Jurassic Park actor unrecognisable after quitting Hollywood for new career

21 July 2023 , 18:58

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Jurassic Park actor unrecognisable after quitting Hollywood for new career

Former Jurassic Park star Ariana Richards quit Hollywood fame for good after her her performance as a beloved character in the hit sci-fi adventure movie.

Now 30 years later, the former star would be unrecognisable to fans of the dinosaur film, as she makes a living as a talented painter.

In the hit blockbuster classic Jurassic Park, Richards played Alexis "Lex" Murphy, the granddaughter of Dr. John Parker and Tim Murphy's sister. As a blonde baby-faced actress in the series, the child was a programming enthusiast that played a major part in helping the survivors to escape. She was one of the first characters to know that the InGen company performed the de-extinction of the dinosaurs.

Ariana Richards played beloved character Alexis "Lex" Murphy in the hit Jurassic Park movies (Amblin/Universal/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)

Now the child actor works as a painter, creating beautiful, detailed artworks including portraits, landscapes, and most recently a dinosaur painting.

In an interview in 2013, Richards said: “I like to paint people out in locations they really enjoy doing something spontaneous,” she added: “I enjoy getting to know what people’s essence is like."

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According to AOL, in the 2013 chat the actress talked about her time working with Steven Spielberg and her role as Lex. She said that her performance involved a lot of screaming and she was surprised she never lost her voice.

Ariana Richards discussed her thrilling time as a child actor in the Jurassic Park movies (Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock)

Richards recalled: “One time, Steven came up to me and said you reach such a point of terror, that we see it written all over your face. [He asked] ‘How do you get to this level of fear, were you scared by something when you were two? What was it? Actually, I don’t want to know!'"

After landing her iconic role in the dinosaur franchise, the actress went on to star in several minor roles including performances in Tremors 3: Back to Perfection, Angus, Battledogs, and Spaced Invaders.

Ariana Richards has had a career change (FilmMagic)

Today, Richards has a successful painting career and recently posted a 30x40 inch artwork as a tribute to her time on Jurassic Park. The close-up painting spans six photos on her Instagram, each a close up of the detailed work. The painting pictures a large T-Rex with it's mouth gaping wide open standing in the middle museum with the words 'When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth.'

The post has been met with love from fans, complimenting her on her incredible artistic ability.

One fan wrote: "This whole thing is incredible and I want it to be an entire wall in my house."

Another commented: "A true masterpiece for the 30th anniversary!" while a third added: "Now that is one big pile of...hell yes! Will you be selling prints?"

Caroline Gaspich