Why You Don't See Meg Ryan In Movies That Much Anymore

After spending a few years in the early 1980s doing soap opera work, Meg Ryan first caught the attention of the moviegoing public when she landed a role in the massively popular 1986 action hit "Top Gun." But with "When Harry Met Sally," Ryan's first lead role, the actor officially joined the Hollywood A-list and established herself as one of the industry's go-to female halves of rom-com duos. Though Ryan did work in a variety of genres, it was multiple pairings with Tom Hanks as well as movies like "Addicted to Love" and "French Kiss" that made her one of the queens of the rom-com in the '90s. To this day, her work is always heavily represented on lists of the best romantic comedies of all time. 

Going into the 2000s, Ryan's star power began to fade. A few professional missteps — as well as finding herself on the receiving end of bad tabloid press — contributed to Ryan's acting output slowing way down in the new millennium. Public appearances also became increasingly sporadic as well, until Ryan was about as far removed from the spotlight as one could be given the size of her fame. So what has the actor been up to since her filmography thinned out, and are things going to stay that way for the once-prolific romantic lead? 

Not only was Meg Ryan famous for being a great rom-com co-lead on screen, but she also spent much of the peak of her fame as half of one of Hollywood's most beloved couples. Ryan married fellow actor Dennis Quaid on Valentine's Day in 1991, which sounds like something right out of one of her movies from the era. They immediately became one of the acting world's biggest "it" couples, a title they held for the remainder of the decade.

But that all changed when Ryan filmed the 2000 action thriller "Proof of Life" with Russell Crowe, and tabloids were abuzz with rumors that the two had become romantically involved — an example of an actor rumor that turned out to be true. When Ryan and Quaid announced their separation around the same time, many assumed that Ryan had been unfaithful and began her relationship with Crowe before the separation — and that the affair was the reason for it. 

Ryan has always denied that, while also claiming that it was actually Quaid who had been unfaithful during their marriage. No matter what the truth actually is or how the exact timeline played out, Ryan's image as American's rom-com sweetheart took a serious hit during the whole mess and it had a negative impact on her career going forward. 

Though it would later be reappraised in a more positive light for the way it subverted the typical male gaze perspective of erotic thrillers, "In the Cut" saw a largely negative response from both critics and audiences upon its initial 2003 release. But that's not the only reason it ended up doing no favors to Meg Ryan's already-declining career at the time. Most of why "In the Cut" did major damage to her star power came by way of how the press unfairly vilified her for being in the movie, in addition to one particularly notorious exchange with a British talk show host.

The press is always a little too eager to judge an actress for taking on a sexually-charged role, and doubly so when said actress isn't typically associated with such work. To that end, a lot of really nasty stuff was said about Ryan for doing "In the Cut" and for her sex scenes in the film — though, of course, co-stars Mark Ruffalo and Kevin Bacon went through the movie's press cycle completely unscathed. But what made things even worse was when Ryan appeared on a BBC talk show called "Parkinson" and pushed back against the show's host for his aggressive and judgmental line of question about her role in "In the Cut." 

Unfortunately, rather than the public championing Ryan for standing up for herself, she received the lion's share of the backlash to the interview and was seen as difficult and combative — which didn't improve people's perception of her that was still damaged from the Russell Crowe scandal. 

Being a celebrity is definitely an unusual experience, and one that doesn't lend itself to a so-called normal life. Many actors find themselves unable to maintain a connection to their private life once they reach the highest levels of fame, and that eventually proved to be the case with Meg Ryan. The actor said that she began to feel like she was outside of her own life looking in, and wanted to become an active participant in it again. Not being as prolific as she had been in the '90s was one of the only paths she saw to accomplishing that goal.

In a 2019 interview with the New York Times, reflecting on her decision to pull back from acting in the decade prior, Ryan said, "I wasn't as curious about acting as I was about other things that life can give you." So she took less acting work in an effort to explore some of those other things. Ryan went on to say that she has since reached a level of fame that she finds more satisfying: she's still able to enjoy many of the perks — such as getting the good tables at restaurants — but without being under constant media scrutiny and having to dodge the paparazzi everywhere she goes. 

