Did Jeremy Miller's (Ben) acting get worse towards the end

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That's what I've read on IMDb and on the old Jump the Shark website regarding Growing Pains. I guess part of the problem is that he no longer the "cute, chubby, wise-ass" Seaver kid (Chrissy had long replaced him as the resident "cute kid" in the family) but he didn't exactly grow up to be a charismatic teen heartthrob like Kirk Cameron either. Ben just became extremely awkward (or in the words of one poster on the JTS site, "A gangly, zit faced goof ball") and generally weird (if that makes sense).

[Growingpainsfan12345]

His acting deteriorated in the fifth and early sixth season but I personally think he pulled himself out of it in the end of the series.

[Edward216]

I don't know I always thought he did all right.

For the record, I never did like the young actress who played Chrissy. I always thought her acting was terrible. She just came off too "precious" and annoying to me.

Ed.

[Torgo]

Originally Posted by Edward216

I don't know I always thought he did all right.

For the record, I never did like the young actress who played Chrissy. I always thought her acting was terrible. She just came off too "precious" and annoying to me.

Ed.

Same here.

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Originally Posted by Growingpainsfan12345

His acting deteriorated in the fifth and early sixth season but I personally think he pulled himself out of it in the end of the series.

A similar thing happened with Danny Pinataro in the latter seasons of Who's the Boss, which incidentally, was on ABC at roughly the same time as Growing Pains. Simply put, it's increasingly hard to write for awkward teens because they're no longer "cute". It also happened with Jennifer on Family Ties, Jason Bateman's two brothers (Willie and Mark) on The Hogan Family/Valerie, Mark on Home Improvement, and if you want a more recent example, Luke on Modern Family.

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Originally Posted by Growingpainsfan12345

His acting deteriorated in the fifth and early sixth season but I personally think he pulled himself out of it in the end of the series.

This just about sums it all up:

As with many child stars, Miller went through an awkward time while he experienced puberty. His voice changed, he grew much taller, and also outgrew his character on Growing Pains. During this time Miller grew a long mullet and sported huge glasses on the show, turning off many of Growing Pains' young female fans. Miller's character became so unpopular with Growing Pains fans that the producers brought in Leonardo DiCaprio in a last-ditch effort to maintain the show's female fan base. Here are some pictures of a teenaged Miller:

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Originally Posted by Growingpainsfan12345

His acting deteriorated in the fifth and early sixth season but I personally think he pulled himself out of it in the end of the series.

Somebody else said recently that the show tried to make make Ben the charming rascal like Mike previously was. But it didn't work because Jeremy Miller seemed too soft-spoken and just came across as the "aww shucks, naïve" type instead of sneaky and rebellious. He was good at playing a goofy, annoying little kid but was an awkward teen and just not a heartthrob like Kirk Cameron.