According to a YouGov survey, 53% of Americans believe that they would enjoy being famous. But being in the public eye certainly isn't for everyone, and it's not conducive to every career path either. If you have big dreams of being a nurse or firefighter, there's no need to have a huge following on social media. In fact, it might be better not to.
Redditors have recently been discussing former stars who decided to remove themselves from the spotlight and live quiet lives following their fame. From child actors who had other ideas for their careers to celebs who decided to focus on their families, enjoy scrolling through, and keep reading to find a conversation with Jazz and Jess from the Sis, Let Me Tell You podcast!
This post may include affiliate links.
President Jimmy Carter. He could have parlayed his Pres gig into big bucks speaking and getting book deals. Instead, he just built houses for lower income people. Never wavered from his core beliefs. As a former Navy Submariner, I always admired how he always kept the values of our Top Secret oath we took as submariners.
Rick Moranis.
PhoneJazz:
He left Hollywood because his wife died, and he wanted to raise his kids.
I remember when he dropped out. Good for him. The residuals from Spaceballs and Honey I Shrunk the kids are more than enough for a lifetime.
To gain more insight on this topic from a couple of pop culture experts, we reached out to Jazz Steele and Jess Gomez, hosts of the Sis, Let Me Tell You podcast. "We are twin sisters who have an awful lot to say about a whole lot of things. We focus on black celebrity gossip/news and personal stories with a sibling spin," the hosts explained. "It’s meant to feel like catching up with old friends about the latest and greatest."
The sisters provided us with a list of examples of celebrities who have left the public eye. "Geoffrey Owens played Elvin Tibideaux on The Cosby Show. He teaches acting classes and was seen working at a Trader Joe’s," they shared. "Stanley Burrell AKA MC Hammer. He struggled with some legal and financial issues, but has since bounced back and seems happy."
Bill Watterson, creator of Calvin and Hobbes, refused to license his work out and retired when the comics were huge at 37. Walked away from potentially hundreds of millions because he thought it would jeopardize the integrity of his art through commercializing it. I think he's refused any public interview and the only publicly available picture of him is from over 30 years ago.
Lives in a modest neighborhood in Cleveland.
Hayden Christensen did all the Star Wars stuff and then bought a farm outside Toronto. He's now all about farming.
"Albert Greene AKA Al Green. He is a preacher in the Memphis area," Jazz and Jess continued. "Karyn Parsons played Hilary Banks on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. She’s the founder of the Sweet Blackberry Foundation, which produces animated films and books starring unsung black heroes."
"Mason Betha AKA Mase. He has turned his life over to God and speaks to crowds to invite others to do the same," the hosts noted. "Kim Coles played Synclaire James-Jones on Living Single. She is a coach, speaker and teacher for her own academy where she shares her wealth of knowledge and building her 'Kim-pire.'"
Chunk (Jeff Cohen) from The Goonies became a lawyer.
dfze:
Yup. Apparently he’s a lawyer that represents actors and tries to make sure they always negotiate for fair agreements.
The kid who played Charlie in the original Willy Wonka. He went on to be a veterinarian.
As far as why celebrities choose to do this, Jazz and Jess noted that being in the spotlight is a lot of pressure. "Some people manage to handle it well, while others are consumed by it," they explained. "Prioritizing your mental health is the number one priority."
"Other times, it takes you experiencing something such as acting or music professionally to realize it’s not for you. Or you accomplished your goal, now what?" the hosts continued. "Whatever the reason, we only want people at their best. If they are unable to guarantee that then it wasn’t meant to be."
Enya lives in a tiny Irish village where she's just one of the locals.
JuryBorn:
She lives in Killiney. It is an affluent suburb in Dublin. 2 members of U2 also live there. She is quite reclusive and lives in a castle.
dasuberblonde:
Enya became a hermit and lives in a castle collecting cats aka living the dream
Enya is AMAZING, but here's something. Did you know she had a band BEFORE she was Enya? If you like Celtic Folk music and haunting vocals (I do a lot), check out Clannad. Clannad was her first band. Their version of Suil a Ruin is heartbreaking.
Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi run a tennis academy in Las Vegas for underprivileged kids.
