Former MCU Star Reveals Why She Left Hollywood 

Former MCU star Evangeline Lilly is explaining why she officially left Hollywood.

The retired actress, who is best known for her roles in The Hobbit and Ant-Man films, as well as the TV series Lost, opened up about her decision to step back from the public spotlight in a recent interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network.

“I’d much prefer a quieter position. I’ve always hated being famous,” she explained. “I never made any secrets about that. I’ve always said being famous is the cost of the wealth that you can get as an actor. Like that’s what you pay for — the wealth.”

Lilly further explained that while she announced her retirement from acting in 2024, she had actually ended her career in 2020. “It’s been six years now,” she pointed out.

However, Lilly admitted it wasn’t easy for her to walk away from acting at first. “When you’re successful at something, it feels really good when the world says, ‘We love you! You’re amazing!’ Like, this is a wonderful feeling,” she explained. “How do you walk away from that? And I’ve had moments of … gripping fear of like, ‘What am I doing?’ But, ultimately, the decision was one that was made in great conviction.”

Although she went into acting, Lilly revealed that she had actually considered becoming a missionary, humanitarian, or diplomat in the past.

“I wanted to make the world a better place,” she continued. “And there are many people who will claim that actors are making the world a better place, that they’ve had an impact on their lives. But…I’ve always wanted a much more hands-on impact. I’ve done 22 years of hands-on humanitarian work in Rwanda.”

Although she officially retired from acting in 2020, Lilly did a voice role in 2021’s Legend of Destruction, which is about the Jewish revolt against ancient Rome and the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem.

She was cast as Queen Bernice in the English version of the film.

“The film was originally made in Hebrew, and so I actually was able to see the fully completed piece before I came on board for the English version,” Lilly noted. “I didn’t understand what I was looking at. I didn’t understand what I was being invited into, but I watched the film, and within the first…three to four seconds of the film, I felt like I was just completely immersed in a way that most films don’t do for me anymore.”

Lilly has since been living a quieter life away from film and TV sets. However, last year she endured a traumatic brain injury after fainting at a Hawaiian beach and falling face-first into a boulder.

She revealed in early 2026 the struggles she endured while trying to cover the cost of treatment for the injury.

“I consider myself one of the extremely fortunate people in this country who can take care of my body the way it needs to be taken care of without money getting in the way of that,” Lilly shared. “And so I want to share what I’m learning from them in case any of you out there are also experiencing repercussions from a TBI concussion and want to attend to your brain.”

She went on to share that she is taking various supplements to help with her condition, including omega-3s, the antioxidant N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), creatine, and curcumin.