Michael Caine Announces Retirement From Acting, Says He Can’t Beat ‘The Great Escaper’ Hype

Michael Caine says he’s retiring from acting, and this time for good.

The 90-year-old hopped on BBC Radio 4’s Best of Today show Saturday and shared he’s leaving Hollywood at precisely this moment because he says there’s no way to beat the hype surrounding his latest — and final — project, The Great Escaper, a film he said he initially turned down three times.

“I kept saying I’m gonna retire. Well, I am now because I figure I’ve had a picture where I’ve played the lead, and it’s got incredible reviews,” said Caine in reference of The Great Escaper. “The only parts I’m likely to get now are old men, 90-year-old men. Well, maybe 85, you know? And I thought, ‘Well, I might as well leave with all this. I’ve got wonderful reviews. What am I gonna do to beat this?’”

Caine stars in the Oliver Parker-directed film based on a true story about a British World War II veteran who snuck out of his nursing home in 2014 to travel to France for an event commemorating D-Day. 

The film’s also responsible for the two-time Oscar winner’s first red carpet appearance in two years back in September. The renowned nonagenarian posed for photos on the red carpet at the premiere in London, England. Caine — who walked with the use of a cane — sat in a chair on the carpet as he smiled for photos.

Wearing a dark blue blazer and light blue button-down, along with black slacks and black loafers, Caine looked dapper and classy as ever in his rare public appearance. Caine also later posed with the cast, who crowded around him as he sat and beamed for snapshots.

Caine, who in March celebrated his 90th birthday with Tom Cruise, made headlines some two years ago when he went on BBC Radio’s Kermode and Mayo’s Film Review and implied he was retiring from acting due to health problems.

“Funnily enough, it has turned out to be my last part, really, because I haven’t worked for two years,” he said of his role in Best Sellers, adding, “And I have a spine problem which affects my leg, so I can’t walk very well.”

He later clarified to Variety that he was not retiring.

“Regarding retirement, I’ve spent over 50 years getting up at 6 a.m. to make movies, and I’m not getting rid of my alarm clock!” he said in a statement to the outlet.

If The Great Escaper indeed becomes his final film, Caine’s storied career will have spanned eight decades with more than 175 acting credits to his name. He’s been nominated for six Academy Awards, winning two for Best Supporting Actor in 1986 (Hannah and Her Sisters) and 1999 (The Cider House Rules). He was nominated for Best Actor in 1966 (Alfie), 1972, (Sleuth), 1983 (Educating Rita) and 2022 (The Quiet American).

The three-time Golden Globe winner also holds the distinction of being one of only five male actors to have earned Oscar nominations in five different decades. He’s cultivated a legion of fans that transcends generations, with appearances in popular films such as The Muppet Christmas Carol, Austin Powers in Goldmember, Inception, Kingsman: The Secret Service and The Dark Knight.

For his immense contribution to cinema, Caine was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2000. 

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