Hollywood Stars Who Left America For Peace, Politics And Privacy

Amber Heard

After her highly publicized defamation trial with Johnny Depp, Amber Heard left the U.S. in 2022, seeking privacy and peace. Initially settling in Mallorca, Spain, she later moved to an upscale neighborhood in Madrid with her daughter, Oonagh Paige. Friends claimed she “had to get out of the U.S.” after receiving death threats and relentless online harassment. Spain offered her anonymity, distance, and a fresh start. Now, Madrid provides Heard the space to rebuild her life away from the glare of Hollywood and internet scrutiny.

George Clooney

George Clooney and wife Amal Clooney settled in Brignoles, Provence, France in 2021, seeking a quieter life with their twins, Alexander and Ella. The Hollywood power couple reportedly purchased a sprawling estate, choosing to prioritize family and privacy over the glare of Hollywood. France offered them a slower pace, good schools, and a community far removed from U.S. celebrity culture. While Clooney still works internationally, his life in Provence reflects his desire for a place where his children can grow up surrounded by nature, not cameras.

Johnny Depp

In 2025, Johnny Depp revealed that he has swapped Hollywood glitz for countryside calm, moving into a lavish 12-bedroom mansion in Somerset, England. “I just love places with character,” he told Somerset Life, explaining that every home he owns holds personal meaning. For Depp, the historic estate provides both privacy and inspiration, far from the frenzy of Los Angeles. While he still travels for work, Somerset has become his sanctuary—a place where he can retreat, live quietly, and focus on his passions beyond the spotlight.

Lily Collins

‘Emily in Paris’ star Lily Collins surprised fans by setting down roots in Copenhagen, Denmark, with her husband Charlie McDowell in 2023. For Collins, Copenhagen embodies balance—colorful yet serene, bustling yet intimate. “Life here is just so wonderful and so calm and bright,” she told Elle Danmark, adding she loves the freedom of biking everywhere. While the couple still maintains a home on the U.S. West Coast, Collins’ heart is firmly in Scandinavia. “Everything!” she replied when asked her favorite part of Copenhagen living.

Gabriel Macht

‘Suits’ star Gabriel Macht quietly left the U.S. with wife Jacinda Barrett and their children in 2024, but has deliberately kept their new European location secret. “I don’t tell anybody where I live because I like to keep that under wraps,” he told People. The move had been years in the making. The couple planned to homeschool their kids and travel back in 2020 but were delayed by the pandemic. Finally, they seized the chance to leave New York behind. “We decided to explore the world, so we left,” Macht said, embracing life outside the spotlight.

Portia de Rossi and Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi traded California for the rolling hills of the Cotswolds in 2024, finding a farmhouse that immediately felt like home. DeGeneres later confirmed the couple’s move was permanent after Donald Trump’s return to the presidency. “We woke up to crying emoji texts from friends after the election, and we decided we’re staying here,” she revealed. Life abroad has brought them calm, charm, and kindness. “Everything here is just better,” DeGeneres said, praising polite neighbors, animal welfare, and the simple pace of life in the English countryside.

Eva Longoria

Eva Longoria has been candid about splitting time between Mexico and Spain with her family, but she’s quick to stress that her move isn’t political, despite stating America has turned “dystopian” under Trump’s presidency. Longoria later set the record straight on The View’s Behind the Table podcast. “I’m a proud American,” she emphasized. For the actress, the decision is about practicality, not protest—her international schedule makes dividing her time necessary. She insists she hasn’t “fled” the U.S., but instead balances her Hollywood commitments with a broader global lifestyle.

Richard Gere

In late 2024, Richard Gere followed through on a long-discussed plan to move to Spain with his wife, Alejandra Silva, and their two young sons. Gere sold his $11 million Connecticut estate and embraced life in Silva’s homeland, saying it was her turn to be close to family and friends. “She was generous enough to give me six years in my world, so I’ll give her six in hers,” Gere told Vanity Fair Spain. While the couple intends to stay for several years, Gere revealed they still keep a quiet New York countryside retreat for future visits.

