Jim Carrey Says He is Retiring from Acting After Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Jim Carrey says he is probably going to retire following the release of the video game movie sequel Sonic the Hedgehog 2. The film, which is hitting U.S. theaters on April 8, 2022, is a follow-up to the surprising success of the 2020 original, which premiered on February 14, just in time to become one of the most successful movies of the year before COVID-19 lockdowns forced theaters to close. The new film will reteam the main cast of the original film, including Ben Schwartz as the titular blue hedgehog, James Marsden as his human companion Tom Wachowski, and Carrey as the wacky villain Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik, while adding Colleen O'Shaughnessey as Tails and Idris Elba as Knuckles.

Sonic the Hedgehog was Carrey's first big Hollywood film in over half a decade, after Dumb and Dumber 2 in 2014. Not only that, it was his first film whatsoever since 2016, in which he performed in a pair of smaller indies, The Bad Batch and Dark Crimes. Beyond that, his only appearance in the pop culture landscape was the short-lived Showtime series Kidding, which lasted for only two seasons.

Now, while speaking with Access Hollywood, Carrey announces his intentions following the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 release. Carrey thinks that he is "probably" retiring and insists that he is being "fairly serious." At the very least, he says, "I might continue down the road but I’m taking a break." While he leaves the door open for a knockout script to coax him back to acting, he is happy with his life where it is, insisting that he's done enough in his career. Read the full quote below:

Well, I’m retiring. Yeah, probably. I’m being fairly serious. It depends, if the angels bring some sort of script that’s written in gold ink that says to me that it’s going to be really important for people to see, I might continue down the road, but I’m taking a break. I really like my quiet life, and I really like putting paint on canvas, and I really love my spiritual life, and I feel like - and this is something you might never hear another celebrity say as long as time exists - I have enough. I’ve done enough. I am enough.

Although there is a gap of four years on his resume, Carrey's Sonic the Hedgehog appearance seemed to signal his return to acting in general. After appearing in that film, the actor appeared in 6 episodes of SNL as Joe Biden in 2020, as well as starring in Kidding season 2. He also had a voice-only cameo in The Weeknd's "Out of Time" music video earlier this year.

Carrey is already hedging his commitment to stopping work after Sonic the Hedgehog 2, so he is likely going to enter the same "soft" period of retirement he did after 2016. However, as he mentioned in his quote, the actor has found a new creative outlet in painting and might not ever wish to return to the big or small screen. If that ends up being the decision he sticks to, at the very least he can be satisfied that he has given the world so much of himself over the previous decades of his career, and hopefully he will be able to enjoy a well-earned rest.

~ Via SCREENRANT