'My dreams got crushed': Alicia Silverstone may have never appeared on our screens if it weren't for one scathing comment

Going to the cinemas in the '90s, it was almost impossible to escape the face of Alicia Silverstone, whether she be on the screen or on a poster plastered on the wall for an upcoming movie.

She gained attention for her role in The Crush when she was just 15, going on to star in movies such as Clueless, The Babysitter and Excess Baggage.

But Silverstone never would have made it onto our screens if it weren't for one brutal comment she received as a child.

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Reflecting on herself as a child, Silverstone told Entertainment Weekly she "was just a little girl putting on little dance shows at home".

The actress grew up in Northern California, focusing on her ballet classes with hopes of one day pursuing it as a career.

But her that changed when her "dreams got crushed" by a dance teacher at the time.

"My ballet teacher smacked my bum and said something like 'You're too short to be a ballet dancer and your butt sticks out too much'," she said.

"I do have a butt, but still."

After that moment, Silverstone decided to leave the world of dance behind and instead pursue a new passion – acting.

She laughed that at the ages from 12 to 14 "I think I was pretty bad", but eventually LA talent manager Judi O'Neil decided to give her a chance.

When she first started auditioning she wasn't landing any projects, but it was when she began to get close to scoring a role, only to miss out, that she realised she really did care about the career.

But it all changed when she landed the leading role in The Crush, first being turned down for the role until the original star dropped out.

"I had to kiss the guy from The Princess Bride!" she told Entertainment Weekly.

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Silverstone was just 15 years old starring opposite Cary Elwes (14 years her senior) as a young girl who becomes obsessed with an older writer.

"I was young, so because we had this kiss in the film, I thought that that meant he was my boyfriend now," she recalled.

"Not really… but a little bit."

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