Can celebrities really manifest their dream roles through style choices?
Conor McGregor is pretty much the face of the UFC: He announced his retirement on March 26, 2019, but seemed to do an about-face 10 days later, tweeting, "I want to move forward...Now see you in the octagon." He also previously "retired" in 2016 and has continued to hint at his retirement on and off for years.
Back in 2000, Barbra Streisand hosted four farewell concerts to honor her retirement. She has gone on to perform in North America and Europe.
Minaj tweeted about her retirement in September 2019, telling fans, "I've decided to retire & have my family." However, she later clarified that she still had music coming out and was only pondering about where she stood with her fifth album.
The high-profile actress announced her retirement on Twitter in 2010, when she was just 24. Just one month later, she said she was "unretired."
See also: Top locations for baby boomers to retire
NBA legend Michael Jordan famously retired in 1993 after helping lead the Chicago Bulls to three consecutive championships. Both the murder of his father and an NBA investigation into allegations of illegal betting (of which he was later cleared) had gotten to him, and he left the court and entered the baseball diamond for a few years. In 1995 however, he returned to the Bulls and once again led them to three consecutive championship wins. Then, on January 13, 1999, he retired from the NBA a second time.
The man behind 'Hey Ya!' and 'Ms. Jackson' told GQ about his "break" from music, which started over a decade ago. He hasn’t toured in years, but still collaborates every now and then.
The boxing all-star announced his retirement in 2015, after beating Andre Berto. He returned to the ring in 2017, for a one-off fight with Conor McGregor. He has agreed to a few fights since then, going up against Logan Paul in 2021 and Mikuru Asakura in 2022.
Cameron Diaz announced in 2018 that she was retiring from acting after a long and successful career. Despite not having starred in a movie since 2014's 'Annie,' she explained that she had no desire to make more films and instead wanted to enjoy life outside of the spotlight. However, she came out of retirement in 2022 after Jamie Foxx convinced her to co-star in the Netflix action-comedy aptly titled 'Back in Action.'
In August of 2022, tennis champion Serena Williams wrote an essay for Vogue in which she announced her intention to retire following the US Open in September, although she said that she doesn't like the word retirement and sees it as more of an evolution. When she lost her last match to Ajla Tomljanovic, the 41-year-old received a send-off fit for a legend. Just a couple of months later, while speaking at a TechCrunch event, Williams revealed she is not retired and that the chances of her returning to competitive tennis are very high. She told the crowd that she jumped straight into the management of her investment company following the US Open and "didn't even think about the whole retirement." She continued, “I am not retired. The chances [of me returning] are very high."
Tom Brady is seen by many as the NFL's greatest quarterback of all time, so it was huge news when he officially announced that he would be retiring at the beginning of February 2022. But, less than 40 days later, the star athlete decided retirement just wasn't for him. "I’ve realized my place is still on the field and not in the stands," he tweeted. "That time will come. But it’s not now." Brady returned for the 2022-2023 season, during which he and his wife, Gisele Bündchen, announced their divorce. The season came to a close on January 8, and on February 1, Brady announced his decision to retire (again). The seven-time Super Bowl champion shared the news in a video on social media, stating that it was " for good" this time.
Actress Shelley Duvall was a rising star in the 1970s. She made her name starring as Wendy in the classic 1980 horror film, 'The Shining.' Stanley Kubrick had a reputation for being a punishing director and was particularly harsh with Duvall during this production. She carried on acting for another two decades before making her final appearance in the 2002 movie 'Manna From Heaven.' Duvall then announced that she was retiring from acting and public life, later revealing that she had been struggling with her mental health. Duvall has always been remembered as one of the most beloved "scream queens" in horror, so fans were delighted to hear that the 78-year-old decided to make a comeback for the horror movie 'The Forest Hills' in 2023. Sadly, Duvall passed away a year later.
In November 2024, three-time Olympic medalist Lindsey Vonn announced her return to skiing after six years of retirement. She retired in 2019 after an unfortunate string of injuries and crashes. However, she underwent knee replacement surgery in April 2024 and there's speculation that she has her sights set on the 2026 Winter Olympics.
When the average person retires from the workforce, usually as they approach 70, they're out for good. However, for the likes of actors, musicians, and sports stars, the retirement pipeline isn't always linear. Many retire young, having no financial need to keep working, but then decide to get back in the game a few years later. Whether it's burnout, health problems, ageism, or a personal crisis, their convictions didn't last.
Curious? Click on to meet the stars who returned after they "retired."
Not done there, Jordan came out of retirement in 2001 as a free agent with the Washington Wizards, and scored his 30,000th career point against his former team, the Bulls. But, once again, Jordan retired for the third and final time on April 16, 2003.
Stars who came out of retirement
Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in...
CELEBRITY Retirement
When the average person retires from the workforce, usually as they approach 70, they're out for good. However, for the likes of actors, musicians, and sports stars, the retirement pipeline isn't always linear. Many retire young, having no financial need to keep working, but then decide to get back in the game a few years later. Whether it's burnout, health problems, ageism, or a personal crisis, their convictions didn't last.
Curious? Click on to meet the stars who returned after they "retired."