Less Than Zero cast - Where are they now? | Gallery

By Bryanne Salazar 8:26am PDT, Nov 1, 2017

On Nov. 6, 2017, the crime drama "Less Than Zero" turns an unbelievable 30 years old. The film, which starred Andrew McCarthy, Robert Downey Jr. and Jami Gertz and told the story of rich kids in Beverly Hills who were hooked on cocaine was based on the novel of the same name by Bret Easton Ellis. The screen adaptation was hailed by critics as "harrowing" and "poignant." In honor of the movie's major milestone, Wonderwall.com is taking a look at its stars to see what they've been up to since filming wrapped. Keep reading to learn more (including which of today's hottest Hollywood stars was just a nameless extra on the set)…

Robert Downey Jr.'s breakout role was in "Less Than Zero." He starred as Julian, a young man who loses everything due to his drug addiction.

Where hasn't Robert Downey Jr. been since the 1987 release of "Less Than Zero"? After climbing to the ranks of Hollywood's elite (becoming known as a member of the '80's "Brat Pack") and subsequently enduring a very public and very painful several years of drug addiction and incarceration, Robert came out on top. His steady climb to prove himself once more reached its peak when he landed the role of Tony Stark in "Iron Man" in 2008. Robert, who credits a 12-step program, Kung Fu, meditation and his second wife, Susan, with getting his life back on track, was once the highest paid actor in Hollywood (in 2015) and still ranks within the top 10 among male stars in 2017. In addition to appearing in "Spider-Man: Homecoming" in 2017, Robert has completed filming "Avengers: Infinity War," which is due in theaters in 2018. It's also been announced that he'll reprise his Golden Globe Award-winning title role in the future "Sherlock Holmes 3." Robert is the father of three children, including adult son Indio Falconer Downey, who overcame his own drug addiction issues in 2016 and has remained sober ever since.

Andrew McCarthy starred as Clay, the young man who's pulled home by his old high school friends in an effort to save them, in "Less Than Zero."

Andrew McCarthy was once the "It" guy in Hollywood. After wrapping "Less Than Zero" — which came out the same year as another of his beloved films, "Mannequin" — he went on to star in the hit summer movie "Weekend at Bernie's" in 1989, which was followed by a stint on Broadway in "Side Man" and a slew of film roles including in a "Bernie's" sequel and "The Joy Luck Club," both in 1993. Slowly, Andrew transitioned more toward television, taking parts in small-screen movies like "Perfect Assassins" and "A Storm in Summer" before landing recurring roles on shows like "Kingdom Hospital" and "Lipstick Jungle." In 2005, Andrew and wife Carol Schneider divorced. That same year, he returned to Broadway to star in "The 24 Hour Plays 2005." The next year, he made his Broadway directorial debut with "The 24 Hour Plays 2006." Since the early 2000s, Andrew has been pursuing another passion: travel writing. He's published work in National Geographic Traveler and Travel + Leisure (among others). In 2012, a year after marrying Dolores Rice, he published his first travel book, "The Longest Way Home: One Man's Quest for the Courage to Settle Down," and in 2017, he published the novel "Just Fly Away" — which became a New York Times' best seller. Andrew is the father of three children.

Jami Gertz starred as Blair, Clay's ex-girlfriend who develops a relationship with Julian — and a dangerous cocaine habit — in "Less Than Zero."

The same year Jami Gertz starred in "Less Than Zero," she also had a lead role in the hit horror flick "The Lost Boys." In 1989, Jami married businessman and Atlanta Hawks co-owner Antony Ressler. She continued to star in films but in the early 1990s, after giving birth to her and Antony's first child, she made a leap across the world to work as a scent designer for Paris parfumier Lanvin. Returning to the U.S. in the mid-'90s, Jami gave birth to her second child and shortly thereafter appeared in the movie "Twister" as well as on the hit primetime series "ER." In 1998, Jamie and Antony welcomed a third child to their brood. From 2000 to 2002, Jami had a regular role on "Ally McBeal" (which also featured "Less Than Zero" co-star Robert Downey Jr. during those same years) and in 2002, she accepted the lead role of Judy Miller on the hit comedy series "Still Standing." Since then, Jami has appeared on shows like "Entourage" and "The Neighbors" and in 2017, she appeared on the Hulu original series "Difficult People."

