The spotlight isn't for everyone. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most notable celebrities who stepped away from Hollywood to pursue other passions or simply lead a quiet life away from fame.
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00:00We brought in an actor we've all gone too long without, Rick Moranis.
00:04Welcome to WatchMojo and today we're counting down our picks for the most memorable celebrities
00:09who stepped away from Hollywood to pursue other passions or simply lead a quiet life away from
00:15fame.
00:15Drifters off to see the world.
00:24Number 20.
00:25Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.
00:28These famous twins have been working since they were nine months old.
00:31Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen began their career as infants,
00:35sharing the role of Michelle Tanner on the ABC sitcom Full House.
00:41Even while the show aired, they appeared in other films and TV shows,
00:46eventually founding their own production company, Dual Star, in 1993.
00:50However, as the 2000s rolled around, they set their sights on a much different path, fashion.
00:56The Row started as kind of a little side project for Mary-Kate and I, and it started with a t-shirt.
01:03In 2006, they launched their luxury fashion brand, The Row,
01:07and soon left Hollywood entirely to concentrate on it.
01:11Although they still occasionally make the news, Mary-Kate and Ashley no longer command
01:16the kind of media attention they once did, which suits them just fine.
01:20Number 19.
01:22Michael Scheffling.
01:23For a brief period in the 1980s, Michael Scheffling seemed poised to become a Hollywood superstar.
01:29Scheffling's debut as Jake Ryan in 1984's Sixteen Candles,
01:33made him an instant teen heartthrob.
01:36Happy birthday, Samantha.
01:40Congrats.
01:44It already came true.
01:46It was the perfect springboard for a flourishing career,
01:50but things just never really lined up perfectly for Scheffling afterwards.
01:54Although he went on to star in a number of films, including Vision Quest and Mermaids,
01:59So was that you who carved red socks on the door?
02:04That used to be my room.
02:05Scheffling never quite attained the level of fame many believed he would.
02:08In between acting jobs, he took up carpentry and began making furniture.
02:13This eventually became his full-time career,
02:15as he gave up acting completely following 1991's Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken.
02:20Sonora, I love you.
02:23Number 18.
02:24Nikki Blonsky.
02:26Many struggling actors in Hollywood dream of the kind of opportunity Nikki Blonsky had.
02:31As a high school student, Blonsky auditioned for Hairspray,
02:34beating out over a thousand aspirants for the role of Tracy Turnblad.
02:42She couldn't have asked for a better screen debut,
02:45as it earned her two Critics' Choice Awards and a Golden Globe nomination.
02:49However, maintaining that momentum proved challenging.
02:52Despite playing the lead on ABC Family's Huge,
02:55the show only lasted one season, and the roles dried up soon after.
02:59I take the most horrifying situation to make it worse. It's like this twisted gift.
03:07The New York native later obtained a cosmetology license
03:10and began working as a hairstylist and makeup artist in her hometown.
03:14While she still appears sporadically in films,
03:17Blonsky hasn't reclaimed the level of fame she once enjoyed.
03:20It's like this.
03:22Jump through the window.
03:24Be with you.
03:26Love me?
03:32If you jump, I'll catch you.
03:33Number 17.
03:35Angus T. Jones.
03:36Angus T. Jones became a household name in the 2000s,
03:40thanks to his role in the popular CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men.
03:43I'm hungry.
03:44Is this gonna be a problem?
03:53I guess not.
03:55During this period, he was the highest-paid child actor on TV,
03:59reportedly earning $300,000 per episode.
04:02In late 2012, at the peak of his fame,
04:05Jones suddenly announced that he was done appearing on the show.
04:08This was because he had been baptized and was turned off by the sitcom's mature content,
04:13which he later described as, quote,
04:15Filth.
04:16Please stop filling your head with filth.
04:19Jones ultimately left Two and a Half Men after 10 seasons,
04:23and largely retreated from the spotlight.
04:25He has since worked as an executive in a multimedia company,
04:29but now expresses a desire to return to acting someday.
04:33Number 16.
04:34Amanda Bynes.
04:35This former child star first rose to prominence on the Nickelodeon sketch series All That,
04:40before landing her own program, The Amanda Show.
04:43Thanks, my name's Amanda, and welcome to my show!
