The star of one of Hollywood’s most popular shows has shed light on his decision to pump the brakes on his wildly-successful acting career over 10 years ago.
Matthew Fox starred in Party of Five before achieving a whole new level of success playing Dr. Jack Shepard on Lost, a sci-fi series that riveted audiences for years.
While he could have easily continued starring in more big projects, Fox, 59, instead decided to step away from Hollywood.
He has begun to re-appear on the small screen in recent years, but is now revealing why he decided to take a break from showbiz in the first place.
‘I felt like it was time to engage really intensely with my family,’ he told Variety at the premiere of his latest show, The Madison.
‘I had missed some of their childhood because I was on set all the time with Lost and doing films and promoting everything. It was the right moment for me to step back and take a moment and engage with the people that I love and care about the most in the world.
The star of one of Hollywood’s most popular shows has revealed why the peak of his career was the ‘right moment’ for him to take a break from showbiz
‘And I did that and then I kind of missed storytelling and this opportunity came along from Taylor and I was like, “yeah, I’m in.”
Fox only just returned to television in 2022 with Last Light, more than a decade after Lost ended.
He also appeared in C*A*U*G*H*T before landing a role in a show produced by one of Hollywood’s hottest producers, Taylor Sheridan.
While Hollywood may be where his career was based, Fox had been open about how he imagined settling down away from the hustle and bustle of Los Angeles.
In 2008, Fox told People he had dreams of moving to Oregon, a place where his family lived.
The prospect of moving to the area provided him with comfort during tough times.
‘We’ve been talking about moving to Oregon for a while, so whenever things get tough, I just keep Oregon in my sights,’ he told People in 2008.
‘I enjoy fishing, hiking and skiing, and the mountains and fresh air and all these things are available pretty easily in Oregon without having to drive a long distance.
‘I’m really excited to figure all that out, but it’s still a couple of years away, so I’m just enjoying life right now.’
Fox started his career as Charlie Salinger in the hit Fox series Party of Five, which ran for six seasons from 1994 to 2000.
Four years later he starred as the iconic Jack Shephard in Lost, which ran six seasons from 2004 to 2010 on ABC.
He also starred in movies like Smokin’ Aces, We Are Marshall, Vantage Point, Speed Racer, Alex Cross, Extinction, World War Z and Bone Tomahawk.
The actor went on an acting hiatus from 2014 to 2021, revealing in 2022 that the time was right for a break.
‘I kind of had a bucket list in my mind of things that I wanted to accomplish in the business, and after I did ‘Bone Tomahawk’ in 2014 that had kind of completed the bucket list,’ Fox said in 2022.
‘I wanted to do a Western. It’s a very odd Western, but it’s a Western. And so that sort of completed the bucket list,’ he admitted.
‘At that time in my life, our kids were at an age where I felt like I needed to really reengage,’ Fox said of sons Kyle, 26, and Byron, 23, who he shares with his wife of over 30 years, Margherita Ronchi.
He added, ‘I had been focused on work for some time, and Margherita had been running the family so beautifully, but I felt like it was time to be home, and I really felt like I was retiring from the business, and working on other creative elements that are really personal to me – some music and writing.’
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