Two-time Oscar winner Cate Blanchett recently revealed the one condition under which she would quit acting – if it strips away the last shreds of her sanity. With over 100 film and TV credits and dozens of acclaimed stage roles under her belt, Cate Blanchett has undoubtedly already cemented herself as an all-time great.
Is Cate Blanchett Truly Losing Her Passion for Acting?
In an interview with Julia Roberts for Interview Magazine, the 54-year-old Australian icon explained why acting feels increasingly humiliating and maddening as she gets older. Cate Blanchett even labeled the profession “shamanistic,” questioning if she wants to fully descend into the inherent madness.
“As you get older, acting just gets more and more humiliating,” Blanchett confessed. “When I was younger, I would wonder why the older actors I admired kept talking about quitting.”
She went on to add, “Now I realize it’s because they want to maintain a connection to the last shreds of their sanity.”
Blanchett’s comments may surprise fans given her continued passion projects like the new play When We Have Sufficiently Tortured Each Other. But the psychological wear of baring one’s soul appears to be taking a toll as the years pile on.
Perhaps remembering the public breakdowns of peers like Shelley Duvall, Blanchett now relates more to feeling stripped bare by the “shamanistic madness” of acting vs finding it creatively fulfilling.
Will Fans See Cate Blanchett Grace the Screen Much Longer?
Though clearly conflicted, Blanchett explained she often weighs walking away to “actually live a life” rather than relentlessly pursue acting into old age like “the King Lear end of the spectrum.”
“As I get older, I ask myself if I still want to submit myself to the shamanistic end of this profession and go completely into madness,” she told Roberts, suggesting the final straw would be if acting robbed her remaining sanity.
Still, Blanchett cited a passion for compelling narratives and radical concepts that may persuade her to stay the course a bit longer. And with her legendary performances aging like fine wine, fans certainly hope she continues gracing both screens and stages with her presence – rather than joining the ranks of burned-out peers who ultimately fled Hollywood for peace of mind over fame and fortune.
Has Cate Blanchett Already Secured Her Acting Legacy?
From breakthroughs like 1998’s Elizabeth which earned her the first of seven Oscar nominations to career-defining turns in The Aviator and Blue Jasmine which delivered two wins, Blanchett’s versatility and commitment to her craft has long been hailed.
Add blockbusters like The Lord of the Rings trilogy plus honors like the Companion of the Order of Australia, British Film Institute Fellowship, and four competitive BAFTA awards, and Blanchett’s legacy seems set in stone. Even if she soon walks away for mental health, the breadth of her iconography and impact is virtually peerless among contemporaries.
Few actors can claim such wide-ranging success across stage and screen. So while fans hope to see Blanchett continue mesmerizing audiences, her enduring influence as a defining actor of her generation remains indisputable.