04:47Bynes then progressed to teen idol,
04:49with roles in successful comedies like Big Fat Liar and What a Girl Wants.
04:54In 2010, after a prominent part in Easy A,
04:57Bynes announced she was taking an indefinite break from acting.
05:01There's a higher power that will judge you for your indecency.
05:04Tom Cruise.
05:06I hope for your sake that God has a sense of humor.
05:08Subsequently, she faced a slew of legal troubles and grappled with substance use disorder,
05:14which led to her being placed under a conservatorship.
05:16Despite overcoming these challenges and ending the conservatorship,
05:20Bynes doesn't seem ready to return to the screen.
05:23Instead, in 2023, she decided to pursue a new career as a manicurist.
05:28She added,
05:29In the last several years, I've been working hard to improve my health
05:32so that I can live and work independently,
05:34and I will continue to prioritize my well-being in this next chapter.
05:37Number 15.
05:39Jonathan Taylor Thomas.
05:40Jonathan Taylor Thomas soared to immense fame in the 90s,
05:44gracing the covers of countless magazines and adorning the bedroom walls of many teenage girls.
05:50We're past the nod stage.
05:52What?
05:53She gave me a kiss.
05:55Thomas gained popularity thanks to his role as Randy Taylor on the ABC sitcom Home Improvement.
06:00He earned further recognition for voicing young Simba in The Lion King,
06:04and the titular character in the 1996 film The Adventures of Pinocchio.
06:09You're a puppet. You're not a real boy, Pinocchio.
06:12Real boy?
06:13In 1998, Thomas decided to exit Home Improvement,
06:16directing his attention towards getting a degree from Harvard.
06:20Call when you get there. Call before you get there.
06:23Or I could open the emergency door and just yell out the plane.
06:27While his presence in the limelight has significantly waned since then,
06:30Thomas stands by his decision wholeheartedly.
06:33These days, he's more focused on working behind the camera,
06:36taking on directing and screenwriting roles.
06:39And you look familiar.
06:46Well, you know, I used to work with Kristen.
06:49That's not it.
06:50Number 14. Phoebe Cates
06:53The 1980s were a significant era for teen comedy movies,
06:57many of which became classics and launched their young actors into stardom.
07:01I want a relationship. I want romance.
07:05You want romance in Ridgemont?
07:07We can't even get cable TV here, Stacy. You want romance.
07:10One of such rising stars was Phoebe Cates.
07:13Born to a family of Hollywood insiders,
07:15Cates began her career as a dancer and model before venturing into acting.
07:20Her breakthrough came with 1982's Fast Times at Ridgemont High,
07:24followed by another success with Gremlins two years later.
07:28And that's how I found out there was no Santa Claus.
07:33In 1989, Cates got married to fellow actor Kevin Klein,
07:37with whom she welcomed two children.
07:39By the mid-90s, Cates decided to scale back on acting and prioritize raising her family.
07:45She eventually opened a boutique in New York City called Blue Tree,
07:48which she continues to oversee.
07:50What's that?
07:51Oh, funny you should ask.
07:54I think this would be perfect for her.
07:55This is the perfect husband bracelet.
07:58Number 13. Stephen Seagal.
08:00Love him or hate him, but you can't deny the fact that
08:03Stephen Seagal had Hollywood in a chokehold during the 90s.
08:06You're not a cook.
08:10Yeah, well, I also cook.
08:15At the outset of the decade, Seagal was largely unknown,
08:19but by its end, he had become one of Hollywood's most prominent action stars.
08:23Even though he essentially played the same character in every film.
08:26However, as the 21st century progressed, Seagal's star diminished significantly,
08:31relegated to a string of laughably bad direct-to-video releases.
08:35Hey, uh, did your brother kill my son?
08:39Concurrently, his association with Russia grew stronger,
08:43and he was granted citizenship to the country in 2016.
08:46He has not appeared in a film since 2019,
08:49the year following his appointment as Russia's special envoy to the U.S.
08:53Number 12. Bridget Fonda.
08:56Born into the renowned Fonda acting dynasty,
08:58Bridget Fonda began her career at the tender age of five.
09:02Throughout the late 80s and 90s, she worked tirelessly,
09:05starring in notable films like The Godfather Part II and Jackie Brown.
