Michelle Pfeiffer has had an incredible career, starring in classics like Scarface and Hairspray, but at 67, she says something unexpected has given her a whole new outlook on acting—becoming a grandmother.
During a recent appearance on the SmartLess podcast, the legendary actress opened up about how her new role in life has reshaped her work and even made her a better performer.
“I don’t have time nor the desire to go that deep for that long and not be present,” Pfeiffer told hosts Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett. Then she dropped the big news: “I realize I have a finite amount of time left and – I might announce on this show – that I became a grandmother last year.”
Pfeiffer said she’s been keeping the joyful news mostly private, but she couldn’t help sharing how much it’s impacted her. “I’ve been very quiet about it, and it is – it’s heaven,” she gushed. “It’s ridiculous. And if I had known that I was going to be a grandmother, I wouldn’t have taken on so much work, but I’ve enjoyed everything, and I’m really grateful.”
She admitted that letting go of the anxiety that sometimes comes with the acting process has actually made her better. “I’ve loved – I love each of these projects. And so the weird thing is sort of giving up that angst about the process has freed me up, and I feel in some ways has made me better.”
While Pfeiffer’s schedule is packed—she’s starring in Amazon’s holiday movie Oh. What. Fun, has a new series called Margo’s Got Money Troubles, and is filming the Yellowstone spinoff The Madison—she feels calmer than she did earlier in her career.
“I’m so grateful. I’m so grateful because I love acting. I’ve never lost – in fact, I probably enjoy it more now than I ever have because I’m sort of more relaxed with it,” she said.
Her focus has shifted. “I don’t really have time to be thinking about anything but the task at hand,” she explained.
That doesn’t mean balancing work and life has been easy. “But when I had all these acting jobs coming up, I thought, ‘OK, OK, how are you going to manage this and have a life?’ Because that hasn’t always been easy for me. I’m an all or nothing kind of girl when I approach things. And I always like taking on challenges, and then I get into it, and it’s sort of sink or swim.”
Pfeiffer has long prioritized her family. She adopted her daughter, Claudia Rose, shortly before marrying TV producer David E. Kelley. Together, they also welcomed a son, John Henry Kelley II, in 1994.
In the past, she even stepped away from Hollywood to focus on motherhood. “I was also sort of in this in-between place. I sort of didn’t feel like I was really a leading lady. I wasn’t a grandma yet, but I wasn’t also like an ingenue,” she shared in a 2023 interview. Raising kids—and relocating her family—became her priority.
“I didn’t set out to stop working, or it wasn’t my plan, but I became so difficult in terms of my prerequisites, in terms of, ‘Well, where does it shoot? How long does it shoot? What time of year does it shoot? Can I bring the kids? Is it during the school year?’ And then it was just too difficult to hire me, honestly. And I was OK with that.”
Now, Pfeiffer seems to have found the sweet spot between a thriving career and a full family life. With her new title as “grandma,” she’s approaching acting with fresh joy—and she says she’s better for it.