Filmmaker James L. Brooks says Jack Nicholson continues to read scripts and could return to acting, fueling renewed talk about a comeback for the three-time Oscar winner after a 15-year absence from the screen. Speaking while promoting his new film “Ella McCay,” Brooks said he remains in regular contact with Nicholson and expects audiences will see him work again.
“I’m sure he’ll be working again,” Brooks told E! News on the red carpet at the Los Angeles premiere of “Ella McCay.” “I hope it’s with me.” Brooks added that he did not approach Nicholson for the film because “there’s no part in this film for anybody like Jack.” In a separate interview with People, Brooks said he does not view Nicholson as finished, pointing to scripts that still come his way: “He’s gotten scripts, he’s reading them, and I’m sure we’ll be seeing them.”
Nicholson, 88, last appeared in 2010’s “How Do You Know,” which Brooks directed. The actor’s retreat from public life has fed years of conflicting reports about retirement and health, including a 2013 tabloid-driven claim that he stepped away because of memory problems—an account Vanity Fair later disputed, reporting that Nicholson had not decided to retire.
Brooks’ comments arrive during a stretch of rare, high-profile sightings that have reminded fans Nicholson remains present, even if selective. He attended an NBA playoff game in April 2023, his first courtside Lakers appearance since 2021, and surfaced again in February 2025 at “SNL50: The Anniversary Special,” where he introduced Adam Sandler. This month, a family photo shared by Nicholson’s daughter, Lorraine, showed him smiling beside her and his son Ray.
Skepticism persists inside the industry, where long hiatuses often become permanent unless a project offers a short shoot, a role tailored to an actor’s current rhythms, and a production built around comfort. Brooks, who directed Nicholson in “Terms of Endearment” and “As Good as It Gets,” argued that Nicholson’s appetite has not disappeared—only the right offer has.