09:10God damn, girl. You getting high already? It's just two o'clock.
09:16It's that late?
09:16You know, you smoke too much of that shit. That shit gonna rob you of your ambition.
09:20That, if your ambition is to get high and watch TV.
09:23Fonda continued to act until 2002,
09:25when she abruptly decided to retire from the spotlight for a much quieter life.
09:30I did a very good job.
09:31I used to sew up pigs. That was my specialty.
09:33The following year, she suffered a serious car accident that fractured her back,
09:38and later got married to film composer Danny Elfman.
09:41Since her retirement, Fonda has maintained a very low profile,
09:44only resurfacing in 2009 for the premiere of Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Bastards.
09:50When asked if she would consider returning to the silver screen,
09:53Fonda dismissed the notion completely.
09:56I don't think so. It's too nice being a civilian.
09:59Number 11. Shirley Temple.
10:01During the Great Depression,
10:03Shirley Temple became a beacon of hope and joy for many Americans.
10:07On the gold ship, lollipop, it's a sweet trip to a candy shop.
10:14Temple rose to fame as a child actress in the 1930s,
10:17captivating audiences worldwide with her talent, charm, and signature curly hair.
10:23At the height of her career, she was one of Hollywood's biggest sensations,
10:26and the leading box office draw.
10:28Lean on me until you get started.
10:31However, as Temple grew older, her box office success declined,
10:38leading her to retire from the big screen at the age of 22.
10:41Subsequently, Temple pursued a career in politics and was appointed as a delegate
10:46to the United Nations General Assembly by President Richard Nixon.
10:49She would go on to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia.
10:54I think we all learned from the past.
10:57Um, I just feel we shouldn't live there. We shouldn't live in the past.
11:02Number 10. Daniel Day-Lewis.
11:04Day-Lewis has always remained very private and introverted.
11:07Louder, Daniel! I am a sinner!
11:09I am a sinner!
11:10I am sorry, Lord!
11:12I am sorry, Lord!
11:13I want the blood!
11:14I want the blood!
11:15You have abandoned your child!
11:19I've abandoned my child.
11:20Far from the bright lights of Hollywood or London,
11:22the actor has lived in the quiet Irish village of Animo for the last 20-plus years.
11:27He's also known for taking extended breaks between films,
11:30like the five-year gap between Lincoln and Phantom Thread.
11:33I can't accomplish a goddamn thing of any human meaning or worth
11:39until we cure ourselves of slavery and end this pestilential war!
11:46However, the latter will supposedly be Day-Lewis' last,
11:49as he announced his retirement in June of 2017,
11:52offering no reason aside from the fact that, quote,
11:55the impulse to quit took root in him, and that he, quote,
11:58wanted to explore the world in a different way.
12:01That said, some people believe it was attributed to depression,
12:04as he was stated to have, quote,
12:06great sadness.
12:07Do you like it?
12:11I do.
12:12Number 9. Dylan Sprouse.
12:14One half of the Sprouse twins, the child actors famous for their roles in
12:18Big Daddy and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody,
12:20Dylan and his brother Cole have enjoyed steady acting work nearly their entire lives.
12:25Why can't you drive us to the playground?
12:26Because I have to rehearse new choreography for my next show.
12:30Mr. Mosby thinks I need some younger moves.
12:32But while Cole landed the role of Jughead on Riverdale
12:35and starred in the 2019 film Five Feet Apart,
12:38Dylan has taken a radically different path in life.
12:40It's been a quiet few months in Riverdale.
12:43Spring slid into summer,
12:46and some semblance of normal life resumed.
12:48In 2011, Dylan began studying video game design
12:52at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study, graduating in 2015.
12:56Three years later, he opened the AllWise Meadery in Brooklyn.
12:59I started having to convince everybody that mead was a thing,
13:03and then Matt tried the mead that I was making,
13:07and now we are convincing everybody mead is a thing pretty much.
13:11He's also dabbled in acting throughout the years,
13:13albeit in smaller, intimate projects.
13:16Nothing like the big mainstream work he used to do.
13:19Number eight, Freddie Prinze Jr.
13:21In the late 90s and early 2000s,
13:23you couldn't walk into a movie theater
13:25without seeing this guy's face plastered on a movie poster or six.
