Why did Kim Novak leave Hollywood? Vertigo star’s exit explored as she calls out upcoming film for focusing on "sexual reasons"

Former actress Kim Novak is set to be honored at the Venice Film Festival, which takes place next week on September 1. The accomplished actress, who had previously left Hollywood to focus on her career as a visual artist and dedicate her efforts to rescuing animals, had revealed in a 2021 interview with People Magazine that it was a matter of "survival." She said:

"I had to leave to survive. It was a survival issue. I lost a sense of who I truly was and what I stood for. I fought all the time back in Hollywood to keep my identity so you do whatever you have to do to hold on to who you are and what you stand for."

In a recent interview with The New York Times, published on August 25, Kim Novak added that leaving Hollywood did not mean giving up what she truly desired in life. She said:

"When I left Hollywood, it isn’t like I just wrapped up my life. Suddenly I was free to express everything on canvas and not have to be the canvas.”

The "Vertigo" actress is being honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at a time when a documentary centered on her life and achievements is set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival next week. The documentary titled "Kim Novak's Vertigo" is directed by Alexandre O. Philippe. Talking about the documentary, Philippe said:

"I met Kim in person, and that early obsession took on new meaning. Two weeks later, we began filming. This film is about a life coming full circle — a story quietly orbiting Vertigo for decades. Working with Kim meant stepping into a space of radical honesty. Her voice — unfiltered, wise, funny, defiant — guides us through the attic of her life: old costumes, fire-scarred scripts, early traumas, and enduring Hollywood ghosts. "

Novak expresses concern over the movie based on her life, starring Sydney Sweeney

The documentary is not there only upcoming media project centred on Kim Novak. According to reports, a movie, titled "Scandalous!" directed by Colman Domingo, will also be based on her life and explore her relationship with Sammy Davis Jr in the late 1950s. It shall star Sydney Sweeney as Kim Novak and David Jonsson as Sammy Davis Jr.

In an interview with The Guardian, Kim Novak discussed her relationship with Davis, which remains a topic of conversation decades later. In the interview, she further expressed skepticism about the upcoming film starring Sweeney, explaining that she does not view the relationship as "scandalous" and is concerned that the film may reduce the depth of her connection with Davis. She said:

"I don’t think the relationship was scandalous. He’s somebody I really cared about. We had so much in common, including that need to be accepted for who we are and what we do, rather than how we look. I'm concerned they're going to make it all se*ual reasons."

The ninety-two-year-old veteran actress had previously reflected in an interview with People Magazine on her relatively short career in Hollywood and the reasons she chose a quieter life. She said:

"In Hollywood a lot of people assume who you are, because of the character you play, but also just because of who they expect you to be, how they expect you to dress. It influences you because if you're in some gorgeous sequined gown, you can't run along the ocean and run on the beaches. Iwanted to live a normal life and a life with animals,"

Novak relocated to Big Sur, California, and later to a farm in Rogue River Valley in Oregon, with her second husband, Robert Malloy, to whom she was married for forty-four years, until his death in 2020. She further added:

"My teachers were the animals, not just dogs and cats, but other animals, horses and llamas, whom you have to meet half way, because they're not ready to accept humans. I had to learn to win them over. They understand a person who's genuine so I had to become more real and that made me rely on my inner self — and that also encouraged me to paint. Everything seemed to flow from that."

According to her official website, Kim Novak had always dreamt of pursuing a career as an artist. She has won two scholarships to the Chicago Art Institute, but was later spotted by an agent while on a trip to L.A. She said:

“I never dreamed of becoming an actress or a movie star. As a young girl I won two scholarships to the prestigious Chicago Art Institute where I hoped one day to become a great artist. Working as a model during junior college, I traveled to Hollywood on summer vacation where I was discovered by an agent and signed to Columbia Pictures.

She further added:

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"At the height of my film career I decided to walk away from Hollywood – not wanting to fall prey to the tragic endings that often result when stars and s*x symbols get lost in an identity crisis. I turned my back on a successful and lucrative career to define who I was and what I really wanted to give and get out of life."

The movie starring Sydney Sweeney as Kim Novak is set to begin production later this year.

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