How Evangeline Lilly could never take a real sabbatical from films

Actor Evangeline Lilly has said that she thought about quitting acting after Real Steel (2011). Lilly recalled her “unique journey” in Hollywood, feeling “uncomfortable” with the stardom she received for the TV series Lost.

“I did a film called Real Steel with Hugh Jackman and then walked away. I said, ‘I’m done, I’m never doing this again.’ I had a baby, was writing scripts, had a quiet little life, and throughout those two years, I had no contact with Hollywood at all,” Lilly told The Hollywood Reporter. The actor rose to prominence with Lost, where she played plane crash survivor Kate Austen for six seasons. Lilly was also seen in The Hurt Locker (2008).

And when filmmaker Peter Jackson offered her a role in the Hobbit series, it left the actor in a quandary. “And I was so torn because I had genuinely retired, I thought I was done, but I really wanted to do the movie. The little 13year-old girl in me was like ‘I get to be a woodland elf? What?’” she said.

The actor said she had once again planned to take a sabbatical from acting but she was offered Ant-Man.

“I thought, ‘I just need to either draw a very firm line in the sand and say I’m done, or I need to just make my peace with the thing, find a way to be happy and do it in a way that makes me feel satisfied’,” Lilly revealed.

“So that’s what I ended up deciding. I just thought, ‘Well, I’m a smart lady. I can figure this out. I’m going to figure out a way to do this and be happy.’ And I am, I’m very happy, I’ve had a wonderful time promoting this movie, and I’ve had a wonderful time talking to people about things I care about because this movie brings up so many cool issues,” Lilly said.

I did a film with Hugh Jackman and walked away. I said, ‘I’m done, I’m never doing this again.’ I had a baby, was writing scripts, had a quiet little life... EVANGELINE LILLY ACTOR