Pamela Anderson

Pamela Anderson returned to her roots in 2020, moving back to Vancouver Island, Canada, at the height of the pandemic. Known for her glamorous past in Hollywood and Europe, Anderson revealed the move was deeply personal. “I felt sad and lonely… like my life was a bundle of mistakes,” she told Better Homes & Gardens in 2024. Settling near family helped her reconnect with her identity and escape the public image she once felt trapped in. Canada isn’t her first stint abroad (she previously lived in France) but it’s the one that has brought her true peace.

Robin Wright

‘House of Cards’ star Robin Wright swapped America’s chaos for a quiet seaside rental in England with her partner, architect Henry Smith. For Wright, the move was about finding joy in simplicity. “It’s liberating to be done—done with searching, looking, and getting 60 percent of what you wanted,” she told The Sunday Times. She didn’t hold back about her views on the U.S., bluntly calling it a “s-show.” In England, she finds freedom, kindness, and unhurried living. She sees it as a sharp contrast to the “rush, competition and speed” she associates with American life.

Lindsay Lohan

Lindsay Lohan shocked Hollywood when she quietly relocated to Dubai in 2014. By 2017, she opened up about her decision, saying the Middle East provided her with peace and privacy she couldn’t find in New York or Los Angeles. “There are no cameras in Dubai and I can actually focus on what I want to do in life,” she told Entertainment Tonight. The city has since become her permanent home. In 2023, she welcomed her son, Luai, with husband Bader Shammas there, cementing Dubai not only as her refuge but also the place where she’s building her family.

Shania Twain

Country-pop icon Shania Twain has lived in Switzerland for over a decade, settling near Lake Geneva with her husband, Frédéric Thiébaud. The singer’s love for the country is mutual…so much so that in 2023, one of Switzerland’s Golden Pass Express trains was named the “Shania Train” in her honor. Twain has spoken warmly about the tranquility of Swiss life, a far cry from her Nashville beginnings. Between the alpine views and quiet luxury, Twain has found a place that allows her both peace and privacy while staying connected to European culture and music.

Sophie Turner

‘Game of Thrones’ star Sophie Turner returned to her roots in West London after splitting from Joe Jonas in 2023. The couple had lived in Los Angeles and Miami with their two daughters, but Turner admitted she struggled with U.S. politics. “The gun violence, Roe v Wade being overturned… everything just piled on,” she told Harper’s Bazaar in 2024. The Uvalde school shooting was the final straw. Now raising her daughters in the U.K., Turner says being home has brought her peace, away from what she described as America’s overwhelming instability.

Britney Spears

In 2024, Britney Spears revealed via Instagram that she had moved to Mexico after feeling “extremely mean and cruel” treatment from the paparazzi in the U.S. She said the constant barrage of unflattering, invasive photos deeply affected her, adding, “It kind of hurts my feelings that the paparazzi make my face look like I’m wearing a white Jason mask.” Mexico, Spears explained, offered her a sense of freedom she couldn’t find stateside.

Josh Hartnett

Josh Hartnett and his wife, actress Tamsin Egerton, made England their permanent home after the pandemic. The couple had long divided time between the U.S. and U.K., but during lockdown in Hampshire they realized they wanted to stay for good. Expecting their third child at the time, Hartnett said the decision was about stability and family. For the Minnesota-born actor, life in the English countryside has been refreshingly ordinary compared to Hollywood. Hampshire offers him a chance to raise his children quietly while keeping his career intentionally low-key.

Madonna

Madonna has never been one to stay rooted in one place. In the late ’90s, she moved to London while married to filmmaker Guy Ritchie, embracing British country life and even earning the nickname “Madge” from the tabloids. After their divorce, she kept homes across the globe, but in 2017, the Queen of Pop relocated to Lisbon, Portugal. The move was inspired by her son David Banda’s budding soccer career with a local academy. Madonna has described Portugal as creatively inspiring, calling it a place where she found both family balance and artistic renewal.

Courtney Love

Courtney Love has called London home since 2019 and is now making it official by applying for British citizenship. While she didn’t directly tie her move to U.S. politics, Love hasn’t hidden her disdain for Trump, describing America’s political climate as “frightening.” Her criticism has been characteristically sharp, mocking Trump’s circle as “emperor-core” for flaunting wealth at Mar-a-Lago. For Love, London provides cultural stimulation, creative community, and distance from the political chaos she sees dominating American life.

