British acting legend Bob Hoskins has brought the curtain down on his career today, announcing his retirement from the screen in order to spend time with his family after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. A statement issued on his behalf reads “Bob Hoskins wishes to announce that he will be retiring from acting, following his diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease last autumn. He wishes to thank all the great and brilliant people he has worked with over the years, and all of his fans who have supported him during a wonderful career. Bob is now looking forward to his retirement with his family, and would greatly appreciate that his privacy be respected at this time.” Beginning his career in the late 1960s, Hoskins enjoyed a number of film and television roles throughout the next decade including Dennis Potter’s 1978 BBC miniseries Pennies from Heaven, before his big feature film breakthrough in 1980, where he delivered a memorable performance as London underworld boss Harold Shand in the British crime classic The Long Good Friday. In 1986, he won a the BAFTA and Golden Globe awards for Best Actor for his work in Neil Jordan’s Mona Lisa, which also earned him an Academy Award nomination and opened up the doors to Hollywood.
Hoskins first major leading role in Hollywood saw him sharing the screen with an annoying cartoon bunny as he teamed up with director Robert Zemeckis and producer Steven Spielberg for the influential live-action / animation hybrid Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He enjoyed further notable roles in the likes of Mermaids (1990), Hook (1991) and the disastrous Super Mario Bros. (1993), and subsequently split his time between Britain and the States with appearances in films such as Twenty Four Seven (1997), A Room for Romeo Brass (1999), Unleashed (2005), Outlaw (2007), A Christmas Carol (2009), Made in Dagenham (2010) and Snow White and the Huntsman (2012).
