Wait, The Dark Knight’s Michael Caine Isn’t Retiring From Acting After All?

Michael Caine as Alfred Pennyworth in Dark Knight Rises
(Image credit: Warner Bros)

Michael Caine is a beloved actor and has earned nearly 200 acting credits since his career began in the 1950s. These days, Caine is 88 years old and was most recently seen in Christopher Nolan’s Tenet. He seemed to announce his retirement during an interview that came out on Friday, but he’s backtracking to clarify. No, the actor is not saying goodbye to his illustrious career just yet. 

While talking about his latest film Best Sellers, Michael Caine said it “turned out to be” his “last part” before sharing that he hadn’t worked in two years, has some medical issues he’s dealing with and has been writing as of late. After the his alleged retirement made headlines, the actor released a statement to Variety, saying the following: 

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!

Sources close to the Oscar winner also claim that the actor is currently looking over two scripts for potential projects. Additionally, the actor took to his Twitter account to say that he hasn’t retired and that “not a lot of people know that." Check it out: 

See more

It seems like it’s one of those things that was taken a bit more strongly than he meant it to be. As Michael Caine shared, he’s not acting as much these days due to numerous factors, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the actor wouldn’t say no to a project if it came to him. And while he might be slowing down, he’s not ready to close off all the Hollywood channels. Here’s what Caine said that caused the confusion: 

I haven’t worked for two years, and I have a spine problem which affects my leg, so I can’t walk very well. And I also wrote a book, a couple of books, which were published and successful. So, I’m now not an actor; I’m a writer. Which is lovely because as an actor, you have to get up at half past six in the morning and go to the studio. As a writer, you can start writing without leaving the bed!

No one would certainly chastise him for choosing to focus on his health and enjoy his later years without being in the public spotlight. However, he's still an incredible talent, and the role would likely be one that'll aptly utilize his talents. He's the good luck charm for Mr. Christopher Nolan and has been in every one of his movies since playing Alfred in 2005’s Batman Begins. Perhaps Caine wants to leave the door open to get a role in Nolan’s next project, Oppenheimer

Between his Friday comments and the ones he's now released, Michael Caine's future may still seem a bit confusing. Of course, he reserves the right to change his mind or clarify what’s going on with him. Considering the stage of life he's in, he may not jump at every role that comes his way, but it's great to hear that he's not hanging it up for good yet.

Sarah El-Mahmoud
Staff Writer

Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.