Sharon Stone Says Hollywood Abandoned Her For 20 Years After She Had A Stroke

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Sharon Stone is an acting legend. She's famous for unforgettable roles in films like Casino and Basic Instinct.

Closeup of Sharon Stone
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Back in 2001, Sharon suffered a near-catastrophic stroke that took her years to recover from.

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She discussed the stroke in her 2021 memoir The Beauty of Living Twice — and during a recent speech at a luncheon hosted by the Hollywood Reporter, Sharon revealed how it affected her acting career and Hollywood status.

Closeup of Sharon Stone
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Sharon said that she was given a 1% chance of survival after suffering the stroke, and that it took her seven years to fully recover. "I haven't had jobs since," she stated.

Closeup of Sharon Stone

Sharon has worked fairly steadily in acting since 2003, but hasn't really been cast in the kind of roles that she was receiving before her stroke.

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“When it first happened, I didn’t want to tell anybody because you know if something goes wrong with you, you’re out. Something went wrong with me — I’ve been out for 20 years."

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"I haven’t had jobs. I was a very big movie star at one point in my life.”

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Sharon also talked about how being her own advocate “has caused me a lot of problems in the business” and has sometimes prevented her from being hired.

Closeup of Sharon Stone
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“I broke a lot of glass ceilings on the top of my head,” she also said regarding her accomplishments throughout her career, especially facing off against Hollywood's institutionalized misogyny.

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“I want to tell you that it hurt."

Closeup of Sharon Stone
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You can read her full comments here.