Evangeline Lilly has said she will be “stepping away” from acting for the foreseeable future.
The 44-year-old Canadian actor, best known for leading ABC’s popular six-season drama series Lost from 2004 to 2010, made the announcement on Instagram on June 3.
Lilly reshared a fan video edit containing footage from a 2006 interview in which she had expressed her hopes of being a “retired actress” in 10 years.
“I’m terrified to admit this to the rest of the acting world, but ideally in 10 years from now, I’d like to be a retired actress,” she says in the video. “And I would like to have a family, and I’d like to be writing and potentially, maybe, influencing people’s lives in a more humanitarian way, as almost everybody in the world now knows was my intention before I started the show.”
In 2010, Lilly began dating her long-term partner, fellow actor Norman Kali. They had their first child together the following year, and welcomed their second in 2015.
She’s also authored the children’s book series The Squickerwonkers.
“I am so filled with joy and contentment today as I live out my vision. Praise God, I feel so grateful for my blessings. Stepping away from what seems like the obvious choice (wealth and fame) can feel scary at times, but stepping into your dharma replaces the fear with fulfillment,” Lilly wrote in the post’s caption.
“I might return to Hollywood one day, but, for now, this is where I belong. A new season has arrived, and I AM READY...and I AM HAPPY.”
Lilly’s most recent on-screen role saw her reprise her Ant-Man role of Hope van Dyne/Wasp in Marvel’s 2023 Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
She first entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the superhero in the 2015 Ant-Man. She has also played the character in 2018’s Ant-Man and the Wasp and 2019’s The Avengers.
During an interview last February, she declared that “it’s time” for her standalone Marvel movie.
“Well, I’m going to make a pitch that I think it might be time for a Hope spin-off... for a Wasp standalone film,” she told Variety. “Do we agree? Anybody? Going once... going twice.”
Lilly’s next film role will be in David Stassen’s forthcoming debut, Happy Life, which is currently in pre-production, according to IMDb. She will play a new mom who embarks on a mission of self-discovery after suspecting her workaholic husband (portrayed by Ike Barinholtz) of having an affair with an Instagram influencer.
