stone is originally from.
Keep reading to see who the most popular celebrities are from every state (and D.C.) — it might even be someone from your neighborhood!
The Magic Mike star hails from the Heart of Dixie! He was born in Cullman, Alabama, but his family moved to Mississippi when he was six.
Tatum’s newest project is The Lost City of D. He plays a romance cover model who goes on a book tour with the less-than-excited novelist (Sandra Bullock). The two are subsequently caught up in a kidnapping attempt that lands them in the middle of the jungle.
The Outer Banks heartthrob grew up in Ketchikan.
Outer Banks follows local teens from the beach city as they navigate their lives. It was recently renewed for a second season.
She may have won an Oscar for her role in La La Land but Scottsdale was Stone’s first home.
Stone’s new Disney villain origin story, Cruella, has amassed more than $180 million at the box office. A sequel is already in development.
The Oscar-winning actor/director is a Hot Springs native who made his way to Los Angeles in the ’80s.
Since 2016, Thornton has starred in Goliath on Amazon Prime Video, in which he plays a down-and-out lawyer seeking redemption. He won a Golden Globe for Best Actor – Television Series Drama for the role.
Many celebrities hail from California, but this makeup mogul is a born and bred Golden State gal.
Not only is her famous family practically royalty in Los Angeles (and, well, everywhere), Jenner still lives in her hometown of Calabasas.
The Centennial State is where this Last Man Standing star got his start.
The comedian and actor was born in Denver, but there’s a reason he’s so associated with Michigan — he moved to the Mitten State in his early teens.
The World of Dance host was born in Hartford.
She moved around frequently as a kid and ended up going to high schools in Maryland and Texas.
The Parks and Recreation actress was born and raised in Wilmington.
Plaza recently starred in the comedy thriller Black Bear and the romantic comedy Happiest Season.
The “Thank U, Next” singer is originally from the Sunshine State, living in Boca Raton before moving west to pursue her career.
Grande’s most recent album, Positions, was a critical and commercial. She has been the most-followed woman on Instagram since 2019.
The Pretty Woman star was born in Smyrna, a suburb of Atlanta, where her parents taught acting and writing workshops.
Roberts’ newest project is the romantic comedy Ticket to Paradise, where she will reunite with George Clooney.
Though he was raised in Norwalk, Iowa, the Aquaman and Game of Thrones actor was born in Honolulu.
Momoa has a starring role in the highly anticipated Denis Villeneuve film Dune, which is scheduled to be released on Oct. 22, 2021.
Before you knew him from Breaking Bad, BoJack Horseman and The Path, the Emmy-winning actor spent his formulative years in Emmett.
Paul recently starred in the third season of the award-winning HBO show Westworld. The show has been renewed for a fourth season, but it’s unknown if his character will return.
The larger-than-life rapper was three when he moved to Chicago. West and his estranged wife, Kim Kardashian West, even have a daughter named after the Windy City.
West ran for president in 2020, netting 60,000 votes in a loss to Joseph Biden.
The actress who played the likable Pam Beesly on The Office is originally from Fort Wayne.
Fischer currently hosts an Office recap podcast called Office Ladies with fellow cast member Angela Kinsey. It won the 2021 iHeartRadio Podcast Award for Podcast of the Year.
The Ranch star spent his childhood years in Cedar Rapids and stayed in the Hawkeye State for college, where he attended the University of Iowa.
His career got its start while he was in college, when he placed first in the “Fresh Faces of Iowa” modeling competition.
The singer-turned-actress was born and raised in Kansas City.
She most recently starred in the thriller Antebellum and the Amazon Prime series Homecoming.
Before being spotted by a talent scout in New York City in her teens, the Oscar winner spent her early years in Indian Hills, just outside of Louisville.
Lawrence is set to star opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in Adam McKay’s newest black comedy film, Don’t Look Up. Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett, Jonah Hill and Timothée Chalamet have also been cast.
The rapper is a NOLA boy.
Lil Wayne spent his first few years in New Orleans’ Hollygrove neighborhood and later attended Marion Abramson Senior High School.
The Pitch Perfect actress was born and raised in Portland. However, she was already on Broadway in New York City by the time she was 12.
Kendrick’s latest film, Stowaway, premiered on Netflix in April 2021.
The Red Table Talk co-host and actress is a born and raised Baltimore girl. Smith attended the Baltimore School of the Arts.
She broke into the mainstream opposite Eddie Murphy in The Nutty Professor. She is reprising her role as Niobe in The Matrix 4, which is currently in production.
Like his fellow Boston Proud actors Mark Wahlberg, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon and John Krasinski, the Captain America star was born near Beantown.
The Sudbury native not only lived in Massachusetts while filming Defending Jacob and Knives Out, he stayed in the Bay State to ride out the coronavirus pandemic, even asking his brother, Scott — also an actor — to leave Los Angeles and move in with him.
Before she found herself in The Good Place, the actress was a native of Huntington Woods, a suburb of Detroit.
Her husband, Dax Shepard, also hails from the Mitten — he grew up just 30 miles away from Bell in Milford.
The Guardians of the Galaxy actor spent his first few years in Virginia, Minnesota, before moving west to Washington.
Pratt’s newest film, The Tomorrow War, is set to stream on Amazon Prime starting July 2.
Before taking over the world, the talk show queen was just a girl growing up in Kosciusko, a town off the Natchez Trace Parkway and the county seat of Attala County.
The multi-billionaire, who had a troubled and impoverished childhood, moved to Milwaukee when she was six.
