Shelley Duvall: How a family heartache forced 'The Shining' star to disappear from Hollywood
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Shelley Duvall became an icon in the ‘70s and ‘80s with movies like ‘The Shining’, ‘Nashville’, and more. The actress was considered to be one of the most versatile actors in the industry at the time and was destined to be a superstar. However, everything changed when she suddenly opted to run away from all the fame and success she received in Hollywood and live a normal life. Now, she is coming out of retirement to start another chapter in her professional life and star in a new horror movie titled ‘The Forest Hills’. But everyone still wants to know why the actress left the industry when she was getting work regularly and it seems Duvall is finally ready to open up about the heartache that forced her to run away from everything that she loved.
The iconic actress, who won the Best Actress accolade at the 1977 Cannes Film Festival for ‘3 Women’, has revealed that a heartbreaking incident in her family forced her to take the decision of leaving the entertainment industry in 2002 so that she stay with her loved ones.
RELATED ARTICLES
Shelley Duvall RETURNS to acting after 20 years, fans hope industry 'treats her right this time'
Did Shelley Duvall leave Hollywood because of a personal tragedy?
In an interview with People Magazine, the 73-year-old star opened up about her 20-year break from acting and noted that she went away from the industry and moved to Fort Worth, Texas after her brother was diagnosed with Spinal Cancer. However, she noted that she doesn’t regret it because it was important for her to “get in touch” with her family again.
“It's the longest sabbatical I ever took but it was for really important reasons—to get in touch with my family again,” Duvall said during the interview.
Now that she’s back, Duvall is enjoying all the recognition is getting and hopes to continue acting for a long time. Her spirits are really high and didn’t shy away from saying that she can still win an Oscar. She added, “[Jessica Tandy] won an Oscar when she was 80. I can still win.”
In October 2022, it was announced that Duvall will be making a comeback to the field of acting almost two decades after she decided to take a break from making appearances in the movies. Born on July 7, 1949, in Fort Worth, Texas, Duvall made her feature film debut with the 1970 movie ‘Brewster McCloud’. Viewers understood that she was an extraordinary talent and would turn out to be a superstar. In the following years, the actor gave some exhilarating performances in movies like ‘Thieves Like Us’ and ‘Nashville’. However, her role in the 1977 movie ‘3 Women’ garnered her wider recognition. She also won the Best Actress trophy at the Cannes Film Festival for the movie.
She took the world by storm with her impeccable acting skills in the 1980 horror classic ‘The Shining’. Directed by Stanley Kubrick, the movie saw her playing the role of Wendy Torrance who was being terrorized by Jack Torrance, played by Jack Nicholson. Although Nicholson received a lot of praise for his acting, Duvall made a long-lasting impact on the minds of the viewers. As time progressed, she went on to make appearances in projects such as ‘Annie Hall’, ‘Popeye’, ‘Roxanne’, ‘The Portrait of a Lady’, ‘The Twilight Zone’, and more.
She also won the Peabody Award for live-action fantasy TV series titled ‘Faerie Tale Theatre’.
Duvall made her last appearance in the 2002 movie ‘Manna from Heaven’ before taking retirement from acting.