Matthew Fox reveals the surprising reason for 7-year break from 'Hollywood'.

Matthew Fox shared the rare reason behind his withdrawal from acting after achieving global fame and what pulled him back to it after years of absence.

In a recent interview with Variety, Fox opened about his disappearance from Hollywood and revealed that after years of intense work schedule and promotional commitments, a wave of dad guilt washed over him.

"I felt like it was time to engage really intensely with my family," he said. "I had missed some of their childhood because I was on set all the time with Lost and doing films and promoting everything," he added.

For those unversed, the actor received massive success after the show Lost premiered in 2004, but before reaching the height of fame, Fox had already tied the knot with Margherita Ronchi and had become a father of two sons, Kyle and Byron.

Following the series finale, the actor continued working in films such as Alex Cross, Emperor and Bone Tomahawk, but due to the increasing pressure of responsibility as a father, Fox made the decision to take a seven-year career break in 2014.

"It was the right moment for me to step back and take a moment and engage with the people that I love and care about the most in the world," he continued.

However, Fox admitted that leaving his craft forever was not his cup of tea, and the actor eventually returned to acting in 2021.

"I kind of missed storytelling," he declared.

Later, when asked by producer Taylor Sheridan about the golden opportunity of starring in The Madison, Fox did not hesitate to join in.

"I was like, ‘Yeah, I'm in," Fox said, noting that after all those lost years, the actor had finally found a way to "balance" work and family life.