What Calista Flockhart Is Doing Today

Back in the '90s, few actors seemed to be rising in popularity as rapidly as Calista Flockhart. After appearing in shows like "As the World Turns" and "Loving," she landed the title role in "Ally McBeal," the now-classic Fox show about a Boston law firm. She also starred as Helena in the 1999 film adaptation of William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream." Although "Ally McBeal" only ran for five years, the show was hugely influential — Flockhart's star was on the rise and everyone assumed she had a massive career ahead of her.

However, after the show ended in 2002, Flockhart's career soon dwindled. Two years later, she starred in the show "Brothers & Sisters," but other than that, she only took on the odd film project or TV cameo until she took on a meatier role in 2015's series "Supergirl."

We can't help but wonder — whatever happened to Calista Flockhart? And why did her career slow down after "Ally McBeal?" As it turns out, her absence from the spotlight was due to a combination of family responsibilities and a desire to keep a low profile after the chaos of the "Ally McBeal" years. Here's what Calista Flockhart has been up to since leaving Ally behind in 2002.

Aside from the demands of being a new mom, Calista Flockhart also felt the need for a break from the world of acting after "Ally McBeal." Even when she did return to auditioning after her son started school, Flockhart was determined to pick a very different character from Ally.

"I definitely wanted to make a different choice," she told CinemaBlend, reflecting on her new show, "Brothers & Sisters." "It's a very real show, and 'Ally' was sort of fantastical and a different kind of reality, and it was very high comedy. This is, I think, funny, and yet it's just different. So the responsibility, I think, is off of me because it's such a different playing field."

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, she explained why she wanted to avoid being typecast after playing Ally. "At my real heart, I'm a character actress, and I do crave playing all kinds of different roles," Flockhart explained. "I want to play the dark, crazy, alcoholic someday." It's no wonder she took some time off to make sure she didn't end up playing the same role over and over again.

Another reason why Calista Flockhart may not be on your radar these days is that she simply doesn't want to be. Although Flockhart loves acting, she doesn't exactly love all of the attention that comes with it.

In fact, as Jon Robin Baitz, the creator of "Brothers & Sisters" told the Los Angeles Times, "Ally McBeal" didn't exactly fit into Flockhart's plans — she actually never wanted fame at all. "That accident of having been cast as Ally McBeal could have possibly interrupted a very different kind of career and set it on a different course, one that's more public than she ever imagined for herself," Baitz said. "I would describe her as a reluctant star, and I mean that sort of in the most magical way: a reluctant princess." Flockhart also described herself as an introvert in the same interview.

After taking some time off and opting for smaller roles, Flockhart finally began to feel more comfortable. "Back then, it was pretty crazy," she said to Female First in 2009 about her "Ally McBeal" years. "There would be six paparazzi cars following me everywhere and that can be frightening. It's much better now."

Another reason you may not have seen Calista Flockhart in many films and TV shows in the past few decades is that she's also dedicated some of her time to theatrical work. After all, her roots were performing in off-Broadway plays.

"For me it's all about getting my theatre fix," Flockhart told The Guardian in 2012 during the run of an intimate production of "The Seagull" in Los Angeles. "It's a fun, low-key way to get into a room with talented actors and directors, and have a great time reading a classic, wonderful play." In 2020, she was set to star in "An Ideal Husband" in Boston, but the show was canceled. In 2022, Flockhart once again returned to the stage starring in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" alongside Zachary Quinto.

Flockhart also spent her time after "Ally McBeal" going to the theater with her son — they even spent a year and a half in London simply watching plays. "I love theater," she gushed to the Los Angeles Times. "I love that it's happening in the moment right in front of your eyes."

In 2015, Calista Flockhart took on another short guest role on the show "Full Circle," a series that followed a different group of loosely connected people in each season. In Flockhart's season, the action followed a Chicago cop and her co-stars included Terry O'Quinn, Brittany Snow, Patrick Fugit, and Eric McCormack. Flockhart played Ellen Kelly-O'Rourke, one of the rotating characters.

"It's a complete stand-alone season, each time, almost like a mini-series," explained executive producer and director Nick Hamm to Collider. "It's a completely different cast, but the central idea is the same. Character A meets character B, B meets C, C meets D, and it goes full circle."

We don't know too much about "Full Circle" as it didn't make a huge cultural impact — but, to be honest, Flockhart probably didn't mind too much, as she was able to act while maintaining a low profile.

In 2015, Calista Flockhart took on one of her biggest roles in years as Cat Grant in "Supergirl," a series that ran from 2015 until 2021. Cat was the tough-as-nails, sassy boss of Kara (aka Supergirl) at Catco Worldwide Media. And thanks to Flockhart's performance, she was one of the best parts of the show.

But even though Flockhart was a stand-out in "Supergirl," she wasn't exactly the lead — and she was more than happy to have a supporting role. "I am very excited about being a part of a new show and I am happy that I don't have to carry the show," she said during a CBS panel in 2015. "I am happy that I am Cat and not Supergirl this time around. It just gives me a little more time. [Spending time with] my family is very important to me." Sounds like it really was the perfect gig for her!

Above all else, Calista Flockhart's main priority has been her family: Her husband, Harrison Ford, their five children, and their four foster dogs. As she told the Los Angeles Times, "We kept [the dogs] because we all needed them. And they needed us, or we needed them more than they needed us probably."

Over the years, Flockhart has spoken about how she has chosen roles that give her the space and anonymity she needs to spend time with her family. And in more recent years, it's clear that the actor still spends as much time with her family as possible.

In 2023, Flockhart and Ford attended the Cannes Film Festival and the "Indiana Jones" premiere together. There, Ford said, "My life has been enabled by my lovely wife, who has supported my passions and my dreams and I'm grateful." Later that same year, they were spotted at Liam's graduation. In a 2023 interview with Esquire, Ford even revealed that Flockhart was helping him to clean up his language. "My wife is still giving me s*** about that Hollywood Reporter thing, and I'm trying not to say that too much," he said referring to another interview filled with expletives. It's clear that her family is incredibly supportive of each other.