The Mad Men actor is very proud of his St. Louis roots and is often seen in full fan apparel rooting for the city’s sports teams.
Hamm has recently lent his voice to Bless the Harts, Invincible and Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K.
The Golden Globe winner lived in Kalispell before her family relocated to San Diego, California, when she was nine.
She recently reprised her role as Anne Weying for Venom: Let There Be Carnage, set to be released in September 2021.
The dancer and YouTuber was born in Omaha, but later moved to Los Angeles with her family.
The 18-year-old was included in Time’s 2020 list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
The Criminal Minds star was born and raised in Las Vegas. He later moved to New York for college.
His latest role was in the Netflix psychological drama Horse Girl.
Though he was born in Brooklyn and later attended New York University, Sandler is a New Hampshire boy!
He grew up in Manchester, where his family relocated when he was six. Fellow comedian Sarah Silverman grew up nearby in Bedford.
A lot of things are associated with the Garden State, but no one is quite as synonymous with a state as Springsteen is with New Jersey. The crooner was born and raised in Freehold and still lives in Central Jersey.
He’s just one of plenty of famous faces who grew up along the Garden State Parkway, including Meryl Streep, Danny DeVito, John Travolta, Laura Prepon, Queen Latifah and Jon Bon Jovi.
New Mexico is known as the Land of Enchantment, so it makes sense that the How I Met Your Mother actor got his start in Albuquerque.
The last two films he worked on, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent and Matrix 4, are in post-production as of July 2021.
Jenny From the Block is a proud native of The Bronx, a borough of New York City.
Other celebrities born in the Big Apple include Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Kerry Washington, Lucy Liu, Whoopi Goldberg, Lady Gaga… The list goes on and on.
Evan Rachel Wood was born in Raleigh, the daughter of two actors.
Wood currently stars as Dolores Abernathy on Westworld. The role has garnered her two Emmy nominations in three seasons.
Before he was fighting alongside Transformers on the big screen, the actor was cheering for the Minnesota Vikings from his home in Minot.
Duhamel followed an ex-girlfriend out to California, which led to his modeling and acting career. He recently starred in Jupiter’s Legacy.
The “All of Me” singer was born and raised in Springfield and he still gives back to his hometown.
He helped raise $500,000, which was donated to the school district to renovate an auditorium that has been rededicated in his name.
Long before her American Idol win and rise to fame, the singer was a little one in Checotah.
In addition to dabbling in acting, the multi-talented artist released her book, Find Your Path, in 2020.
Although the reality star and former model was born in Newport Beach, California, she and her family relocated to Medford when she was seven.
Rinna stayed in the city on the I-5 Interstate until she moved to San Francisco for college.
The Folklore singer was born in Reading and grew up on a Christmas tree farm until the family moved to Nashville when she was 15 so that Swift could pursue her music career.
Sixteen years later, she is one of the best-selling musical artists of all time.
The model was born in Cranston and represented her state as Miss Rhode Island USA. She was crowned Miss Universe in 2012.
Most recently, she became a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover model.
Though he was born in Washington, D.C., The Late Show host grew up in the Charleston suburb of James Island, South Carolina.
In 2007, he was presented with the key to the city of Columbia by Mayor Bob Coble.
Known for her role as Betty Draper on Mad Men, the actress was originally a native of Sioux Falls.
She recently was part of the main cast of the Netflix ice skating drama Spinning Out.
Born and raised in Tennessee, the “Slide Away” singer first called the Nashville suburb of Franklin home.
Cyrus’ most recent effort, Plastic Hearts, debuted at No. 2 on the US Billboard 200.
The Lone Star State was Queen B’s first home. Having spent her formative years in Houston, the “Formation” singer gives her hometown plenty of shout-outs in her songs.
Beyoncé recently told Victoria Beckham that the Spice Girls inspired her as a young Texan.
Though she moved often as a child, the Twitter queen and Lip Sync Battle co-host first called Delta home.
She recently lent her voice to the computer-animated sci-fi comedy The Mitchells vs. the Machines.
The Girls actress spent the first five years of her life living in New England after being born in Randolph, Vermont. She is the daughter of famous playwright and film director David Mamet.
Mamet currently stars on the HBO Max series The Flight Attendant.
Bullock was born in Arlington and later lived with her family in Nuremberg, Germany, for 12 years. The actress returned to Arlington for high school.
She is set to star opposite Alabama’s most famous offspring, Channing Tatum, in The Lost City of D.
The Empire actress was born in the nation’s capital city.
Other famous celebrities from Washington, D.C., include Dave Chappelle, Samuel L. Jackson, Alyson Hannigan and Kevin Durant.
This Seattle native has gone on to star in hit series like Grey’s Anatomy and The Walking Dead.
Morgan’s most recent release was the horror film The Unholy.
Before he was singing about whiskey lullabies and missing his lady, this country crooner was an up-and-comer in Glen Dale.
Paisley and his wife of 18 years, actress Kimberly Williams-Paisley, opened a free grocery store in Nashville for people in need at the start of the pandemic.
The Avengers actor is originally from Kenosha, later moving to Virginia in his teens.
Ruffalo’s newest project is the science fiction film The Adam Project, which reunites him with his 13 Going on 30 co-star, Jennifer Garner.
The Lost alum was born in Abington, Pennsylvania, but moved to Crowheart, Wyoming, when he was a year old.
There, his family raised longhorn cattle and grew barley for Coors beer. Doesn’t get more Wyoming than that!