Rosie O’Donnell

Rosie O’Donnell shocked fans when she revealed in March 2025 that she had moved to Ireland with her 12-year-old child, Clay. She explained on TikTok that America’s political turmoil pushed her to seek stability abroad. “It’s been heartbreaking to see what’s happening politically,” she said. While she misses her older children and friends in the U.S., she’s focused on building a safe home in Ireland until equal rights are secure back home. When Trump later threatened to revoke her citizenship, O’Donnell shrugged him off, saying she felt safe “out of reach of the Tangerine Mussolini.”

Josh Lucas

‘Sweet Home Alabama’ actor Josh Lucas has spent years living in Indonesia, where his son attends a unique eco-focused school deep in the jungle. Speaking on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in 2019, Lucas described the school as “magical,” with students growing their own food and building bamboo structures. For Lucas, the move was about giving his child a meaningful upbringing far from Hollywood pressures. “Being on the other side of the world and looking back at this madness is amazing,” he said, reflecting on America’s chaos while embracing Indonesia’s slower, more sustainable lifestyle.

Janet Jackson

Janet Jackson has lived in London since 2016, remaining there after her 2017 divorce from Qatari billionaire Wissam Al Mana. The decision was rooted in co-parenting their son, Eissa, as Al Mana also resides in the city. Jackson has kept her life in London relatively private, but fans occasionally spot her enjoying the quiet charm of her adopted home. For Jackson, the move has been more about family stability than politics, allowing her to raise her child away from the U.S. spotlight while still being surrounded by London’s rich cultural and musical scene.

Tina Turner

Before her passing in 2023, music legend Tina Turner had long called Switzerland home. She moved there in 1995 with her partner, Erwin Bach, eventually settling near Lake Zurich. Turner embraced Swiss life fully, even renouncing her U.S. citizenship after marrying Bach in 2013. Known for her love of the country’s discretion and beauty, Turner described Switzerland as a place where she finally felt at peace. Her decades abroad symbolized her desire for freedom—from fame, chaos, and the painful memories of her early life in America.

Christina Milian

Singer and actress Christina Milian confirmed in 2024 that she and husband Matt Pokora had “committed” to life in Paris with their children. After years of splitting time between France and the U.S., the couple decided to settle down once their kids reached school age. “I love it out there,” Milian said on The Jennifer Hudson Show, noting her children now attend school in Paris. Between family life, culture, and Pokora’s French roots, Paris offered them the perfect home base. For Milian, it’s an opportunity to raise her family in a city she adores.

Melissa George

Australian actress Melissa George left New York City in 2016, moving to Paris with her two sons, and later establishing a home in Provence. Her five-story 17th-century French residence reflects her love of history and design, complete with custom touches and antique details. By 2020, Provence had become her sanctuary. For George, the move wasn’t political, it was about giving her children stability and surrounding herself with European elegance. She has now fully embraced her expat lifestyle.

Kate Walsh

‘Grey’s Anatomy’ star Kate Walsh ended up moving to Australia almost by accident. In 2020, she flew there to visit her partner, Andrew Nixon, just before the pandemic hit. When global travel shut down, returning to the U.S. became impossible, so she stayed. What started as a temporary situation turned into a new chapter, with Walsh happily embracing her life Down Under. She’s since described Australia as home, crediting the move with giving her stability, love, and a fresh perspective after years of bouncing between busy sets in Hollywood.

Lenny Kravitz

For Lenny Kravitz, a six-month stay in Rio de Janeiro turned into something life-changing. While traveling through Brazil, he found peace and connection unlike anywhere else. “I’d never felt more calm, peaceful, and closer to God,” he told Architectural Digest. Inspired, Kravitz decided to leave the hustle behind and embrace a slower pace of life. He bought a sprawling 19th-century Portuguese colonial villa on 1,000 acres, transforming it into a self-sustaining farm. For the rocker, Brazil became not just a residence but a soulful retreat where he could reconnect with nature and himself.