A year after the release of "In the Cut," Meg Ryan starred in the 2004 boxing drama "Against the Ropes," which was not only a box office bomb but also her worst-reviewed film since becoming a movie star. Ryan did a few smaller movies over the next few years. But 2008's "The Women" looked to be something of a comeback movie for the actor, who was part of an impressive ensemble that also included Annette Bening, Bette Midler, Carrie Fisher, Eva Mendes, Cloris Leachman, and more. 

The problem is that "The Women" was an extremely troubled production. Ryan was originally cast way back in 1994, and although it was more than a decade before things finally came together, critics would argue that it was a movie that should have never escaped development hell. Despite the hype and attached star power of both veteran and up-and-coming actresses, "The Women" was absolutely lambasted by critics. With her last two major studio productions among the worst-received movies of her career, it seemed as though Ryan had finally had enough of trying to salvage a Hollywood leading lady career — "The Women" remains the most recent film she has made for a non-independent studio. 

With her career no longer being what it used to be — neither in terms of success nor personal fulfillment — Ryan decided that it was no longer something she wanted to make a priority. Instead, she began to focus more of her energy on her family, as well as her personal relationships. Ryan already had a son, Jack, from her marriage to Dennis Quaid. And in 2006, she adopted a daughter named Daisy. As she was no longer making movie after movie, Ryan could now give both of her children much more of her attention. 

In addition to focusing on motherhood, Ryan also decided to make her love life a priority again. In 2010, she began dating musician and occasional actor John Mellencamp, a relationship the pair tried to keep private for as long as they could. They were fairly on and off for about eight years, seemingly ready to make it permanent when they announced their engagement in 2018. It ultimately wasn't to be, with neither being willing to relocate for the other — Ryan being a New York City gal and Mellencamp an Indiana lifer — and Mellencamp not loving all the media attention. They were done for good in 2019. 

As previously mentioned, Meg Ryan's earliest acting work included a soap opera, "As the World Turns," where she was a main cast member between 1982 and 1984. She also appeared on the shows "One of the Boys," "Charles in Charge," and "Wildside" before Hollywood would discover her and mostly take her away from television after 1985. Other than voicing a role on the star-studded, environmentally-conscious 1990 animated series "Captain Planet and the Planeteers," Ryan would only make one more television appearance — in the 1997 Disney Channel film "Northern Lights" — during her run as a major movie star. 

But as she scaled down her film roles, Ryan also seemed to amp up her presence on the small screen in the 2000s and beyond. She did an episode each of "The Simpsons" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm," had a recurring role on Lisa Kudrow's online series "Web Therapy," and starred in a 2015 ABC Family movie called "Fan Girl." In 2018, Ryan revealed that she was developing a sitcom with "Saturday Night Live" creator Lorne Michaels and was considering also playing a role on the show, but there hasn't been any updates on the project since then. It's unclear if that's the same show that she had previously been revealed to be making for Epix (now known as MGM+), called "Picture Paris," but news on that also went quiet after its initial announcement in 2017. 

Meg Ryan began to dabble in being a producer starting with her 1995 rom-com "French Kiss," following that up by producing her Disney Channel movie "Northern Lights." In 2000, she branched out into also producing movies she didn't star in, first with "Lost Souls" and then "The Wedding Planner" and "Desert Saints." She had also at least intended to get into producing on the television side with the announced but as-of-yet unreleased projects we previously mentioned. Most recently, she executive produced her 2023 film "What Happens Later," her first movie since 2015.

Speaking of 2015, that was the year that Ryan released her directorial debut, the drama "Ithaca," which reunited her with Tom Hanks while also marking the first time she acted alongside her son, Jack Quaid. It also featured music by then-boyfriend John Mellencamp. As for "What Happens Later," that not only saw Ryan return to direct but also marked her debut as a screenwriter, co-writing the script with Steven Dietz and Kirk Lynn. That cemented Ryan as a true multi-hyphenate, as she can now call herself an actor, director, writer, and producer. It's clear that she's taking a much more active creative role in her career these days.

