'Remember the Titans' Was a Good Springboard

Yesterday I caught a showing of Remember the Titans on TV, and once it was finished and the credits started, I was surprised how many of the child/young actors that are now big names appeared in this film. It seems like this was a first role, or at least starting point, for numerous careers.

In IMDB Order:

Donald Faison, who is best known these days as Turk on Scrubs, had a significant part here. I can't really count him, though, because he was put to fame for his work in the timeless 'Clueless.'

Kip Pardue, whom I love for his role as Victor in 'The Rules of Attraction,' has this as one of his first credits. He was also in the humorous 'But I'm a Cheerleader' (which starred the gorgeous Clea DuVall, but that's another blog post).

Hayden Panettiere, who I affectionately refer to as Kairi (from Kingdom Hearts), has a large part in this film. It was far from her first gig, but I think it was her first major bit. You can see her now on Heroes, and also the cover of almost every teen magazine.

Kate Bosworth has a small part here as the judgmental girlfriend. It's hard to recognize her -- I knew she looked familiar but couldn't tell it was her. There's a huge difference between her at 17 here and her at 19 in 'The Rules of Attraction.' Most recently she did 'Superman Returns,' which was decent, and '21,' which was awful.

Ryan Gosling had a small part as one of the players. IMDb shows a bunch of TV credits, but this looks like his first serious film role. He's gone on to make 'The Notebook,' as most know, but has proven himself a great actor in 'Half Nelson' and to a lesser degree 'Lars and the Real Girl.'

Denzel Washington.... Just kidding. He's long been famous and great. Still is.

Watch the movie now, if you haven't seen it recently, and you'll notice what I did. This movie really is a gem.