# Michael Sheen quits acting(?) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 18, 2016, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014 "2016-12-18T01:12:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/1 "2016-12-18T01:12:07Z")
From [here](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/12/17/michael-sheen-quits-acting-fight-far-right-populism/): > [@Telegraph UK](#): > > Michael Sheen is to give up acting at the height of his career to fight the rise of the far-right populism. > > The Frost/Nixon star said he would be leaving Hollywood to order to commit himself to political activism and fight “demagogic, fascistic” politics that he says has engulfed the West over recent years. I’m torn on this. I like Sheen as an actor (for those who don’t recognize the name, he’s the male lead in [Masters of Sex](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2137109/?ref_=nv_sr_4), opposite the extremely delicious [Lizzy Caplan](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0135221/?ref_=tt_ov_st_sm). And I admire his passion on the subject, and of his opinion on Trump. On the other hand, who gives a shit about an actor/musician/author/etc and their political opinions? Well, I do. Kind of. I probably shouldn’t, and his views won’t influence mine. Still, whether you agree with him or not, you have to respect his willingness to follow through on his decision. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/2 "2016-12-18T01:20:21Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > From [here](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/12/17/michael-sheen-quits-acting-fight-far-right-populism/): > > I’m torn on this. I like Sheen as an actor (for those who don’t recognize the name, he’s the male lead in [Masters of Sex](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2137109/?ref_=nv_sr_4), opposite the extremely delicious [Lizzy Caplan](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0135221/?ref_=tt_ov_st_sm). And I admire his passion on the subject, and of his opinion on Trump. > > On the other hand, who gives a shit about an actor/musician/author/etc and their political opinions? Well, I do. Kind of. I probably shouldn’t, and his views won’t influence mine. > > Still, whether you agree with him or not, you have to respect his willingness to follow through on his decision. I agree with him. I think he is one of the very best actors of his generation, and I admire his guts to do what he feels must be done. If one believes in liberal policies, the importance of the social safety net and health care for all, then you have a moral imperative to oppose those who would destroy them. ETA: [According to the Huffington Post, he’s not totally quitting.](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/michael-sheen-is-quitting-acting-to-fight-donald-trump_us_5855a923e4b0b3ddfd8d2644) ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/3 "2016-12-18T01:37:00Z")
From[the article in The Times:](http://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/thetimesmagazine/michael-sheen-gets-political-this-time-its-for-real-0k3bvzxzl) > [@](#): > > He has already had a taste of the backlash that awaits him as an actor daring to venture into full-time politics. The “jackboots” came out in March 2015 after he gave an electrifying St David’s Day speech in defence of free healthcare in the driving rain in Tredegar, south Wales. In shaky YouTube footage, you can see him quote Aneurin Bevan, the Welsh architect of the NHS, who nursed a “burning hatred for the Tory party”, and bash the New Labour government who “arguably did as much damage to the NHS as any Tory or coalition-led one”. The target of Sheen’s fury that day was the calculating “bland neutrality” of so many modern politicians, and he quoted Bevan’s dictum that people who stay in the middle of the road “get run down”. “There is never an excuse to not speak up for what you think is right,” he roared. “You must stand up for what you believe. But first of all, by God, believe in something!” > > The speech made headlines across the political spectrum and prompted such an outpouring of support for Sheen that he felt “quite scared … by the idea that people could, rightly or wrongly, feel that I could do something” – scared too by his own growing feeling that perhaps he could. The strength of negative reaction also surprised him. > > “As soon as you start to be effective, then people try to crush you, because it’s dangerous.” Here’s a clip from that speech: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMYgb7xs38](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMYgb7xs38) ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/4 "2016-12-18T03:46:48Z")
Oh. Not one of the Sheens I was thinking of. Good for him I guess. Don’t recall ever seeing him in anything. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/5 "2016-12-18T05:12:45Z")
I feel he’s just being self-indulgent. If he wanted to do something for liberal causes, he should continue to work and donate ninety percent of his salary to those causes. Or look for opportunities to do movies and television series that spread the message he believes in. Or announce he’s going to run for Congress in 2018. Instead he declares he’s quitting acting to “fight for freedom”. Is he planning on forming a revolutionary band and taking to the hills? ---
**Author:** ![up\_the\_junction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f1d935/32.png) [@up\_the\_junction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up_the_junction)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/6 "2016-12-18T08:11:51Z")
He does this stuff anyway, this is him speaking [about defending the HNS at a march](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMYgb7xs38) ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/7 "2016-12-18T09:10:54Z")
Why would an actor’s opinions be any less worth consideration than those of someone in any other profession (with or without an established public image and name)? It’s hardly new - Reagan, George Murphy, Helen Gahagan Douglas could do it in America, and actors have gone into political activism in and out of Parliament in the UK, and not all of them were quite so way out as, say, Vanessa and Corin Redgrave. Glenda Jackson went into politics, was in Parliament for 20-odd years and for a few uncomfortable ones was a junior minister in Tony Blair’s government. And then, at 80, she was offered a two-month run in London playing King Lear, which was, by all accounts, a humdinger: [http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2016/dec/14/glenda-jackson-scary-reputation-never-understood-fear-thing-lear-labour](http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2016/dec/14/glenda-jackson-scary-reputation-never-understood-fear-thing-lear-labour) ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/8 "2016-12-18T09:24:08Z")
I can’t help but think there’s some movie out there about to be made in which the message against fascism is clear and concise and it inspires people to act… except that the movie flops because Michael Sheen declines the lead role. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/9 "2016-12-18T15:54:08Z")
