7 Once Great Hollywood Stars Who Haven’t Worked in Years

This actors used to be huge stars, but have you noticed that they've disappeared from Hollywood?

To us normal folk, Hollywood represents all things glamorous. Who wouldn’t want to have their face beamed into thousands of theaters – and to millions of theatergoers – every weekend? Add to that the parties, mansions, Met Galas, and Paris Fashion Weeks, and you have yourself a deal. We’d all try to be famous actors if we could. But for some actors, the silver screen has lost its sheen; their only recourse is to leave the industry for good. On the other hand, some actors can’t even find work anymore. In this article, you’ll unfortunately find actors from both camps.

Matt LeBlanc

LeBlanc will forever be linked to Joey, and you can’t blame the man for failing to break away from that mold. Despite his best efforts – including an acclaimed role in the series Episodes – LeBlanc hasn’t had the wild success of, say, Jennifer Aniston. And speaking of Aniston, LeBlanc is insisting that he won’t work with her – or anyone – ever again. Not for shady reasons, though. Just because he’s tired of going to work every morning. Relatable!

Taylor Lautner

If you were Team Jacob during the Twilight years, then you’re probably Team Disappointed right about now. Though Taylor Lautner had the looks and quasi-charm to make it as a semi-bankable leading man post-Twilight saga, he never quite flexed his acting muscles in the way that Kristen Stewart or Robert Pattinson did. (Of course, it’s debatable whether he ever had any, but that’s beside the point.) Despite his attempts at becoming a B-movie action star à la Liam Neeson in the mid-2010s, Lautner never made quite the pop culture impression that he could have. His biggest appearance in the last six years was in a Taylor Swift music video.

Liv Tyler

As the ethereal elven love interest of Aragorn in the Lord of the Rings movies, Liv Tyler proved that she was more than just the daughter of Steven Tyler. She was also an OK actress. Though she never became a critical darling like some of her LOTR costars, she still found steady work afterwards, even appearing in the Emmy-nominated The Leftovers. Unfortunately, Tyler occasionally chose underperforming projects that interrupted her career, leading to a multi-year post-Covid hiatus. However, Tyler will reportedly join the next Captain America movie, Brave New World.

Cameron Diaz

After appearing in the 2014 remake of Annie, the loveable ‘90s and aughts star dropped Hollywood completely to focus on motherhood. Still, she’s managed to remain in the public consciousness, most likely due to December reruns of The Holiday. Though never a huge fan of the craft of acting, Diaz apparently missed it enough to get back into the fray. (Or she just wanted another Prius.) Later this year, she’ll appear in the aptly named Netflix action comedy, Back in Action. 

Daniel Day-Lewis

You’d think that this infamously Method actor would have been blacklisted from Hollywood after all his legendary antics on set. (During filming on Gangs of New York, he refused to speak with Leonardo DiCaprio – for nine months.) And yet, Day-Lewis is only jobless by choice these days. The three-time Oscar winner retired after appearing in the 2017 film Phantom Thread. According to the 66-year-old Method man himself, he simply wanted to enjoy retirement. After all, acting is probably pretty stressful if you spend every weekday in character as Abraham Lincoln, glaring at all your coworkers who aren’t from the North.

Emma Watson

It’s hard to believe it, but Emma Watson hasn’t been in a feature film since 2019’s Little Women. The erstwhile Hermione still shows up to Harry Potter events, of course, but isn’t very keen on returning to acting. She’s had a much more marvelous time as a U.N. ambassador, raising awareness on topics ranging from feminism to climate change. That said, she has claimed that she’ll return to movie acting if given the right role, even if she seems exhausted from the Hollywood rigmarole.

Renee Zellweger

It might seem like just yesterday that Renee Zellweger won the Best Actress Oscar for Judy, but that was actually in 2019! She’s only shown up in one limited series since then – The Thing About Pam – for which she wore a fat suit, inciting controversy. In Zellweger’s case, she became fed up with all the scrutiny that she faced for her decision to get plastic surgery and change her appearance. Her body, her choice. Thankfully, she’s planning a comeback with The Back Nine, a golf comedy directed by Michael Patrick King.