13:29That changed sometime around 2004,
13:31right after the release of Scooby-Doo 2.
13:34My fault too.
13:35We all know how shaggy and Scooby can be.
13:38But it's all right.
13:39We just need to stay strong and control and work fast.
13:43It was around then that he transitioned to voice work,
13:45an industry he has remained in ever since.
13:48You may have heard his voice in Mass Effect 3 or Star Wars Rebels.
13:52Who are you?
13:53I'm the guy who was stealing that crate.
13:55Hey look, I stole this stuff, whatever it is, fair and square.
14:00And you made it pretty far, but I've got plans for that crate.
14:04It's still acting work, just not the kind that attracts the paparazzi.
14:07However, Prinze Jr. has focused his attention in other fields as well.
14:11He co-wrote a cookbook with Rachel Wharton
14:13and served as a producer and director for the WWE.
14:16Yes, really.
14:17First of all, Booker, that's not a claim, that's a fact.
14:21And there are people in this room, in that ring right now that can attest to it.
14:27Number seven, Jack Gleeson.
14:29You may not know Jack Gleeson by name, but you certainly know his face.
14:32His oh-so-once punchable face.
14:35Don't you think we ought to do something about it?
14:38That's right, Joffrey Baratheon.
14:40Gleeson earned renown and acclaim for playing the slimy Baratheon, uh, Lannister child?
14:45But it seems like acting wasn't for him.
14:48Killed a few puppies today?
14:51Show them.
14:53Show them!
14:54Gleeson announced his retirement after wrapping up Game of Thrones,
14:57telling Entertainment Weekly that he had stopped enjoying it
15:00and didn't want to turn it into a lifelong career.
15:02He subsequently studied theology and philosophy at Dublin's Trinity College,
15:07where he graduated in 2015.
15:09Five years later, Gleeson returned to the screen,
15:12albeit in much more muted roles than the one he gained popularity for.
15:16Killing you would send your brother a message.
15:22But my mother insists on keeping you alive.
15:25Number six, Mara Wilson.
15:2790s kids will undoubtedly remember Mara Wilson
15:30as that adorable little actress from movies like Mrs. Doubtfire and Matilda.
15:34This is Natalie.
15:35Oh, hello Natalie.
15:37Are you wearing bunk spray?
15:38Oh, Maddie.
15:40Oh, it's quite all right dear, no offense taken.
15:41I was a little liberal with the atomizer.
15:43Unfortunately, Wilson quickly grew disillusioned with the prospect of acting
15:47and the fame that came with it.
15:49In a 2012 blog post, Wilson addressed the various reasons for her early retirement,
15:54including the lack of creative freedom,
15:56the ridiculous celebrity aspect,
15:57and the dehumanizing audition process.
16:00Daddy, you're a crook.
16:03What?
16:03This is illegal.
16:06Here, keep drilling.
16:09Do you make money?
16:11Do you have a job?
16:12No, but don't people need good cars?
16:15Can't you sell good cars, dad?
16:16And while she has left acting behind,
16:18she's still in the creative fields.
16:20She's lent her voice to BoJack Horseman and the famous podcast Welcome to Night Vale,
16:25and she's written both a book and a play.
16:27The latter was performed at the New York International Friends Festival in 2013.
16:31But before you fold the omelet,
16:33I'd like the chef to hold the pan up and whisper his or her dreams into it.
16:39A legend long before he played little Bill Daggett in Unforgiven,
16:43a role that earned him a BAFTA, Oscar, and a Golden Globe,
16:46Gene Hackman is notoriously private and rarely gives interviews.
16:50I says give me over your pistol.
16:56I ain't drunk.
16:57Ordnance says you got to turn in your firearms to the county office, day or night.
17:03Perhaps he sees no need, or maybe he just doesn't want to.
17:06Regardless, during one such rare interview with Larry King in 2004,
17:10Hackman announced he would be retiring.
17:13Let me bust you. I want to bust you.
17:15I want to bust you.
17:18Let me talk to him.
17:19You got a friend here, buddy.
17:20You got a friend.
17:22This left 2004's Welcome to Mooseport,
17:24a political satire in which he co-starred with Ray Romano as his final film.
