Alec Baldwin Shares Desire to Retire from Acting After 'Rust' Tragedy Took a Toll
By Melissa Roberto
Longtime Amagansett homeowner Alec Baldwin has been quietly laying the groundwork for a major life shift — and now, the award-winning actor is making it explicit, opening up about his desire to step away from acting for good.
Speaking on The Hollywood Reporter’s “Awards Chatter” podcast, the 68-year-old father of eight discussed the toll the Rust tragedy — which saw cinematographer Halyna Hutchins fatally shot and director Joel Souza injured on set in New Mexico by a gun held by Baldwin — has taken on his interest in continuing his career in Hollywood.
Calling the tragedy “unspeakably difficult” and “very painful,” Baldwin said it pushed him into a more reclusive lifestyle.
“I wound up staying home a lot. I was home with my kids for three-and-a-half years. I hardly worked at all, and that’s just changing now. I’m going to go off and do a bunch of things. But I was home and I got used to it, and I don’t want to leave the house anymore,” the 30 Rock alum said. “I really don’t. I want to retire and stay home with my kids.”
Still, Baldwin’s comments don’t come entirely out of nowhere. In recent years, he’s been signaling a shift toward a quieter, more home-centered life — from starring alongside wife Hilaria Baldwin and their seven children in a TLC reality series that showcased their family dynamic in New York City and summers in Amagansett, to listing the sprawling Hamptons home he’s owned since the 1990s. Just last month, Hilaria hinted that the family may be ready for a bigger move, calling the idea of leaving the area “bittersweet.”
At the same time, Baldwin has remained a visible presence in the local film community, frequently hosting and moderating Q&As in the Hamptons. Most recently, he appeared at Guild Hall for a screening and discussion of Stanley Kubrick’s Paths of Glory, reinforcing that even as he weighs retirement, his ties to the Hamptons community aren’t going anywhere.
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