Woody Allen Announces Retirement From Filmmaking

Prolific filmmaker Woody Allen has announced that his forthcoming project, his 50th movie, is set to be his last. Announcing the news to the Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia, the Annie Hall creator revealed that he plans to focus on writing a novel and retire from moviemaking. 

"My idea, in principle, is not to make more movies and focus on writing," Allen told the publication. Allen's upcoming film, Wasp 22, is set to start production in Europe this year. 

Allen, 86 years old, has won 12 Academy Awards throughout his career and is known for films such as Midnight in Paris, Blue Jasmine, Annie Hall, Vicky Cristina Barcelona and several others. 

However, Allen's career has not been without controversy. His adopted daughter, Dylan Farrow, along with her mother, Mia Farrow, has accused him of sexually abusing her when she was 7 years old. Farrow initially went public with her allegation in 1992 and recounted it in the four-part docuseries, Allen v. Farrow, in 2021. 

Allen has long denied the accusation that he molested Dylan. The filmmaker went on to have an affair and later marry Soon-Yi Previn, one of Mia's adopted stepdaughters. 

This past June, Allen spoke with Alec Baldwin during an Instagram Live interview where he revealed his intentions of stepping away from filmmaking, saying he had "one or two more" movies he planned to make. 

"A lot of the thrill is gone," Allen said of modern-day movie releases. "Now you do a movie, and you get a couple of weeks in a movie house, and then it goes to streaming or pay-per-view. It's not the same. It's not as enjoyable to me."

Speaking of the allegations again him, Allen said he has "zero interest in anyone's judgments and sanctimonious posts."