Jack Nicholson's reclusive life amid fears actor, 89, will 'die alone' - as pal confirms he's 'disappeared' and dashes hope of return to the spotlight

Jack Nicholson was once a beacon of Hollywood success, starring in more than 70 movies and TV shows and earning 12 Oscar nominations throughout his career. But in the late 2000s, after spending more than five decades in the spotlight, the Hollywood legend, now 89, shocked the world when he disappeared without a trace. After years of no news, there was some hope last year when James L Brooks said that The Shining icon could potentially return to the screen. Brooks directed him in his last film – the romantic comedy How Do You Know in 2010.However this week that hope was dashed as his friend Michael Douglas revealed that the notorious womaniser will never appear in front of a camera again, quipping: 'He's not working any more. He's well. He has disappeared. I know that.'Although he never announced his retirement the reclusive star has very much disappeared from the spotlight and has not done any interviews in recent times. He did however make a rare public appearance last year in the audience for Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Special – but many fans were concerned he looked quite frail. Inside Jack Nicholson's reclusive life after glittering Hollywood career amid fears he will 'die alone' - as pal confirms he's 'disappeared' (seen in April this year) He was once a beacon of Hollywood success, starring in more than 70 movies and TV shows and earning 12 Oscar nominations throughout his career (seen in 1963)Numerous reports have suggested he may be in ill health but when asked about his sudden disappearance in 2013, he insisted his brain was as sharp as ever and that he was simply being more picky about his roles.Sources say he now spends his days inside his Beverly Hills mansion and that he almost never leaves – with friends recently voicing their fears that he will 'die a recluse' after 'leading such a colorful life'.In 2017, he was due to star in a remake of the German comedy Toni Erdmann, but he dropped out, derailing the project.Jack had a somewhat controversial upbringing from the start – after his mother, an unmarried showgirl named June Frances Nicholson, gave birth to the actor at age 18, her parents decided to raise him as their own child, pretending that June was his sister.For nearly four decades, he believed that his mom was his sibling, until 1974, when Time magazine uncovered the truth and told him about its findings.June moved away from Nicholson – who grew up in Neptune City, New Jersey – when he was four to pursue her career as a showgirl.But when he was 17, he decided to move out to California to be with her, where he landed a secretary job for animation directors William Hanna and Joseph Barbera at the MGM cartoon studio.At the same time, he was also studying to be an actor, and he eventually landed his debut role in the 1958 teen drama The Cry Baby Killer.He did however make a rare public appearance last year in the audience for Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Special – but many fans were concerned he looked quite frail While the Hollywood legend (seen in 2021) never publicly announced his retirement from acting, he hasn't appeared in anything since 2010 This week Michael Douglas revealed the notorious womaniser will never appear in front of a camera again, saying: 'He's not working any more. He's well. He has disappeared. I know that'After that, his career soon took off and Jack went on to become one of the most well-known actors of all time.To date, his best known acting credits include The King of Marvin Gardens, The Witches of Eastwick, Hoffa, Easy Rider, Chinatown, Five Easy Pieces, A Few Good Men, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and of course, The Shining.In 2010, Jack's acting career came to a sudden halt after he starred in the movie How Do You Know.After its premiere, he shied away from the spotlight, leaving many to wonder what had happened to the Hollywood legend who was once always plastered all over the big screen.Then, in 2013 – three years after his final role – RadarOnline reported that the star was 'retiring from acting due to memory loss'.'There is a simple reason behind his decision – it's memory loss,' a source told the outlet at the time.'Quite frankly, at 76, Jack has memory issues and can no longer remember the lines being asked of him.' However, while speaking to The Sun months later, he shut those rumors down, insisting that his 'mathematician's brain' was as sharp as ever. The actor's daughter Lorraine, his eldest child with ex-partner Rebecca Broussard, shared photos of her father across social media as he celebrated his birthday on April 22 this year The actor cut his teeth in B movies before becoming one of the greatest Hollywood stars of all time (Pictured left, 1956, and right, 1976) His breakout role came in 1969 indie hit Easy Rider (pictured, centre, with Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda)He added that he was less driven to 'be out there any more' because he 'only wanted to do films that move people' and movies 'about emotions'.'I had the most chilling thought that maybe people in their twenties and thirties don't actually want to be moved anymore,' he continued.'They may want just to see more bombs, more explosions, because that is what they have grown up with. And I'll never do that type of movie.'He also told NBC News that the speculation of his retirement was '100 per cent false' and that he was 'actively reading scripts' and 'looking forward to his next project'.In 2015, he returned to the screen for the first time in five years to give a speech during Saturday Night Live's 40th anniversary special.He also sat down for an interview with HBO to discuss his friendship with boxer Muhammad Ali in 2016 following the athlete's death – but he still hadn't become attached to any new movies since 2010.However, in 2017, reports hit the web that Jack had been cast in his first flick in nearly a decade – the remake of Toni Erdmann opposite Kristen Wiig – but unfortunately, the film was never actually made. Around that time, his Easy Rider co-star Peter Fonda was asked if he thought Jack would ever return to the big screen, and he admitted, 'I think he is basically retired.''I don't want to speak for him, but he has done a lot of work and he has done very well as a person financially,' the actor added. 