In "Less Than Zero," James Spader (right) starred as Rip, the drug dealer who pushes Julian (played by Robert Downey Jr., left) into prostitution to repay his drug debts.

Along with starring in "Less Than Zero" in 1987, James Spader appeared in three other films that year: "Mannequin," "Baby Boom" and "Wall Street." Since then, there has been no shortage of roles on both the big and small screens for James. He appeared in films like "Sex, Lies and Videotape," "True Colors" and "Secretary" as well as on shows like "The Practice" and "Boston Legal," which led to multiple Emmy Awards for his portrayal of associate attorney Alan Shore. Along with starring on 25 episodes of the hit comedy "The Office" from 2011 to 2012, James was cast as the lead on the hit serial drama "The Blacklist" in 2013. Two years later, he landed a part in the sci-fi adventure flick "Avengers: Age of Ultron" as none other than Ultron, which put him back on-screen with his "Less Than Zero" co-star Robert Downey Jr. In 2017, NBC renewed "Blacklist" for a fifth season, meaning we'll get to see more of James on our weekly line-up. He's been dating former actress-turned-erotic sculptor Leslie Stefanson since 2005. They share one son together and James has two adult sons from a previous marriage.

Michael Bowen (right) starred as Hop, drug dealer Rip's henchman, in "Less Than Zero" in 1987.

If Michael Bowen looks strangely familiar, it's because he's appeared in almost all of our favorite TV shows and movies since his time on the set of "Less Than Zero." He's had roles on hit series like "21 Jump Street," "Matlock," "ER," "Walker Texas Ranger," "Lost" (he was an Other) and has appeared in all of Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill" films, "The Godfather Part III," "Jackie Brown," "Walking Tall" and "Django Unchained" (to name a few). Since 2010, Michael has had recurring roles on shows like "Scoundrels," "CSI" and "Breaking Bad" and in 2016, he guest-starred on "Gotham" (seen here). As of 2017, Michael is still a Hollywood regular who has a role in the October 2017 thriller "House by the Lake." Fun fact: Michael is related to the famous Carradine family and is the uncle of actress Martha Plimpton.

If you watched "Less Than Zero" carefully, you might have noticed a young Brad Pitt as a preppie partygoer during the infamous fight scene. Brad's character didn't even have a name, but hey, we all have to start somewhere.

Brad Pitt was so green in Hollywood in 1987 that his role in "Less Than Zero" was uncredited. However, after the film wrapped, Brad went on to become one of the most famous leading men in Tinseltown. On his way up, the young actor appeared on shows like "Dallas," "21 Jump Street," "Growing Pains" and "Glory Days" before landing his breakout film role in "Thelma & Louise." Since the early 1990s, Brad has become a fixture on the big screen, churning out blockbuster hits like "Legends of the Fall," "Seven," "12 Monkeys," "Fight Club" and more. He's dated (and married) some of the hottest leading ladies in town too, including Gwyneth Paltrow, Juliette Lewis, Jennifer Aniston and, most famously, his soon-to-be ex-wife, Angelina Jolie (with whom he shares six children). Along with acting, Brad is a respected producer who won his first Academy Award with the film "12 Years a Slave." In 2017, Brad both produced and starred in "War Machine" for Netflix and made regular appearances on "The Jim Jefferies Show" as the weatherman. The same year, Brad also spoke openly about his struggles with alcohol dependency and acknowledged that drinking contributed to the demise of his marriage to Angelina in 2016. Up next for Brad is the horror sequel "Word War Z 2" and the 2019 sci-fi thriller "Ad Astra."