Jurassic Park is one of the most famous franchises to hit the big screen, and it all started with the immortal chomp romp of 1993. Steven Spielberg and his crew pulled together a masterpiece of sci-fi adventure, which started off with nailing the perfect casting but soared into heights of epic proportion, thanks to one of the most memorable movie soundtracks and groundbreaking visuals. Part of said cast was a then-12-year-old Ariana Richards. You likely still remember her shrill screams and famous jelly-eating scene even three decades later. But with all the recognition and fame Jurassic Park brought the child star, she somehow disappeared from the spotlight years later.
While you may think the pressures of Hollywood got to Richards, her story is actually one that’s a lot more inspiring. Ariana made the conscious choice to put aside her acting career and focus on her other passion: painting.
Art is definitely in her blood, too. Her maternal grandmother, Alma Parmelee, was a professional oil painter in California. She mentored Ariana in her early years and became a big part of why the former actress loves painting so much. That said, art can be traced much further back in Ariana’s lineage. Her family has been linked to the early Italian Renaissance painter Carlo Crivelli. It’s no wonder Ariana found her true calling in contemporary impressionism.
Richards honed her genetically gifted drawing and painting skills at the Art Centre College of Design at the age of 12 and followed up years of tutoring with a B.S. degree in fine art and drama from Skidmore College in 2001. She has a hugely successful career as an artist with plenty of awards to show for it.
That’s not to say her acting career after the deliriously entertaining dinosaur movie wasn’t a success. In fact, Ariana went on to snatch up starring roles in TV movies like The Princess Stallion and Broken Silence: A Moment of Truth. She also made a cameo appearance in The Lost World: Jurassic Park back in 1997. However, the lack of privacy that went with being a well-known actress eventually led Ariana to choose painting as her main focus. It was fulfilling and offered her a more private life.
Notice how we didn’t say she left acting behind completely. Ariana still dabbles in the biz when she gets enough time off from her painting projects. More recent projects she’s been involved in include Battledogs in 2013 and voice acting as Lex for the Lego Jurassic World video game in 2015 (yup, her famous scream is part of the game).
You’ll also still spot her on red carpets for the Jurassic events or just supporting the franchise as a whole. She attended the Jurassic World Dominion Los Angeles premiere in 2022 and even did an incognito visit to the Jurassic World Ride at Universal Studios Hollywood in 2024.
Ariana Richards is the perfect example of how pursuing what fulfils you most is always the best choice, even if it means shifting focus from a successful acting career to something less public and pampered. While Ariana admitted to enjoying every moment of making the movie that launched her career, she is more at home with a paintbrush and palette in hand.
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