17:29Save a piece of narration for a Smithsonian documentary.
17:32Since then, he's focused on writing and has published two novels as a solo writer,
17:36Payback at Morning Peak, and Pursuit.
17:39Some guys follow me.
17:42Who?
17:43I don't know.
17:45It has something to do with the assignment last week.
17:47Number four, Rick Moranis.
17:49After first finding fame with the Canadian sketch comedy series,
17:53Second City Television,
17:54Rick Moranis successfully transitioned to major Hollywood productions.
17:58What sign are you waiting for?
18:00Gozer the Traveler.
18:01He will come in one of the pre-chosen forms.
18:03With prominent roles in franchises like Ghostbusters and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,
18:07Moranis quickly became a household name.
18:09What are you saying, Nick?
18:16Swinging?
18:17Sadly, in 1991, his wife, Anne Belsky, passed away.
18:21Anne Belsky passed away, leaving him to raise their two young children alone.
18:26The actor then made the difficult decision to step away from his
18:29thriving Hollywood career to focus on his kids.
18:32Although Moranis has been absent from live-action films,
18:35he has lent his voice to animated projects,
18:37and appeared alongside Ryan Reynolds in an ad for Mint Mobile.
18:41So why am I here?
18:42I'm just a huge fan.
18:45Oh, stop it.
18:45Come on, stop it.
18:46Seriously.
18:47He is set to reprise his role as the eccentric inventor,
18:50Wayne Zielinski, in the upcoming sequel, Shrunk.
18:53Number 3.
18:54Frankie Muniz
18:56My name is Malcolm.
18:57You want to know what the best thing about childhood is?
19:00At some point, it stops.
19:01Muniz earned incredible popularity throughout the 2000s for his titular role on Malcolm in the Middle,
19:06while also venturing into film with movies like Big Fat Liar and Agent Cody Banks.
19:21Shortly after Malcolm wrapped in 2006,
19:23Muniz announced his retirement from acting and subsequently ventured in race car driving,
19:28performing music, and managing a band called Astro Lasso.
19:31And aside from a recent stint on Dancing with the Stars,
19:34Muniz is taking it easy with his partner, Paige Prince.
19:37They currently co-manage a specialty olive oil shop in Arizona
19:41called Outrageous Olive Oils and Vinegars.
19:43I'm Frankie Muniz.
19:44And I'm Paige Price.
19:45And we are the owners of Outrageous Olive Oils and Vinegars.
19:48Number 2.
19:49Cary Grant
19:50Grant was one of the finest leading men in Hollywood history.
19:58He could do it all, from suave romantic leads to screwball goofs,
20:02to the dark and introspective characters of Alfred Hitchcock.
20:05Grant eventually retired in 1966 in order to raise his newborn daughter Jennifer in peace.
20:11By then, he had also grown disillusioned with the direction of Hollywood,
20:14believing that the golden age, for which he was a major part, was ending.
20:18Alright, but would you mind if I put on something more formal?
20:21He soon transitioned over to business work, becoming a director for both MGM and Fabergé.
20:27He also spent a lot of time traveling to Monaco, where his good friend Grace Kelly,
20:31herself retired from film, was literal royalty.
20:34Oh now, isn't that amazing? The police want me in jail,
20:37my old friends want me dead, the cat wants me out of town.
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20:561. Audrey Hepburn
20:58Among the most esteemed of leading ladies during the golden age of Hollywood,
21:02Audrey Hepburn was the first actress in history to win the BAFTA,
21:05Golden Globe, and Oscar for the same film, doing so for her role in Roman Holiday.
21:15Later, she would star in acclaimed films like Breakfast at Tiffany's and My Fair Lady.
21:28But Hepburn decided to leave the spotlight behind in the late 60s to focus on family,
21:32and she gave birth to her second child in 1970.
21:45While she never quit acting altogether,
21:48she devoted much of her time to UNICEF and visiting countries like Ethiopia,
21:52Turkey, and Vietnam, eventually earning the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her efforts.
22:03Which of these celebrities would you like to see make a comeback? Let us know in the comments.
22:08Cameron Diaz? Well, she's making her big movie comeback,
22:11starring opposite Jamie Foxx in our first look at Back in Action.