Courtney Henggeler at the “Cobra Kai” Season 6/Series Finale Premiere Event held at The Egyptian Theatre February 12, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.
Originally appeared on E! Online
Courtney Henggeler says her time in Hollywood has officially wrapped.
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WATCH HEREThe "Cobra Kai" actress shared that she’s retiring after two decades of acting.
“After 20 plus years of fighting the good fight in the acting business, I hung up my gloves on Friday,” the 46-year-old revealed on a Substack post last month. “I called my agents and told them I was tapping out. I no longer wanted to be a cog in the wheel of the machine. When prompted to know what I did want to do, I simply replied ‘I want to be the machine.’”
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SIGN UP Henggeler — who played Amanda LaRusso on all six seasons of the Netflix hit series — looked back at her career and reflected on the hustle and fast-paced lifestyle, which, according to her, didn’t feature a lot of major roles or opportunities, but had the occasional one-liner.
“All I’ve ever known in my professional life was acting,” she said. “But not even the art or craft of acting. All I’ve truly ever knew was the hustle. The hustle, the grind, sprinkled occasionally with the odd acting job. Perhaps a line or two to TV’s 'Dr. House' – ‘Sorry’ (that’s it. That was my line. Genius).”
READ: Why Nicole Kidman Almost Quit Acting After Moving Away From Hollywood
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She added, “Or a recurring guest-star that never seemed to recur….”
Since beginning her career in 2003, Henggeler appeared in shows including "Mom," "Big Bang Theory," "Faking It" and "Jane the Virgin." Still, Henggeler expressed the gratitude that came with pursuing her career, and the highlights (including starring on a long-running TV show, and a moment with George Clooney).
“And I’m considered one of the lucky ones. I was on a series. A successful series. I made money,” she shared. “My face was on the billboards I longed for 20 plus years. I was directed by George Clooney for godsakes. This by all definitions is the golden goose.”
And with every high, Henggeler revealed that she wasn’t fulfilled in her career, but she still worked for decades, despite wanting to quit.
“For years I silenced the voice in my head, begging me to walk away,” she said. “The voice, the constant gnawing. Not because of the acting itself. But because of the gauntlet I had to run to reach the acting. What once felt necessary, something I willingly participated, even celebrated, became stifling.”
Henggeler ended her message with one more question about her decision to leave Hollywood behind, asking, “What if we never needed to run the gauntlet? What if we are the gauntlet?”
