The year of Anne Hathaway is officially approaching its final curtain call, and with that, a vanishing act. Verity, her fifth movie of 2026, arrives on October 2, and Hathaway already has her exit strategy mapped out for the following day. The actress has had five movies released or set for release this year, moving between genres while also navigating a major personal milestone. 

With Verity next, Hathaway is ready to trade premieres and press tours for some well-earned time away from the spotlight.

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, Anne Hathaway joked about what happens once the Colleen Hoover adaptation, Veritym reaches theaters. 

“The movie releases on October second. And on October third, I’m going to vanish in a plume of smoke, and you’re not going to see me until you have to,” she told ET. 

She then made the plan even clearer, saying she is “definitely” going to take some time off. That break comes after a year that has given Hathaway an almost old-school movie-star workload.

Her 2026 lineup has been remarkably eclectic, from the musical drama Mother Mary and the long-awaited The Devil Wears Prada 2 to Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey and David Robert Mitchell’s sci-fi thriller The End of Oak Street. For Hathaway, though, the year has not simply been about keeping the production slate moving. She told ET that she has been able to enjoy the experience and prioritize her joy at 43, describing that perspective as a gift. 

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It gives her decision to step away a little more context: after a year of premieres, press commitments and major studio productions, the next role on her call sheet is simply taking some time for herself.

The disappearing act will not last forever. Anne Hathaway is expected to return to work in March 2027, when she joins Tom Cruise for the next chapter of Days of Thunder, giving her break a defined endpoint rather than turning it into an indefinite Hollywood retreat.

The sequel brings Hathaway into the world of NASCAR as a team owner and engineer, while Cruise reprises his role as Cole Trickle from Tony Scott’s 1990 racing film. Jonathan Levine is directing from a screenplay by Will Staples, with Paramount scheduling the film for an exclusive theatrical release on June 2, 2028, including IMAX.

That makes the timing particularly interesting. Hathaway can step away after Verity, spend several months out of the Hollywood machinery, and then return for a very different kind of production opposite Cruise. After a year that has taken her from fashion-world comedy and Homeric epic to dinosaurs and psychological thriller territory, the next stop is the racetrack.

Hathaway’s 2026 run may therefore be ending with a literal disappearing act, but it is hardly a permanent farewell. 

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What do you think about Anne Hathaway taking some time away after Verity? Share your thoughts in the comments.