Hannah Montana’s Morgan York a child star working in Hollywood in the 2000s with films such as The Pacifier and Cheaper by the Dozen before joining the Miley Cyrus Disney show in 2006. After Hannah Montana wrapped, York chose a different direction rather than pursue acting any further. Now, after over a decade, the former actress revealed why she quit acting after Miley Cyrus’s Disney series ended.
Like many child actors, Morgan York decided to leave acting rather than be forced out. Her exit from Hollywood left fans wondering as to why she left. After years of questions, York took to her TikTok to answer the burning question. The former actress said about her acting experience:
I'm gonna go into this a little more, because the question I'm asked the most is, 'Why did you quit acting?' I started acting when I was nine and from the beginning my mom told me, 'The second this becomes not fun or you want to stop, you can stop.' I never expected it to be a lifetime thing. I even remember as a kid trying to imagine myself as an adult actor and just not seeing it. I saw myself stopping acting, at the very least, when I started college, and just never going back.
Given the shelf life of most child stars, it was perfectly normal for Morgan York to see acting more like a “job” rather than a “career.” She already had an exit strategy before Hannah Montana even ended. Coming off the success and popularity of a Disney series, some actors would have seized on the moment and rode the wave. But York wasn’t attached to her acting future compared to her co-stars Miley Cyrus and Emily Osment.
During her video, the actress-turned-writer went into the details about her choice to quit acting. Morgan York admitted to being surprised by fans’ reaction to her decision. She said about her reason behind leaving Hollywood:
I think I also wildly underestimated how much of an uproar would be made over it. I thought I could just leave, and nobody would ask me for the next eleven years of my life, 'Why did you quit acting?' But yeah, it wasn't fun anymore. My passion for acting did not outweigh all the costs, like all the time you have to spend away from loved ones on sets, and the constant scrutiny from people watching you. And my passion for writing fiction, which existed as long as my passion for acting, was just much stronger, and it was something I preferred.
As Morgan York pointed out, acting is a commitment. And if you aren’t willing to sacrifice your time and life for the craft, then it can be better to find something else you’re passionate about. That’s exactly what York did with her love for writing. But the fact that Hannah Montana fans still ask her about the decision proves just how much they appreciated her as an actress. Check out York’s full TikTok video below:
@morgan.york
Morgan York's video also confirms her non-participation in the possible Hannah Montana revival one day. So, I commend her York for knowing early on that writing was her passion, not acting. If you want to see her playing Sarah back in her Hannah Montana days, however, you can find the series streaming on Disney+.
