Julie Delpy Says She’s “Done With Acting”; Still Just Thinking About Third ‘Before Sunset’ Film
Oliver Lyttelton
Over the last decade or so, French star Julie Delpy has been a relatively rare presence on screen. Sure, there have been a few appearances — Lasse Hallstrom‘s “The Hoax” and Jim Jarmusch‘s “Broken Flowers” among them — but for the most part, when she’s starred in a film, it’s been in pictures that she’s written and directed, like “The Countess,” “Le Skylab,” “2 Days In Paris” and “2 Days In New York,” the sequel which just premiered at Sundance.
That film picks up her character, Marion, several years later, no longer with Adam Goldberg, but with a child, and now living with Mingus (Chris Rock), who clashes with her eccentric family. The film has been reported by most, including us, to be a worth follow-up to the charming, hilarious original, but it seems like its most lasting place in the history books might be as one of Delpy’s last on-screen appearances.
The actress says to Deadline that she’s thinking about retiring from appearances in front of the camera, telling the site that “I think I’m done with acting. Before, I just acted in movies with people I knew. Now I don’t want to pursue acting. I will pursue writing and directing.” Obviously, this is a shame: the thought of a future without more performances like the kind she gives in “Europa Europa” or “Three Colors: White” is a sad one. But it’s the way she’s increasingly been heading over the last few years — indeed, it’s half a decade since she last appeared in something she didn’t direct, not to mention recently signed on to helm the Joe Strummer biopic “The Right Control.”
However, there is still the possibility of one more acting turn with Ethan Hawke saying a few months ago that he, Delpy and Richard Linklater were planning to reunite for a third film in their “Before Sunrise“/”Before Sunset” series. Delpy confirms to EW that they’re thinking about another film, but it’s likely a way off still. “We’re thinking about it, but the second one we only did because we had a good setup, and ideas. I don’t think we would do it if we find the right thing to say. If the third one’s not good, it’s not good for the two before. We’re careful. We’re thinking about it, but it’s not official.”
Don’t expect a third “2 Days In…” film, however, even if ‘…New York’ is successful — Delpy told Deadline “I’m not a James Bond girl” interested in continuing the frachise, and wants to move on to new pasture. So, a shame that Delpy’s moving away from the silver-screen, but that’s tempered by the prospect of more films written and directed by the star. As for “2 Days In New York,” it hasn’t been picked up by a distributor yet, but we’re sure one will be along soon.
