‘Grinch Girl’ Started Working at 2, Lived ‘A Very Adult Life’ in Her Teens & Turned to Drugs after Producer Died

• Taylor Momsen is a former child star.
• She got recognition for starring in a classic Christmas film.
• Momsen struggled with depression over the years and ended up resorting to drugs.

This former child star finished high school two years early and would spend time with people older than her when she was in her teens, which made her very independent at such a young age.

Taylor Momsen was born in St. Louis, Missouri on July 26, 1993. Momsen, her mother, and sister often traveled when she was a child, while her father stayed home because he had a full-time job.

The trio often traveled to Los Angeles and New York and spent the summer months in the Big Apple. She was about three or four years old when she fell in love with Manhattan.

During that time, she would go to New York for auditions and commercials; hence, she spent most of her childhood there. Momsen even relocated a few times to California and then Texas and went to school for about a year in Maryland after her father got another job there.

Momsen was mainly known at school as the "Grinch Girl," a moniker she gained after appearing in the film, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." Although she found it "alienating," Momsen eventually got used to it.

The Hollywood star found it difficult to make friends at school because she and her family moved around a lot, but it was in middle school that she finally managed to form friendships.

Momsen on Working on ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’

While in the second grade, Momsen bagged the role of Cindy Lou Who in the 2000 film, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas," acting alongside actor Jim Carrey. Her mom told her the good news while picking her up from school. Momsen recalled they both "screamed of happiness" while in the car.

She was seven years old then and got along well with her co-star, Carrey. The Canadian native spoke highly of young Momsen during an interview in 2000, describing her as "cool" and very good at her craft.

According to the award-winning star, Momsen constantly bought him his favorite Canadian crunchy bars, which won him over. She would also give him a lot of candy, and he would forget his lines.

Momsen also spoke fondly of Carrey in a separate interview, saying he was "nice," "methodical," and "embodies what he's doing." As for her, by the end of the film, she knew everyone's lines.

Momsen Starred in 'Gossip Girl' & Is Part of a Band

Following the movie, Momsen landed the role of Jenny Humphrey in the hit drama series, "Gossip Girl," alongside Blake Lively, Ed Westwick, and Penn Badgley. She was a teenager by then and was in her "rebellious years."

Momsen was still in middle school and had just started a band when the opportunity for the show came up, so she settled in New York full-time. While she hardly saw her friends, her love for music remained, and she continued to write and record songs but had not released them yet.

Momsen's love for music was established when she was young. While filming "How the Grinch Stole Christmas," she experienced being in a recording studio where she and James Horner recorded a Christmas song.

Through that experience, Momsen knew she had a passion for singing. The blonde beauty also revealed in a February 2021 interview:

"I started writing songs when I was really young. I could hum melodies before I could speak sentences, or so my mom tells me."

The songwriter grew up in front of the camera and started modeling when she was just two. She got candid about the profession in a July 2009 interview, saying although she was not pushed into the gig, it was not her choice.

Momsen finished high school two years early, and when asked why she did not want to enroll in college and experience college life, she said people go there to learn about themselves, but she already knew who she was then as a 16-year-old.

"I'm already independent," said the movie star. The model also revealed that she had befriended older people, adding, "I live a very adult life." Momsen further explained that she could not relate to people her age because she was already a working individual with two careers.

When the television star retired from acting at 16, leaving "Gossip Girl" in 2010, she decided to dedicate much of her time to her rock band, The Pretty Reckless, which was formed in 2009 when she was 15.

Momsen had put her music career on hold to focus on her stint in "Gossip Girl." While she enjoyed acting, the star admitted she was "never in love with it."

While pursuing her music career, people did not initially take her seriously as an artist. They were more concerned about what she was wearing. Still, it had always been her dream to be in a band, and thanks to her family, who listened to rock music as she grew up, it materialized.

Tragedies Led Momsen into a Downward Spiral

Sadly, Momsen's life took a downward turn after a series of tragedies rocked her music world. In 2017, Pretty Reckless went on tour to support the band Soundgarden. But following the show's final run, Soundgarden's lead singer, Chris Cornell, tragically died by suicide.

This devastated Momsen, who packed up and went home to grieve. A year later, while she pondered about making a return to music, her band's producer and her dear friend, Kato Khandwala, lost his life in a motorcycle accident.

Momsen slipped into depression as a result. She struggled to be productive but sought help by going to therapy. She also turned to listening to childhood music and managed to re-establish herself.

Still, the showbiz star admitted she was not entirely healed as she would have breakdowns on some days. "I was in a very, very dark space there for a while," Momsen revealed in a February 2021 interview.

A year later, in 2022, the musician divulged that Khandwala's death was the "nail in the coffin" that led to her downward spiral. His death and the COVID-19 pandemic that shut down the music industry led her to resort to substance abuse to numb her pain.

"I went into this hole of utter depression and substance abuse. I was in a very unhealthy space," said Momsen. But the actress found solace in her music and said if it were not for the record that she and her band released in 2021, her future would have hung in the balance.

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), text "help" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741, or go to suicidepreventionlifeline.org.