I don't understand how this fit here. They're were sports stars and those usually retire at a pretty young age compared to the regular folks like us
We also asked the hosts what some of the pros of leaving the industry might be. "It allows people the insight of it being okay to take a risk, try something new and that it’s okay to fail. We took a risk by starting our podcast," Jazz and Jess told Bored Panda. "We had no experience, no equipment before committing to trying it, and we knew there was a possibility we could fail. Knowing there was no real harm nor foul helped to take that leap."
Queen’s John Deacon. Lives quietly wherever. Has minimal contact with Queen, though they do run ideas by him as a courtesy.
TwistyHeretic2:
Deacon lives quietly with his wife Veronica, for whom he wrote his first major hit "You're My Best Friend" when they were newlyweds and expecting their first baby (1975). They'll be celebrating their 49th anniversary next month. They still live in the house they bought back when the money started coming in. They had six children (5 boys and 1 girl), and now who-knows-how-many grandchildren.
Cameron Diaz.
Raising her kid with one of the Good Charlotte dudes and enjoying life. She made some awesome movies and great friendships. Content to live her life pretty quietly now.
She was everywhere in the late 90s and early 2000s then dropped off. So weird. Thought she would continue acting for many more years.
On the other hand, there can also be downsides to deciding to leave fame behind. "Let’s take Geoffrey Owens for example," Jazz and Jess shared. "He settled back into normal life, and we hadn’t heard much from him in decades. A few years ago, he was spotted working in a New Jersey Trader Joe’s, which started a debate of how work is valued and job shaming."
"Some people responded extremely negatively to the photo that was captured, while others defended his choice of employment. Geoffrey had to quit his Trader Joe’s gig due to the attention," the hosts explained. "He had an interview with Good Morning America where he stated, 'There’s no job better than another…every job is worthwhile.' People can make you feel like a failure or a quitter or less than when they see you have taken a step back from fame."
Greta Garbo was the biggest movie star in the world throughout the ‘30s. She made her last movie in 1941, at the age of 36.
She then spent the next 50 years living alone in a New York apartment. She was known for taking daily walks around Manhattan, and “Garbo-spotting” was a popular New York activity in the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s.
Newt from Aliens (Carrie Henn) is a teacher.
Yep. She actually teaches at the school down the the street from my house.
We also asked Jazz and Jess if there were any celebrities who have stepped away from the public eye that they would like to hear from again. "Keri Hilson. She was an incredible singer and songwriter between 2002 and the 2010s," they shared.
"Her career was full steam ahead until an alleged feud between her and Beyonce caused her to be blacklisted from the industry. Over the years, she has tried to reenter the scene as her and Beyonce seem to be on better terms now, but as of today she has yet to release new music. We would love to see a Keri Hilson reemergence."
If you'd like to hear more of Jazz and Jess' thoughts on black pop culture, be sure to check out Sis, Let Me Tell You. "We offer video podcast episodes on Spotify, YouTube and we just started a Patreon," they told Bored Panda. "New episodes every Tuesday morning. Check us out!"
Pheobe Cates.
FyreWyvern:
Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 2 Gremlins movies, a few other things… then retired more than 20 years ago.
Married to Kevin Kline since 1989 and running a little shop in NYC.
Danny Lloyd, the kid from The Shining is a professor at a community college in Kentucky.
Bridgett Fonda, loved her then she disappeared. Last year paps found her living a normal life not looking she used too. They were brutal. F**k the paps.
Kate Bush.
Now_Wait-4-Last_Year:
Still quietly making music out of sight like she always did. Apparently Running Up That Hill being featured on Stranger Things made her several million dollars to add to all her other revenue streams.
It sometimes seems like Kate Bush did backing vocals for basically everyone in the music industry in the 80s. EDIT: Ace, BoyGanesh, you're both right. "backing vocals" was a horribly minimizing choice of words. Collaborations is a much better word. I'm a bit embarrassed about doing that.
Erik Estrada, who played officer Francis Llewellyn "Ponch" Poncherello on "CHiPs" became a real-life police officer in Saint Anthony, Idaho.
Surprised no one mentioned Daniel Day-Lewis. The man was on the top of his field for many years, but the toll each movie had on him made him choose to go live a normal life with his family.
Anything this guy did was immediatly praised by the Academy. He really went out on top.
