Diary of a Wimpy kid actor Robert Capron looks unrecognisable 16 years after film was released

For cultured folks of a certain age, there are few better books or films than the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

Although I can only assume that it's the name of Andrew Tate's podcast these days, the original books and films produced some pretty iconic moments that if you're also chronically online, you'll probably know about.

Whether it's the simple but effective 'cheese touch' or the fact that Rodrick actor Devon Bostick's roles essentially include this series and Oppenheimer, there are millions of kids who love these movies.

We were also given a pretty iconic gif, which is now used for moments that I won't go into too much detail about, but it essentially sees the character of Rowley Jefferson waving before looking down concerned. You know the one.

If it wasn't for Robert Capron, that moment might have never become so popular, but it turns out that he's looking very different 16 years on from the first film's release.

As he celebrates his 28th birthday today, people are starting to realise that Capron has essentially had a Neville Longbottom esque glow up after his picture was posted on X by Pop Crave.

Now, this sort of thing tends to happen with child actors when they grow up but there's no doubt that Capron has a lot of his fans left saying Zoo Wee Mama, even if we still don't have any clue what that is supposed to mean.

One person penned: "Wow what happened he’s so hot now."

Another said: "The glow up is real."

A third questioned: “Those don’t look even remotely close to the same person, did you use the wrong picture?”

Capron actually made his acting debut three years earlier in Bride Wars but it wasn't until his role as Rowley that his acting career kicked off.

However, he appears to have moved away from acting and moved into writing in recent years, with his last acting credit on IMDB coming in 2021. Soon we might be able to add him to the list of other child actors who have seemingly disappeared from our screens.

On his Instagram, he confirmed that he worked as a writers’ assistant for the Muppets back in 2023.

Zachary Gordon, who played the main character Greg Heffley in the show, shared a tribute to his on-screen best friend for his birthday back in 2025, with the two still close to this day.

“Happy bday to my ride or die… Zoo-Wee-Mama,” he penned alongside a series of pictures.

One fan commented: “It’s so cool that you guys are friends irl, that bond must be pretty powerful."

There's an argument that he's also undergone something of a glow-up, with the 28-year-old now seemingly pursuing a career in the music industry.

Unsurprisingly, Capron and Gordon aren't the only characters from the 2010 film who have changed a lot over the years.

Zachary Gordon - Greg Heffley

Grayson Russell - Fregley

Karan Brar - Chirag Gupta