Jessica Lange says that she is thinking about retiring from Hollywood.
The 74-year-old actress said as much in a recent interview with the Telegraph.
Lange's plan to retire, though, does not appear to have anything to do with her age.
Rather, it appears that the actress is not happy with the current state of affairs in Hollywood.
At one point during the interview, Lange said, "I think I’m going to start phasing out of filmmaking."
The interviewer, surprised by the statement, asked Lange, directly, whether she is thinking about retiring from Hollywood. Lange responded in the affirmative, saying, "I am." She added, "I don’t think I’ll do this too much longer."
The interviewer proceeded to ask Lange why it is that she is thinking about retiring. It was here that Lange made it clear that it has nothing to do with her age and everything to do with the current state of affairs in Hollywood.
"Creativity is secondary now to corporate profits. The emphasis becomes not on the art or the artist or the storytelling. It becomes about satisfying your stockholders. It diminishes the artist and the art of filmmaking," Lange explained.
Lange then, according to the Telegraph, lamented the loss of "wonderful films by really great filmmakers, wonderful stories, great characters." Lange asked, "That’s rare, isn’t it now?" And, later, Lange said that she "has no desire to see 90%" of today's Hollywood films.
The Washington Examiner helps to put Lange's comments into context.
Per the outlet:
Her comments come as the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists have been on strike for almost three months. The union came to a head with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers over higher wages and protections against artificial intelligence.
Whether or not the strike has anything to do with Lange's retirement comment is unclear. Many would argue that the problem with Hollywood that was highlighted by Lange has been ongoing for some time now. Perhaps, though, the strike brought things to a head for Lange.
Lange, of course, is an extremely successful actress, having won two Oscars, three Emmys, and a Tony, during her five decades in Hollywood. Most recently, she starred in Marlowe, alongside Liam Neeson.
Lange's success continues to this day, as the Examiner reports that Lange has already "been cast in three yet-to-be-released projects." We will have to see whether Lange puts her money where her mouth is with the retirement talk.
