Follow 100 actors from age 20 to see who's still standing at 40. The numbers are brutal.. but leaving doesn't have to mean failure.

The Set-Up #

You're 20. You've either just finished drama school, or you've moved to the big city to make it as an actor. Next stop: Hollywood!

But before you get too excited, let's have a reality check and let me show you what happens to 100 actors starting out at your age.

Year One: The First Massacre #

You start with 100 actors, all 20 years old, all hungry, all convinced they'll make it.

By the end of the first year, 66 of them have quit.

That's two-thirds just gone.

Not because they're untalented. But because they run out of money. Because they can't get an audition. Because working three jobs while auditioning is exhausting. Because their parents keep asking when they'll get a "real job."

Most actors would be considered below poverty level based on their acting earnings alone. More than 80% of SAG-AFTRA's 160,000 members don't even qualify for health insurance through the union because they earn so little.

So they move into part-time jobs, which become full-time so they can run a car and buy a decent TV.

That's 66% of actors gone after year one.

Years 2-10: The Slow Bleed #

Those 34 survivors? They're tough. They've figured out the survival job balance. They're getting some auditions. Maybe even booking some small roles.

But the bleeding doesn't stop.

Acting gigs are short-lived and unreliable. Even when actors book work, most shows don't run longer than a few months, leaving them unemployed again within a year.

By year 10, when you're 30, you're down to about 10 actors still actively pursuing acting. The average acting career lasts 11.5 years. Most quit around this point.

Where did the other 24 go?

Some became teachers. (Many actors with experience become excellent teachers and it's one of the most common career paths.) Some became acting coaches or casting directors. A few start their own business.

One former actress said leaving acting for corporate work was a relief: "I was writing my OWN review! And listing my accomplishments! Not items on a resume, but contributions I had made. Things that, because I did them, were now done."

So now we've lost 95% of the actors we started with.

Years 11-20: The Final Five #

You're now 30-40 years old. Of your original 100 actors, only 5 are still acting professionally.

Five.

This is when family enters the picture hard.

Cameron Diaz retired at 40 to focus on family. Rick Moranis left Hollywood to raise his children. Eva Mendes stepped back after having daughters. Ok, they returned to acting later on, but most actors don't have that chance; once they are out, they are out.

The calculation becomes brutal. Can you afford to be pregnant and audition? Can you afford childcare on an actor's unpredictable income? Can you miss your child's school play because you got a callback?

One actress described it simply: she couldn't do midnight bar shifts and auditions the next morning with a baby.

For men, it's often about providing. You're 35, you have a family, and you haven't had health insurance in three years. Michael Schoeffling from Sixteen Candles left acting at 31 to support his family and moved his children away from Hollywood.

That's around 97% who have gone now.

Years 20+: The Survivors #

By the time you're 40, maybe 2 or 3 of those original 100 are still working as actors.

If you're female, your odds just got worse. Roles for women over 40 drop to roughly one-third of what's available for men the same age.

Those 2 or 3 survivors? They're either genuinely successful or they have other income - a spouse who earns, family money, or they've built something on the side.

But Here's What Nobody Tells You #

Leaving isn't failure.

Amanda Randall appeared in CSI Miami, JAG, and All My Children before leaving acting. She described it as, "necessary," and acting became something she needed to leave, not something she failed at.

Another former actress wrote, "What no one tells you when you're starting out: your dreams can change. Your priorities may change. What's fulfilling may change." 

The 97 actors who left? Many are happier. They have:

• Stable income
• Health insurance
• Time with their families
• The ability to plan a future
• Jobs where effort equals reward

One former actor said switching to 3D animation and programming was, "one of the best things I've ever done."

The Real Question #

You're 20, and you're asking: should I stay or should I go?

Here's the honest answer: the constant state of judgment and rejection, the financial stress, and the feeling of powerlessness create high stress that leads to burnout for most actors. 

If you stay, know what you're signing up for:

• Years of financial insecurity
• Constant rejection
• Working multiple jobs
• No guarantees, ever

During the 2023 strike, actors needed emergency funds just to pay rent, with assistance jumping from $75,000 to $500,000 per week. These were working actors, people with good IMDb credits, who still couldn't afford basic expenses.

But If You're One of the Three... #

If you just read all of that and you're still thinking, "I don't care, I have to do this," then you might be one of the three who make it through.

Because here's the truth those statistics don't capture: when it works, acting is the greatest job in the world.

The moment you get the call that you booked the role. The first read-through with the cast. The day you finally crack a character you've been struggling with. Standing on stage or on set, doing the thing you were born to do.

For those survivors, the worst day on set is still better than the best day in an office.

They're not there because it's easy. They're not there because it's secure. They're there because they can't imagine doing anything else.

If that's you - and if you've read every brutal statistic in this article and you're still certain you have to act - then do it. Fight for it. Be smart about money, protect your mental health, but fight for it.

Because the 97% who left made a rational choice based on reality. The 3 who stayed made an irrational choice based on passion.

And sometimes, the irrational choice is the right one.

You just have to want it badly enough to survive the odds.