His first acting credit was in 1971, and he's only had 29 credits in 53 years. He first quit in 1997 after "the boxer" and didn't come back to it until "Gangs of new york" in 2002. Including Gangs, he's been in 6 films over the past 21 years. He made movies so as to learn the skills of the characters he played, and a certain point other passions overtook. He was a wood-worker for several years, became engrossed in becoming a cobbler, and his latest obsession is being a tailor. Acting was his talent, not his passion.
Tom from MySpace 😆
Illustrious_Town_163:
I respect him a lot compared to all the other major internet company guys. Wasn’t trying to change the world or farm data or move us into some technocratic future, just made a cool thing, sold it and does what he wants now.
I agree! Many scoff/laugh when MySpace is mentioned, but at the time it was a good thing so much so the idea was sold and yes it was changed, but this was one of the first social media platforms that connected people this way. I wasn't a bad concept, it needed updating like any other would.
Bill Withers passed away in 2020, but he's the ultimate example of being on top and just dropping out and living his life.
girlomfire17:
I love Bill. He never fully quit his blue collar job, even when fully immersed in making music because he never trusted the people. And recognized his fame as fleeting. He was great. Probably in my top 5 songwriters
Tip; listen to his anti-Vietnam anthem "can't write lefthanded". If you don't know that song you won't regret listening to it.
Staci Keanan. Was on two big sitcoms in the 80s and 90s, charming, beautiful. Had amazing prospects. Then she dropped out of the business, went to law school, now she's a district attorney.
Bobby Sherman was a huge teen heartthrob in the 70s, and then at the height of his career, he left it all behind to become a paramedic.
Follow your heart, I guess, even if others find it weird.
That's not weird in the slightest. Doing something tangible and can literally make the difference between life and death. Nothing wrong with being a teen heartthrob but it's telling that he went for a change that is based on what he can do as a person and not in his looks. Hopefully he found the meaning and fulfillment he was looking for.
Andre 3000 from OutKast. He was arguably the greatest rapper in the world and gave up the fame to live a quiet private life. The guy literally does his laundry at a laundromat to stay grounded and so he can play his flute in the alley while his clothes dry.
He was good, but he was not the "greatest rapper" in a world in which Eminem exists, particularly at the time he stepped away. Buuut, started having overwhelming anxiety attacks when he'd have to go on stage, he couldn't cope with the pressure, and really didn't like anything that went along with the fame. He just wanted to make music and didn't like the rest of "the game" he just released an album of flute music recently.
The girl who played Harper on Wizards of Waverly Place is a Registered Nurse now.
Ken Griffey Jr. (baseball) is worth over $100M, and in his retired years, he picked up photography. He's an on-field photographer for the Philadelphia Eagles, where his father lives. Dude is humble and loves what he does.
It was Rick Astley until we relentless trolled our teachers and friends with the Rick roll circa 2006 ish.
Wolfwoods_Sister:
He said he really hated the music fame machine and just didn’t want to go any further with it.
Jake Ryan on 16 candles.
SeatownSpy:
I think he’s a wood worker now. His daughter Scarlett is a stunner and works in modeling.
Phyllis Smith from the Office was actually part of the casting team for the show originally. She moved out of LA several yrs ago, lives a completely normal life in Missouri now.
Nikki Blonsky from Hairspray. She was selling shoes and working as a hairstylist last I read.
Note: this post originally had 62 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
... and Brigitte Bardot of course, the original Pamela Anderson.
So many of these people never left anything behind. They simply fell off of the star track. I doubt half of them would refuse if they were told, "Hey, we're doing a jokey 'next generation' sorta reboot of your old show and we'll pay you a ton of money for a supporting role so we can raise money off of your name." Which I have no problem with, but there's a difference between leaving behind fame and fortune for a greater cause (even raising your own kids) and simply having having the dignity not to do an occasional episode of the Hollywood Squares.
... and Brigitte Bardot of course, the original Pamela Anderson.
So many of these people never left anything behind. They simply fell off of the star track. I doubt half of them would refuse if they were told, "Hey, we're doing a jokey 'next generation' sorta reboot of your old show and we'll pay you a ton of money for a supporting role so we can raise money off of your name." Which I have no problem with, but there's a difference between leaving behind fame and fortune for a greater cause (even raising your own kids) and simply having having the dignity not to do an occasional episode of the Hollywood Squares.
