The Kid From 'Sixth Sense': Where Is Haley Joel Osment?

Haley Joel Osment

Child actor Haley Joel Osment, the star of 'The Sixth Sense,' seemed to have everything at his feet after his acclaimed Oscar-nominated work. However, life didn't turn out to be as kind to the young actor's looks or his career. This is the journey of the also-star of 'Artificial Intelligence' and 'Pay It Forward' over the years.

Haley Joel Osment and Tom Hanks

Born on April 10, 1988, Haley Joel Osment began his career at a young age, starting with commercials and small TV projects. In 1994, he stepped onto the big screen alongside Tom Hanks and Robin Wright in 'Forrest Gump," playing the son of the titular character. Even with just a few scenes, the young actor caught Hollywood's eye and established himself as a sought-after talent for upcoming projects.

Haley Joel Osment

Haley Joel Osment's next significant role came a few years later, in 1996, with the children's movie 'Bogus.' In this film directed by Norman Jewison, Osment portrayed a seven-year-old boy who becomes an orphan after his mother dies in a car accident in Las Vegas. To navigate his new life, he relies on his mother's stepsister (Whoopi Goldberg) and an imaginary friend, a French magician named "Bogus" (Gérard Depardieu). Despite being labeled by critics as "overly sentimental," the film later became a cable and VHS classic. It showcased that, at that time, Haley Joel Osment could handle a variety of roles.

Haley Joel Osment

In 1999, director M. Night Shyamalan's movie 'The Sixth Sense' made Haley Joel Osment famous. He played a troubled kid who sees dead people. The movie was a huge hit, and Osment got nominated for major awards, like the Oscars and Golden Globe, proving he was one of the best young actors in the business.

Haley Joel Osment

Within months of his Oscar nomination, Haley Joel Osment resonated with global audiences in 'Pay It Forward' (2000), portraying a boy who initiates a chain of good deeds in the suburbs of Las Vegas. The film, based on Catherine Ryan Hyde's novel and featuring Kevin Spacey and Helen Hunt, performed well at the box office despite receiving mixed reviews. Yet, audiences embraced it for its heartfelt message and Osment's compelling performance.

Haley Joel Osment

In 2001, the young actor returned to the spotlight of the Hollywood industry by starring in the sci-fi film Artificial intelligence (Artificial Intelligence), a project that Steven Spielberg had taken over after the death of Stanley Kubrick, who was originally in charge of the film.There, Haley Joel Osment became a robot acquired by a family to overcome the death of one of their children. However, when the little android begins to generate human behaviors, he is abandoned next to a robot scrap dealer.For his work in Spielberg's film, the actor received the Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Young Actor, as well as being nominated for the Empire Award for Best Actor and the Critics' Choice Award for Best Young Actor.

Haley Joel Osment

After being praised as "one of the best working actors in Hollywood" by popular critic Roger Ebert, Haley Joel Osment's career hit a rough patch. In his later childhood years, he lent his voice to films like 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame II' (2002) and 'The Jungle Book 2' (2002), which ended up being released directly to video. His last notable project was the film 'Secondhand Lions' (2003), where he starred alongside Michael Caine and Robert Duvall. Although the reviews weren't as harsh as his other projects, the film didn't gain much traction and went unnoticed by the public

Haley Joel Osment

After a short break from acting in 2003, Haley Joel Osment made headlines in 2006 due to a dramatic car accident. Evidence suggested he was driving under the influence and had drugs with him. In that year, Osment pleaded not guilty to two lesser charges, receiving a sentence of three years' probation, 60 hours of rehabilitation, mandatory enrollment in Alcoholics Anonymous, and a $1,500 fine. The actor who had made a mark in the nineties saw his career take a dramatic turn.

Haley Joel Osment

In the years following, Haley Joel Osment attempted to rebuild his career without the industry support that had embraced him as a child. Between 2007 and 2017, he appeared in only 13 films, with one of the more notable being the film adaptation of the series "Entourage" (2015), where he portrayed "Travis McCredle." On the small screen, the results were similarly limited, with just 10 credits in series, variety programs, and shows like "Top Gear America."

During the 1990s, it seemed that all the interesting child roles had an owner: Haley Joel Osment, the little actor who had won everyone over with his work in Forrest Gump (1994), where he played the son of the titular character. Despite having major titles in the following years, his real rise to fame came in 1999 when he starred in the film 'The Sixth Sense', for which he was even nominated for an Oscar. This is what his career was like afterward.

Remember The Kid From 'Sixth Sense'? This is Haley Joel Osment Today

Following his standout performance in the renowned horror movie alongside Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment became a sought-after talent for prestigious projects, including 'Pay it Forward' (2000), 'Artificial Intelligence' (2001), and 'Secondhand Lions' (2003).

Yet, like many Hollywood child stars, Osment faced the inevitable challenges as adolescence marked the end of his childhood innocence, and his career began to wane.

If you've ever wondered what became of the little boy who saw dead people in 'The Sixth Sense' how he transformed himself over the years and what he is doing now, you are in the right place.