Jennifer Lawrence

As the star of the acclaimed “Hunger Games,” the superhero “X-Men,” and the Oscar-winning comedy-drama “Silver Linings Playbook,” Jennifer Lawrence has proven herself capable of playing a wide variety of roles and handling any acting challenge. However, there was a time when the actress suddenly lost faith in herself and her work. Tired of her punishing work schedule, she couldn’t stop self-reflection: along with the ever-observant internet users who relentlessly searched for any flaw in Jennifer, she also became a harsh critic. “I’m boring everyone. I’m boring myself,” Lawrence admitted in an interview. Once she realized this, the best solution was a break, which she took in 2019—she focused on her family and, at least for a while, forgot about the stress. The hiatus was only supposed to last a year, but it dragged on, and the actress returned to film in 2021, starring alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in the project “Don’t Look Up.” Jennifer Lawrence’s career is currently booming, and this year we can see her in the new film Die My Love alongside Robert Pattinson.

Rick Moranis

Perhaps Rick Moranis, known for Ghostbusters, is the record holder on today’s list. His hiatus was not only the longest, but also threatened to be the end of his entire career. The reason for this was a tragedy in the actor’s family: in 1991, his wife died of breast cancer. Rick struggled to cope with the grief and even continued acting for a while longer—he appeared in the sequel to “Honey, I Blew Up the Baby,” a film adaptation of “The Flintstones,” and several comedies. But in 1997, the actor finally decided to pause his acting career and devote himself entirely to raising his son and daughter. Now that Moranis’ children are grown, he has a chance to return to film, which he decided to take advantage of at the age of 72: in the summer of 2025, the trailer for “Spaceballs 2” was released—a parody film that will mark Rick Moranis’s return to the big screen after a 28-year hiatus. Filming of the project began in September of this year, and its release is scheduled for 2027.

Anna Banshchikova

The story of the actress may be indicative for many young people in love. At 21, the young theater and film star, who was just starting her career, but had already managed to get an episode of the famous series “Streets of Broken Lights”, married musician Maxim Leonidov. Her husband immediately suggested that she leave her career so that they could always be together – both at home and on his tour. Anna agreed and began turning down roles: she was attracted only to those that didn’t require much time or on-location filming. Thus, six long years passed, adding a few more cameo appearances to her portfolio, as well as the realization that she had entered family life too early and had lost her true self by abandoning acting. The marriage ended, but her dreams remained and became goals—Banshchikova took up her work with renewed vigor and began conquering the film industry project after project. Detective films especially suited her: from the legendary “Deadly Force” and “The Bloodhound” to the fresh “Method 3”, which premiered on Kinopoisk on November 20th.

Alexey Gavrilov

Fans of Russian TV series will instantly recognize Alexey as Gosha Rudkovsky from “Univer”, but the actor himself has already grown out of this image – and he is very glad, because, as he himself said in an interview, it is very difficult to leave a sitcom and not become an actor of one role. And here he cannot do without a break: Gavrilov took it as soon as the filming of “Univer” was completed – it was difficult for him, the actor even felt exhausted. Later, the creators tried to bring something new to the story of his Gosha, and the actor played the role in the project “SashaTanya,” but this proved to be the last straw for him—he realized the image had become outdated. After “Univer,” the actor went to Asia, to the Thai island of Koh Phangan, where he focused on entrepreneurship and family. Now Alexey is a father of many children and a multifaceted artist. Upon returning to Russia, he continued acting in films, and now viewers can see him not only in sitcoms, but also in Life on Call with Pavel Priluchny, as well as The Shadow of Chikatilo and other interesting projects of Russian cinema.

Ryan Gosling

Ryan and his wife Eva Mendes, also an actress, live the way all young parents dream of: the actor took paternity leave a little later than his wife, and now they are raising their daughters together. But while Eva took a break immediately, in 2014, when the couple had their first child, Mr. Gosling still managed to land his most iconic roles: in “La La Land” and “Blade Runner 2049.” The birth of his second child also prompted the actor to consider a career break, so from 2019 to 2023, Ryan did not appear in any major projects, save for that hit film known as “Barbie.” Currently, the actor has big career plans, which he conveniently shares with his beloved wife: she is returning to film with him. Her first project after a 12-year hiatus will be “Star Wars: Starfighter.” Its release is scheduled for 2027, and fans of the franchise have already learned that in the film Eva Mendes plays the wife of the galactic protector, who in turn is played by none other than Ryan Gosling.

Cameron Diaz

“The Mask”, “There’s Something About Mary”, “Gangs of New York”, “Knight and Day”, “Bad Teacher” – these are just a few of the bright projects from the actress’s track record. Her filmography, however, ends abruptly after 2014—that same year, Cameron began dating musician Benji Madden. Their relationship quickly blossomed into marriage, and the couple already have two children. Buoyed by love and a happy family life, the actress was in no rush to return to film, leading her career hiatus to last 11 years. During this time, Cameron dabbled in various endeavors, from wine to the book business—she even published several books on healthy living. But a calling is a calling, and there’s no escaping it, so in 2025, audiences will finally have the chance to see the leading lady in Netflix’s latest project, Back in Business. Cameron’s next projects include the dark comedy Exodus with Keanu Reeves and even the long-awaited Shrek 5—Cameron Diaz’s return to voicing Princess Fiona seems to be especially eagerly awaited by fans.

Kirill Safonov

Another paternity leave in our selection. The actor, known for such projects as A Short Course in a Happy Life, Tatyana’s Day, and Bad Blood, acquired the proud and happy status of “dad” in 2019—his son Leon was born. To spend more time with his wife and baby, Kirill gave up all filming. He occasionally performed in the theater, but even there his appearances were very rare: the actor immersed himself in fatherhood, which he joyfully shared on social media, posting photos with the caption “#яжабать.” In 2020, his “parental leave” ended, and Safonov returned to the set full-time, focusing on television series: after a hiatus, he starred in “Taste of Revenge,” “Hidden Motives,” “Personal Assistant,” and others. At the same time, the actor emphasizes that family has always been and will always be in the first place for him, so he tries in every possible way to arrange his schedule so that he always has the opportunity to be with his loved ones.