A former Nickelodeon teen star is now unrecognizable over a decade after he starred on the network.
Nathan Kress was skyrocketed into the spotlight after he began starring as Freddie Benson in the hit series iCarly alongside Miranda Cosgrove, Jennette McCurdy and Jerry Trainor.
The show premiered in 2007, when he was just 15, and went on for six seasons before it concluded in 2012.
It was a massive hit and a huge staple in many people’s childhoods, transforming Kress into a massive sensation.
But now, 13 years after the show ended, the actor, 33, looks very different from his Nickelodeon days.
He’s now a father of three and his acting career has slowed down significantly in recent years.
However, Kress has now returned to acting as he voiced the titular character in the new Amazon Prime animated flick A Chuck E. Cheese Christmas.
He recently spoke to People magazine about taking on the role, and he admitted that it was ‘daunting’ to take on such a beloved character.
Nathan Kress (top right) was skyrocketed into the spotlight after he began starring as Freddie Benson in the hit series iCarly alongside Miranda Cosgrove and Jennette McCurdy
The show premiered in 2007, when he was just 15, and went on for six seasons before it concluded in 2012. He’s seen in the show with Cosgrove and McCurdy
‘It was a lot of pressure. It sounds crazy… it’s just a cartoon character. But it’s not though,’ he said.
‘I feel like people have this weird innate expectation of what that character might actually sound like in a narrative-based cartoon environment and not just at your birthday party, kicking off a song.
‘I had to sit with that for a while and figure out, who is this guy and what’s his energy level? What can you bring to it that’s got some heart and some character to it?
‘Surprisingly enough, it sort of took a minute and I actually had to come at it from a relatively deep acting process, which again, sounds insane, but I think it actually came across.
‘It’s thankfully been facilitated by a very heartfelt, really sweet script and just a good story.’
Kress said despite it being a ‘tough process,’ he couldn’t be more proud with how it came out and believes the movie will ‘resonate across generations’ because it’s got a little for everyone.
‘You’ve got the slapstick-y stuff for the kids, but then you’ve also got the steady stream of one-liners that are going to fly right over those kids’ heads, and those are for the adults,’ he shared.
‘And then it wraps up with all these Christmas bangers that are absolute earworms that are going to be stuck in your head for weeks. It’s sprinkled with a little bit of everything.’
But now, 13 years after the show ended, the actor, 33, looks very different from his Nickelodeon days. He’s seen with his wife and kids last month
He’s now a father of three and his acting career has slowed down significantly in recent years
Kress has now returned to acting as he voiced the titular character in the new Amazon Prime animated flick A Chuck E. Cheese Christmas. He’s seen recently with his daughter
Kress started his career off by starring in print advertisements and TV commercials as a kid.
In the early years of his career he landed a slew of small parts in shows like House, Without a Trace and Disney Channel’s The Suite Life of Zack and Cody.
In 2006, he had a small part in the Nickelodeon series Drake & Josh, during which, he caught the attention of showrunner Dan Schneider, who was developing iCarly.
That led to him being cast as Freddie in the show one year later.
After iCarly, he continued to act, starring in the disaster movie Into the Storm, horror flick Tell Me How I Die and comedy-drama Alexander IRL, amongst other things.
He also lent his voice to the animated shows Star Wars Rebels and Pinky Malinky.
In 2021, he reprised his role as Freddie in an iCarly revival for Paramount+, which went on for three seasons.
Since then, however, he’s laid low, opting for a quieter life outside of the spotlight.
He and his wife, actress London Elsie Moore, have welcomed three child together, two daughters in 2017 and 2021, and a son in 2023.
