14 Movie Legends Who Returned to the Spotlight After a Long Break

Every aspiring actor dreams of reaching the heights of Hollywood and maintaining their place for a few years. It’s true that fame can be fickle and often leaves abruptly. However, the film industry has witnessed a few fortunate individuals who, after a career hiatus, have managed to make a comeback and shine even brighter than before.

Jennifer Coolidge

Jennifer Coolidge first gained attention for her comedic role as Stifler’s Mom in American Pie and has delivered numerous iconic performances since. Despite her talent, major roles that highlighted her versatility eluded her for some time — until The White Lotus. In HBO’s hit show, Coolidge starred in two seasons, where her multifaceted and hilariously entertaining performance earned her both a Golden Globe and an Emmy, finally giving her the recognition she deserves.

Brendan Fraser

The big news of the 2023 Oscars was that Brendan Fraser, who hadn’t been heard from much since the early noughties, won the Best Actor award. He went from one of the most in-demand actors in Hollywood to a master voice actor. After that, he disappeared from the radar altogether.

In 2019, it was as if Fraser rose from the ashes. He once again started appearing in big projects. First, in The Poison Rose and Line of Descent, and, in 2022, in Darren Aronofsky’s drama The Whale. The latter earned Brendan the coveted statuette.

Joe Pesci

Back in 1999, the star of Home Alone, Joe Pesci, announced his departure from the cinema, to devote all his efforts to a music career and enjoy life away from the cameras. However, the actor did return to the screens several times, playing minor or episodic roles.

While working on the film The Irishman, Martin Scorsese could only see Pesci in one of the key roles. He offered it to Joe over 50 times, but each time the actor refused, not wanting to return to the gangster image. Scorsese promised that this movie character would be “different,” and only after that did Pesci agree to go through with it. The role brought the actor many award nominations, including the BAFTAs and the Oscars.

Zoe Saldaña

Many actresses are afraid to go on maternity leave because when they return they may not be so in demand. That was not the case with Zoe Saldaña. When she became a mother, she left her career without a second thought and devoted herself completely to her family. And she only returned to work due to her financial needs: “We have to pay bills and at the end of the day, I think that’s the best example we can set to our children.”

But after her maternity leave, the actress had tremendous success. She has starred in several Marvel Cinematic Universe films, as well reprising her role in Avatar.

Taylor Lautner

After the resounding success of the Twilight saga and the title of one of Hollywood’s highest-paid young actors, the bar for Taylor Lautner was set incredibly high. However, projects to match it were nowhere to be found. The actor starred in several films, which didn’t get much love from the public, and left Hollywood to live the “real life.” During this time, he found love.

And in 2022 he returned to acting, appearing in the sports comedy Home Team. Fans were delighted by the actor’s long-awaited return and enjoyed his screen presence.

Winona Ryder

Winona Ryder was the “it” girl of the late ’80s and ’90s, with memorable roles in Heathers, Edward Scissorhands, Beetlejuice, and many more. However, due to public scandals and personal struggles, she took a break from acting during the 2000s. Ryder made a triumphant return with the pivotal role of Joyce Byers in Netflix’s cultural phenomenon Stranger Things, a homage to the retro films she starred in years earlier. In addition, Ryder has landed the iconic role of Lydia Deetz in the upcoming movie Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. So, she’s the “it” girl once again, now older and wiser.

Ke Huy Quan

In the 1980s, Ke Huy Quan was a successful child actor who was eagerly sought after by various directors. One of the highlights of his career was Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. However, as he got older, he couldn’t find his niche in the acting pantheon and went to work on the other side of the camera. He became a stunt director, and a successful one at that. For example, he directed stunts for X-Men.

Years later, however, Ke Huy Quan was invited back into acting. And this comeback was a real triumph. The actor starred in Everything Everywhere All at Once, for which he won an Oscar.

Renée Zellweger

After the release of the thriller Case 39, Renée Zellweger was hit by a barrage of criticism. The press wrote that after turning 40, the future of the actress’ career seemed uncertain. After that, the star appeared in the drama My Own Love Song, after which she left the big screen for six years. According to her, she wanted to “go away and grow up a bit.” And apparently, that’s exactly what happened.

2016 saw the release of Bridget Jones’s Baby, in which Renée returned to her iconic character. The film grossed more than $210 million, and fans, who had been missing the actress, were delighted with her performance.

Eddie Murphy

Eddie Murphy used to appear on the big screens almost every year starting in the ’80s. The actor worked mostly on comedies. However, 30 years into his career, he started taking on fewer and fewer roles, and after A Thousand Words, he disappeared off the screens altogether.

In 2016, he returned as a film actor, this time in a dramatic role in Mr. Church, after which he again disappeared for several years. His next work was a biopic about comedian Rudy Ray Moore, in which Murphy played the lead role. The film was hailed as one of the best of 2019 and Eddie’s work as the greatest in his filmography.

Katherine Heigl

In the 1990s and 2000s it might have seemed that Katherine Heigl was in almost every romantic comedy in Hollywood. But over time she started appearing in fewer and fewer projects. From 2017, she stopped acting in films altogether, although she did appear in a few TV series. In 2021, the actress finally returned to the big screens. Heigl played one of the leading roles in the psychological thriller Fear of Rain, showing that she can play more complex characters than those in teenage comedies.

Macaulay Culkin

In 2021, another star of Home Alone became a sensation, having returned to the big screens after a long hiatus. Macaulay Culkin, who was written off by Hollywood back in the ’90s, made a triumphant return in the tenth season of American Horror Story, leaving critics stunned with his performance. Prior to that, he had taken part in experimental projects, starring in obscure films and commercials. However, the series was the actor’s first truly prominent work in almost two decades.

Hayden Panettiere

Hayden Panettiere won the viewers’ hearts when she starred in the TV series Heroes and Nashville, as well as the iconic movie Scream 4. However, after starring in the horror film, the actress developed health problems. She struggled with depression for several years, which led to her taking a break from acting. But it was the horror film that, once again, helped her get back to her former self. When Panettiere learned about the filming of the new part of Scream, she called the creators and said she was ready to play her character again.

Joaquin Phoenix

Today it’s hard to imagine, but back in 2010 Joaquin Phoenix with all seriousness announced his retirement from the acting profession. He planned to focus his energy on exploring the relationship between celebrities and the press. However, after some time he did return to the cinema. Director Paul Thomas Anderson offered him a major role in the drama The Master. For this role, Phoenix lost a lot of weight and even changed the cutting of his teeth with the help of a dentist.

The effort was not in vain. Critics wrote: “Phoenix wears the role like a second skin. You can’t take your eyes off him.” After the colossal success, the actor decided to continue acting. 2019 saw the release of his most striking work, which led to him winning an Oscar for his performance in The Joker. The second part of this film is planned for a 2024 release.

Christina Applegate

Christina Applegate rose to prominence in the ’90s as Kelly Bundy in the sitcom Married... with Children, but for the next two decades, she was primarily seen in supporting roles in comedies. In 2019, she took on a complex, dramatic, and hilarious lead role as a grieving wife and mother in Dead to Me. Over three seasons, Applegate played the part to perfection, even after her real-life MS diagnosis, reminding audiences of her incredible strength and talent.

Stay tuned for another article highlighting the funny and awkward situations that movie actors have had to deal with on set.