'Sometimes ­people have a reason that you don't know, and it's not for me to ask.'Then in 2019, when director Mike Flanagan released a sequel to The Shining, called Doctor Sleep, he revealed that he had asked Jack to make a cameo in it, but said he had ultimately declined.In September 2021, RadarOnline reported that the actor was suffering from 'dementia', with an insider stating at the time that he's living out his 'sad last days' shackled up in his longtime Beverly Hills home.He's owned the four-bedroom, three-bathroom, 3,303-square-foot mansion – located on Mulholland Drive – since the 70s. 'Jack and I have been friends for years and he doesn't leave his house anymore... I think his son and daughter are looking after him now,' a pal of the actor's told the outlet at the time. 'Physically he is fine - but his mind is gone. It's really sad to see such a super talented actor, like Jack, go out this way.' Seen as crazed caretaker Jack Torrance in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining - the film that coined his greatest line: 'Here's Johnny!' He was involved in a long-term relationship with actress Rebecca Broussard, during which they welcomed two children (pictured in 1998) In 2010, Jack's acting career came to a sudden halt after he starred in the movie How Do You Know (seen in 2002)However, Jack was pictured at a Los Angeles Lakers game one month later – in October 2021.Before that, he was spotted at another basketball match in January 2020.Most recently, another report from RadarOnline claimed that the Hollywood legend's longtime friends were growing concerned over his increasingly reclusive nature.'He's made it clear his home is his castle. But people just wish he'd come out of the house and pop up to tell them how - or at least reassure folks he's OK,' said a source earlier this week.The insider added that his 'socializing days are gone', while voicing their fears over him 'dying a recluse' after 'leading such a colorful life'.'His kids will visit, but they're his only connection to the world. It's like he doesn't want to face reality anymore - and that's just sad,' they added.However, last July Danny DeVito opened up about his friend Jack and said that the Oscar winner was doing 'great'.Danny, 81, spoke about his long friendship with the star, while promoting the 50th anniversary re-release of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, their first film together. 'I just saw Jack a couple weeks ago – it was his birthday a month ago, and he's great,' the Taxi star told People. Looking back on the experience of making the groundbreaking 1975 film, Danny said he and his fellow cast members – including Christopher Lloyd and Louise Fletcher – were 'in awe' of Nicholson, who had already been building a reputation with films such as Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces and Chinatown. 'We're in the presence of this guy who's really at his moment, where he was breaking out into the big time,' Danny said of his initial encounter.'There was no need for an icebreaker,' the Emmy winner recalled.'He was immediately just so embracing… He started out exactly the way everybody else did, where he couldn't get a job. It was like he came to Hollywood and he was going to just write and direct, and then comes along after the Corman stuff,' he said of Nicholson's start in low-budget thrillers such as The Terror and The St. Valentine's Day Massacre.'He was in our milieu, and he was always just as open and genuine, and we all felt it immediately,' Danny said. 'Of course, he was doing it because he's that way,' the writer and director explained. 'And he was also doing it because that had to be, because we had to be all joined at the hip in that movie, and we had such great performances.'In another more hopeful update, back in April of this year, Jack proved he still had the ability to enchant a captive audience while celebrating his 89th birthday.He was joined by pioneering singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell in a rare photo, shared across social media on April 22 by his daughter Lorraine.And fans were quick to comment on Nicholson's well-preserved looks, all the more remarkable given his hard-earned reputation for wild partying and serial womanising, developed over decades of unrivalled Hollywood success. 'Good old Jack Nicholson!' wrote one. 'Living his best life at 89 and looking healthy and happy and much loved.' A second added: 'The man's doing well. Happy birthday Jack, one of my favourite actors.' Elsewhere, a third marvelled: 'He doesn't seem to have aged!'While a fourth posted: 'Amazing actor. Such charisma, still looks like himself, if that makes sense. Happy birthday!' A fifth commented: 'Hasn't changed a bit. His performance in The Shining to this day makes my jaw drop. That's an A-Lister right there.' Referencing the recent loss of Hollywood greats Robert Redford and Gene Hackman, another wrote: 'Jack better live forever! We've lost Redford and Hackman this last year. We can't lose Jack too. They sure don't make 'em like they used to.' Others drew comparisons with Leonardo DiCaprio, whose own notorious eye for the ladies appears to parallel Nicholson at the height of his career.'He looks better than his twin, DiCaprio,' wrote one. A second quipped: 'It's a Leonardo shape shift. Keep up.'It is rare to get any snapshot into his personal life. But last December New Jersey native's 36-year-old daughter Lorraine Nicholson shared a rare Instagram snap of him alongside his 34-year-old son Ray Nicholson.The former lothario welcomed both children during his five-year relationship with his Man Trouble co-star Rebecca Broussard, which ended in 1994.Her first pregnancy was the catalyst to the end of Jack's longest romantic relationship, with Oscar winner Anjelica Huston, from 1973-1990.He reportedly recognized 56-year-old Caleb Goddard as his son in private following an on-set fling with his Five Easy Pieces co-star Susan Anspach, who raised him with ex-husband Mark Goddard.Jack is also estranged from his 32-year-old daughter Tessa Gourin with waitress Jennine Gourin as he has never publicly acknowledged the paternity.He also fathered 44-year-old daughter Honey Hollman with Danish model Winnie Hollman.Jack welcomed his eldest child – 63-year-old daughter Jennifer Nicholson – during his six-year marriage to his Terror co-star Sandra Knight, which ended in 1968.