“Fame is a mask that eats into the face.” What John Updike didn’t write about Hollywood, he might as well have done. The limelight and constant scrutiny for some celebrities are less than dreamlike and more akin to wearing away.
Increasingly, actors over the past few decades have been bowing out of sight rather than out of mind not because they were unable to continue, but because they refused to. Out of a desire to preserve their sanity, begin a family, or simply indulge in a completely different passion, these decisions are a reminder that exiting can be the ultimate power play.
These are seven familiar faces who traded in red carpets for deliriously alternative lives and how their choices could be the most inspiring performances they’ve ever done.
1. Bridget Fonda’s Bliss in Civilian Life
Bridget Fonda was ubiquitous in the ’90s thrillers, comedies, cult favorites. Then, though, in 2002, she just retired from acting quietly. A near-death car accident in 2003 cut short her on-the-books comeback to TV, and she never appeared before the camera again. In 2023, she explained to a paparazzo that she would no longer act because “it’s too nice being a civilian.”
Her decision highlights a Hollywood anomaly: not everybody needs a comeback. Fonda adopted a quiet, family-oriented life, distant from the industry’s incessant demands, to show that peace of mind may be more intriguing than premieres.
2. Adrian Grenier’s Earth Escape
When Entourage ended its run, Adrian Grenier was exhausted of Hollywood’s fast pace. In 2016, he purchased property just outside Austin, settled into an old camper, and started what he termed a “dark night of the soul.” Red carpets were replaced by farming, environmentalism, and a reduced pace of life.
He said Austin Lifestyle, “Here and now, I feel so much more centered and balanced.” Grenier’s transition from portraying swooping Hollywood movie star to rolling up his sleeves and getting down and dirty in the dirt itself is a come-full-circle: he’s embracing now the green lifestyle he’d long urged others to embrace.
3. Leelee Sobieski’s Stand for Creative Integrity
Leelee Sobieski was a teen star of late-’90s movies, but by 2012 she’d had it up to here. She’s also talked about her discomfort with Hollywood’s raunchy roles, declaring, “My kiss is not for sale.” Industry pressures made her feel “emptier and emptier,” so she began painting as Leelee Kimmel.
Her art career lets her create on her own terms, free from the compromises she felt acting demanded. Sobieski’s story is a bold reminder that protecting one’s boundaries can be the ultimate act of self-preservation.
4. Rick Moranis’s Devotion to Family
Comedian Rick Mobanis was riding high on Ghostbusters and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids when tragedy hit his wife, Anna, passed away from breast cancer in 1991. In 1997, he quit altogether to watch over his children.
“I have no regrets at all. My life is wonderful,” he explained to The Hollywood Reporter.
Although he’s had the occasional voice-over here and there and will be back to playing a fan favorite character in Spaceballs 2, Moranis’s long-term commitment to being a dad demonstrates that sometimes things are more important than any movie credit.
5. Ian Somerhalder’s Farm-Based Future
He is Damon Salvatore of The Vampire Diaries to millions of fans. Ian Somerhalder retired from acting in 2019’s V Wars. He and his wife Nikki Reed retired and moved to a farm, where they bring up their children and operate sustainable business ventures.
“I don’t miss any of it,” he explained to E! News in 2024. His days are spent learning regenerative farming and green ventures, living his life according to his causes. For Somerhalder, life post-fame isn’t about relaxing it’s about rolling up sleeves to do work that satisfies world and soul.
6. Cheyenne Kimball’s Healing Break from Music
Cheyenne Kimball started out at 15 years old performing on an MTV reality show, then again when she was with country group Gloriana. But by age 21, she was burned out and out of touch with herself. She stepped away for a long time, colored her hair to go within, and went to therapy.
In 2025, she explained to Us Weekly, “I’m healed. I did the work.” Now set on meeting whatever the future holds, Kimball’s story reveals that sometimes the best move is to move back in order to rebuild and then forward once more.
7. Jonathan Taylor Thomas’s Academic Turn
At the peak of Home Improvement popularity, Jonathan Taylor Thomas shocked fans for departing before the last season was over. He exchanged scripts for texts, attending Columbia, Harvard, and St. Andrews. “I never let the fame go to my head,” he said in an interview with People. Although he’s experimented with walk-ons, his real love of late is writing and directing. For a whole generation who had his posters plastered on their walls, JTT’s career arc is testimony that change can be as gratifying as fame.
These stories flip the script on what “success” in Hollywood is all about. For Bridget, Adrian, Leelee, Rick, Ian, Cheyenne, and Jonathan, quitting wasn’t failure quitting was making decisions that felt real, grounded, and true to themselves. In a culture obsessed with comeback tales, their quiet contentment might be the most subversive act of all.