Like any profession, one can build their entire lives around being an actor, or they can choose to view it as just a job. When faced with that choice, Meg Ryan ultimately decided that acting was her career and nothing more. When discussing her career in 2023, Ryan told People, "It's nice to think of it as a job and not a lifestyle. And that is a great way of navigating it for me." 

It also helped that Ryan was never fully comfortable with being famous in the first place, and has said she wasn't very good at it. Additionally, she echoes the sentiments of many actors who had their heyday in the pre-internet era, saying that she doesn't think she could have been a celebrity at all if social media had existed when she was famous, given the constant barrage of negativity and criticism that comes with it. Ryan wants being an actor to be something that she does, rather than something that she is. 

Hollywood's nepo babies controversy centers around the assumption that certain actors have had an advantage in their careers thanks to one or both of their parents being famous. Understandably, many actors have taken that as an attack on their talent and work ethic, and are quick to defend both of those things — though some have been willing to concede that having actor parents at least gave them an initial leg up. One of those people is Jack Quaid, who agrees that being the son of Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan has afforded him certain career privileges, while also saying that it doesn't mean he isn't talented on his own.

For her part, Ryan has taken it upon herself to stick up for her son's talent and ambition, saying in a 2023 interview with Glamour, "He's more of a natural than I'll ever be. That nepo stuff is so dismissive of his work ethic, his gifts and how sensitive he is to the idea of his privilege." Jack also claims that he never asks his parents for acting advice and prefers to figure things out on his own. As for dad Dennis Quaid, he echoes Ryan's sentiments that Jack is the most talented actor in the family and also has the potential to be the most successful. 

After everything that went down with "In the Cut," Meg Ryan didn't have the best relationship with or opinion of the media. So it was no big surprise that her pulling back from acting also meant being a lot less available to the media for interviews, talk show appearances and the like. Not that she had tons of projects to promote anyway, especially in the 2010s, but the difference in her media presence during those years versus the 1990s and even early 2000s was stark.

But that all changed when Ryan became one of the actors who made a comeback in 2023 when it came time for her to promote "What Happens Later." Granted, she sort of had to get out there and promote it, given that she was not only the star but also the director and co-writer. But the amount of press that she did, including numerous talk show appearances, radio and television interviews, and magazine covers, showed that she was willing to give the media another chance. It's impossible to know for sure if she truly enjoys being back in the spotlight, but she certainly seems to, at least for now.

Meg Ryan's big return to interviews and doing press hasn't come without some caveats. It's been well established that Ryan was never head over heels in love with being a hugely famous celebrity and always felt a little uneasy about the whole thing. The downsides to that played a big part in her wanting to take a step back from her career and the spotlight. So with all that, Ryan has learned a thing or two about boundaries and isn't shy about setting them.

Ryan seems to have no issues at all with discussing her career in terms of the work and the projects themselves. As previously mentioned, she also doesn't mind talking about her kids, whether to defend them against criticism or just to discuss how great she thinks they are. But that seems to be where her willingness to discuss her personal life ends. 

These days, she isn't at all afraid to tell an interviewer to change the subject or move onto the next question when she's asked almost anything else about her personal life, including the two topics that people seem most interesting in asking her about — her love life, and whether she's had plastic surgery. When asked about those things, or anything else she doesn't want to discuss, she'll make that known. Thankfully, interviewers seem to be respecting those boundaries and moving along when she asks them to. 

So what's next for Meg Ryan? As of this writing, her most recent credit is "What Happens Later," released in 2023. But she seems to be enjoying the work again, and appears interested in continuing what has been something of a career renaissance in the 2020s. In 2022, it was announced that Ryan will direct an adaptation of the acclaimed novel "A Lady's Guide to Selling Out" for Netflix. It will mark her first time working in the world of streaming. 

It's not known if Ryan will star in the movie, either as protagonist Casey Pendergast or as another character. While three years without news might seem like a red flag, it's worth noting that the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike wreaked havoc on many projects that were in development at the time. That doesn't necessarily mean that work isn't still well underway on the movie. Only time will tell, but until it is officially canceled, there's no reason not to hope that we'll see Ryan's third trip to the director's chair and maybe even another starring role.