EntertainmentMargot Robbie trades 'Barbie' limelight for director's chair: An unexpected hiatus

Margot Robbie trades 'Barbie' limelight for director's chair: An unexpected hiatus

Margot Robbie recently embodied the titular Barbie.
Margot Robbie recently embodied the titular Barbie.
Images source: © Getty Images | 2024 Steve Granitz

12:06 AM EST, January 15, 2024

Despite having a film career spanning 15 years, the 33-year-old Australian actress's breakthrough moment arrived when she took a minor role in Martin Scorsese's "The Wolf of Wall Street". Starring alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Margot Robbie earned her first Oscar nomination.

The actress continued to deliver stellar performances. Within just three years, she starred in movies such as "Focus," "Big Short," "Legend of Tarzan," "Suicide Squad," and "I, Tonya." She later portrayed Sharon Tate in Quentin Tarantino's "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" and took pivotal roles in Damien Chazelle's "Babylon" and Greta Gerwig's "Barbie".

However, the relentless pace eventually led the actress to reconsider her commitments. Margot Robbie told Deadline she plans to take a significant break from acting.

- I guess everyone might be tired of seeing me by now. It just feels right to retreat from the screens for a while. If I did another movie so soon, people might wonder, "Her again? We have just spent the whole summer with her. Haven't we had enough?" - she said, alluding to the colossal success of "Barbie", which she also produced.

While none of her known co-stars might entertain such an idea, much less implement it, Robbie is resolute in her decision to take a step back from acting. This, however, doesn't signify she'll be inactive. Since producing "I, Tonya", the actress has also taken up the role of a film and series producer. Presently, she intends to turn another dream into reality.

- For the past seven years, I've had a desire to try my hand at directing. Yet, she confessed that I always perceived it as a privilege rather than a tangible possibility.