Beloved Massachusetts Celebrity Has Made a Big Life Change

Massachusetts has produced successful celebrities who have made it big in Hollywood. Stars like John Cena (West Newbury), Mark Wahlberg (Boston), and Elizabeth Banks (Pittsfield) for example were all born in Massachusetts. There's another Hollywood celebrity who was born in Massachusetts that seems to be calling it quits (article continues below).

Matt LeBlanc who was born in Newton is stepping away from Hollywood according to multiple sources. The Friends star who played Joey Tribbiani for 10 seasons has decided to give up acting quietly.

There are a couple of reasons why LeBlanc is walking away from the spotlight, including still having difficulty getting over the death of Friends co-star and personal friend Matthew Perry (fun fact, Perry was also a Massachusetts native as he was born in Williamstown).

In addition, LeBlanc wants to be happy and explore other interests at this point in his life. It's not the first time a major Hollywood star has decided to remove themselves from the limelight. Both Jack Nicholson and Rick Moranis were able to do it with little difficulty.

If you look up Matt LeBlanc on Wikipedia, the site already notes him as being a former actor so this decision seems pretty serious and permanent. Then again, you know the old saying, "Never say never."

A couple more fun facts about Matt LeBlanc:

He moved to New York at the age of 17 to pursue a career in modeling, but he was told he was too short to be in the industry. LeBlanc loves cars and was a carpenter before he started acting. So there you go, he already has a trade in his pocket that he can go back to (not that he'll ever need it). What are your thoughts on Matt LeBlanc walking away from Hollywood?