> [@PatrickLondon](#): > > Why would an actor’s opinions be any less worth consideration than those of someone in any other profession (with or without an established public image and name)? It’s hardly new - Reagan, George Murphy, Helen Gahagan Douglas could do it in America, and actors have gone into political activism in and out of Parliament in the UK, and not all of them were quite so way out as, say, Vanessa and Corin Redgrave. > > Glenda Jackson went into politics, was in Parliament for 20-odd years and for a few uncomfortable ones was a junior minister in Tony Blair’s government. > > And then, at 80, she was offered a two-month run in London playing King Lear, which was, by all accounts, a humdinger: > [http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2016/dec/14/glenda-jackson-scary-reputation-never-understood-fear-thing-lear-labour](http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2016/dec/14/glenda-jackson-scary-reputation-never-understood-fear-thing-lear-labour) Valid perspective. My point is that the majority of people don’t go to a movie/play/concert based off of the political opinions of the artist. There are exceptions, of course. But if I go see, for instance, a Quentin Tarantino movie, my enjoyment isn’t necessarily affected by his opinion on abortion (as an example). ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/10 "2016-12-18T16:16:57Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Oh. Not one of the Sheens I was thinking of. > > Good for him I guess. Don’t recall ever seeing him in anything. You aren’t the only one… My first thought was “hell, I didn’t know he had started yet”. ---
**Author:** ![up\_the\_junction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f1d935/32.png) [@up\_the\_junction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up_the_junction)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/11 "2016-12-18T16:30:36Z")
Well, [Sheen says he’s not giving up acting.](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2016/dec/18/michael-sheen-denies-rumours-he-is-swapping-acting-for-activism): > [@](#): > > But after his comments sparked headlines suggesting he was moving to full-time political activism, he tweeted: “Before this gets ridiculous, I said I’m thinking I might start acting less and maybe even stop for a while at some point but don’t know yet.” ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/12 "2016-12-18T17:16:14Z")
I’m guessing he just wants to break up with Sarah Silverman and is looking for an excuse to move out. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/13 "2016-12-18T19:35:52Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I feel he’s just being self-indulgent. If he wanted to do something for liberal causes, he should continue to work and donate ninety percent of his salary to those causes. Or look for opportunities to do movies and television series that spread the message he believes in. Or announce he’s going to run for Congress in 2018. > > Instead he declares he’s quitting acting to “fight for freedom”. Is he planning on forming a revolutionary band and taking to the hills? Watch the video I linked. He’s an amazing public speaker, a genuine liberal firebrand of the kind we haven’t seen in a long time. He can accomplish more speaking and inspiring others to donate money and time. Besides, if he only gave money, he’d be dismissed as “just another limousine liberal” by the right. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/14 "2016-12-18T19:43:10Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > You aren’t the only one… > > My first thought was “hell, I didn’t know he had started yet”. I guess you don’t go to a lot of movies then. He has 72 credits on IMDB. I remember one evening, he had two films out at the same time - playing David Frost in _Frost/Nixon_ and a werewolf in _Underworld: Rise of the Lycans_. They were in theaters next to each other. That’s some range. My wife and I first really noticed him when he was playing Art Honeyman, a man with cerebral palsy in the movie _[Music Within](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0422783/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast)_. I consider him the finest actor currently working. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/15 "2016-12-18T19:46:49Z")
> [@PatrickLondon](#): > > Glenda Jackson went into politics, was in Parliament for 20-odd years and for a few uncomfortable ones was a junior minister in Tony Blair’s government. Any actress who once shanghaied the Muppet Theater to go pirating on the high seas has my vote. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/16 "2016-12-18T19:54:16Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > I guess you don’t go to a lot of movies then. He has 72 credits on IMDB. I remember one evening, he had two films out at the same time - playing David Frost in _Frost/Nixon_ and a werewolf in _Underworld: Rise of the Lycans_. They were in theaters next to each other. That’s some range. > > My wife and I first really noticed him when he was playing Art Honeyman, a man with cerebral palsy in the movie _[Music Within](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0422783/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast)_. > > I consider him the finest actor currently working. You missed the joke…Unless the guy are talking about is ALSO the guy who starred in a Top Gun paraody. ---
**Author:** ![up\_the\_junction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f1d935/32.png) [@up\_the\_junction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up_the_junction)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/17 "2016-12-18T19:58:41Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I’m guessing he just wants to break up with Sarah Silverman and is looking for an excuse to move out. tbf, even the best of us will eventually tire of Sarah Silverman turning every comment, conversation and life event to be about Sarah Silverman. Port Talbot seems a reasonable enough price to pay to escape. ---
**Author:** ![tenacious\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/439d5e/32.png) [@tenacious\_j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tenacious_j)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/18 "2016-12-18T20:01:57Z")
Whew. Got him confused with Michael Shannon and was upset that I might not see him in anything again. Also quite impressed that the guy I was thinking of was such a good actor, I never once thought he wasn’t American. Which made for a confusing story, until I actually clicked on the link and saw the photo. Michael Shannon: [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0788335/](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0788335/) ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/19 "2016-12-18T20:32:14Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > You missed the joke…Unless the guy are talking about is ALSO the guy who starred in a Top Gun paraody. I’m proud to say, I have never seen Top Gun. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2016, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014/20 "2016-12-18T20:35:49Z")
> [@tenacious\_j](#): > > Whew. Got him confused with Michael Shannon and was upset that I might not see him in anything again. Same here! I was thinking, just when I’ve started recognizing (and enjoying) him in things! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-sheen-quits-acting/775014.md?page=2)