The Brat Pack: Then and Now!

We loved them in ’80s movies, but what are Ally Sheedy, Rob Lowe and the rest doing now?

Christina Ianzito,

Updated January 04, 2024

AARP

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Published September 15, 2014

/ Updated January 04, 2024

Scene From The Movie, The Breakfast Club, The 80s, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy and Emilio Estevez, The Brat Pack Then And Now

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The Brat Pack: Then and Now!

Then: He nearly married St. Elmo’s Fire costar Demi Moore, but did marry (and later divorce) Paula Abdul.
Now: Still in showbiz, he wrote and directed The Way, starring his dad, Martin Sheen. He also runs a winery with his wife, Sonja Magdevski.

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Emilio Estevez

Then: A heartbreaker in St. Elmo’s Fire, he was considered the sexiest of the Brat Pack men; dated Princess Stephanie of Monaco and Melissa Gilbert.
Now: A married dad of two and author of two best-selling memoirs. Wasn’t afraid to self-parody his image in this summer’s comedy Sex Tape.

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Ally Sheedy

Then: Oldest of the Brat Packers, he played a shallow yuppie-to-be in St. Elmo’s Fire and a troubled tough kid in The Breakfast Club; engaged to Shannen Doherty.
Now: Writes e-books and acts in under-the-radar films such as Mayor Cupcake and Bigfoot Wars.

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Rob Lowe

Then: He became a big-time tween heartthrob after The Outsiders; briefly married to Soul Man costar Rae Dawn Chong.
Now: Remarried with three children, he starred in recent TNT police drama Southland and sci-fi movie Bigfoot Wars with Judd Nelson.

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Molly Ringwald

Then: Lovelorn aspiring journalist in St. Elmo’s Fire and Molly Ringwald’s preppy crush in Pretty in Pink.
Now: A dad, travel writer and author of soul-searching 2012 memoir, The Longest Way Home.

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Judd Nelson

Then: The Outsiders costar whose breakout role was as Daniel in The Karate Kid.
Now: Lives on Long Island, N.Y., with his wife of 25-plus years and two kids (his son’s name is Daniel); appeared on Ugly Betty, Dancing With the Stars and How I Met Your Mother.

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C. Thomas Howell

New York magazine coined the nickname “Brat Pack” in 1985 to describe the era’s hot young actors — and the term still haunts the stars of those classic 1980s teen flicks: St. Elmo’s Fire, The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink and The Outsiders. Find out what they’re up to now.