Legendary ’90s Star Reveals Why She Quit Action Movies originally appeared on Parade.
After starring in one of the biggest action franchises of all time, Uma Thurman took an unexpected step back from the genre — and now, she’s revealing why.
During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the Kill Bill icon opened up about her decision to take a long break from the action genre following the Quentin Tarantino films that helped define her career.
“I never really followed Kill Bill up with action because I didn’t kind of want to be in a whole bunch of ‘B’ action movies,” Thurman explained.
“When you do Kill Bill, you never stop hearing about, you know, it’s like, ‘Oh, got to be very careful about what I do next.’ So I did other stuff.”
Thurman largely stayed away from action roles for decades — until now. She’s set to return to the genre in The Old Guard 2, playing the villain opposite Charlize Theron’s Andy.
The project intrigued Thurman enough to change her tune. “It seemed different,” she said of the film’s story and characters. She explained how she saw it as an opportunity to “put my toe into action again.”
Despite her extensive history with swordplay on screen, Thurman admitted she had little time to prepare for her new role.
“Oh, if only I could have trained,” she joked. “I came on to do it kind of at the end. So I had no training. I was like, ‘Oh yeah, a sword. I think I hold it like this.'”
In Kill Bill: Volume 1 and its 2004 sequel, Thurman portrayed The Bride — a highly skilled martial artist with expert sword skills. So it’s no surprise some of that muscle memory stuck with her.
When asked if a third installment is still a possibility, the actress offered a realistic update.
“It has been discussed over the years…” she said during a 2022 appearance on The Jess Cagle Show.
“I don’t see it as immediately on the horizon. I hate to disappoint people. Everybody wishes it would be the case, but I think it’s not immediately on the horizon.”
While she may not be reprising her role as The Bride anytime soon, Thurman makes her action-packed return when The Old Guard 2 hits Netflix on July 2.
Legendary ’90s Star Reveals Why She Quit Action Movies first appeared on Parade on Jun 19, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 19, 2025, where it first appeared.