Cameron Diaz was one of the most bankable stars of her generation before she decided to retire from acting in 2014. Even her three films released that year — The Other Woman, Sex Tape and Annie — were commercially successful. Now that she's all set to return to the screen with Netflix's Back in Action and several other projects, Diaz spoke candidly about what made her leave it all behind and the reasons behind her decision to return to acting.
Why did Cameron Diaz quit acting?
Diaz spoke about her decade-long absence from film and TV on Monday, October 14, at Fortune's Most Powerful Women Summit. She said it was something she "had to do." The Knight and Day actress added, "It felt like the right thing to do to get my own life back and I really didn't care about anything else… No one's opinion, no one's success, no one's offer, no one's anything could change my mind about my decision to take care of myself and build the life I really wanted to have."
Diaz explained that she wanted to focus on her family. "I think it really comes down to, 'What are you passionate about?' For me, it was building my family," she said.
Diaz has been married to musician Benji Madden since 2015. They have two children together.
