Ethan Hawke says he is approaching the ‘final act’ of his career: ‘I only have so many movies left’

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Ethan Hawke has said that he’s in the “final act” of his career and claimed that film roles will be limited for him in the future.

The actor has been a presence in Hollywood since the Eighties, following his breakout role in the 1989 drama Dead Poets’ Society.

Since then, he has been nominated for two supporting actor Academy Awards and is well-known for several roles, including Jesse in the Before Sunrise trilogy.

Hawke, however, has hinted that retirement is on the horizon, declaring himself now as “an old young person” instead of “a young old person”.

“I prefer this,” he told IndieWire. “I feel like playing John Brown in The Good Lord Bird was that for me: the beginning of my ‘old man’ career, the beginning of my last act.”

Hawke went on to explain that when looking back at his work, there are some parts that don’t feel as worthwhile in hindsight.

He said: “I definitely find myself looking over a filmography and thinking about which ones I could’ve cut out because I only have so much time left. I know I only have so many movies left. You have an awareness of time.

“When I was younger, I was like, ‘I’ll do this, I’ll do that, that’ll be a good learning experience, and then I’ll try this,’ thinking I had all the time in the world.

“Now, I’m like, ‘I didn’t learn anything from that one or that one, and that one would’ve been better spent in three months with my family.’”

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Fellow film star Brad Pitt expressed a similar sentiment last month while promoting the upcoming comic book adaptation Bullet Train.

Speaking to GQ, Pitt said: “I consider myself on my last leg, this last semester or trimester. What is this section gonna be? And how do I wanna design that?”

Earlier this year, Hawke opened up to The Independent about his relationship with Before Sunrise director Richard Linklater and his unexpected decision to take on a role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.