Fairuza Balk Stuns With Ageless Look Nearly 30 Years After Starring in ‘The Craft’: See the Photo

Fairuza Balk made her acting debut in the 1980s with roles in Return to Oz and The Worst Witch, but it was her turn as Nancy Downs in 1996’s The Craft that is her most recognizable to date. However, the actress reversed course by leaving Hollywood in 2019 and pursuing jewelry-making and welding.

Earlier this month, Balk updated fans on where she’s at in life now. “Just sending you guys some unfiltered unaltered straight up Love along with some Sun beams on this Friday,” the 51-year-old wrote alongside a selfie of herself that she shared via Instagram.

The Water Boy actress also went on to thank fans for supporting her business by purchasing merchandise from her personal shop that features T-shirts and other items with Balk’s artwork on them.

When Balk came on the Hollywood scene in Return to Oz, the film was not well-received, as many expected it to be a children’s musical in the same vein as The Wizard of Oz. Instead, its dark undertones frightened the younger crowd, which drew much of the negative reaction. In 2020, Balk admitted that she was upset by the criticism.

“It’s very interesting because at the time that the film was released, all the press said, ‘Oh it’s much too scary and there’s no singing and dancing, it’s like a surrealist piece,’” Balk said during an interview with The L.A. Times published on November 3, 2020. “And at the time, I was terribly hurt by that and I assumed that nobody saw it. But in fact, it was the opposite. Millions of people loved that film and still love that film and are obsessed with that film.”

While Balk mostly stepped away from acting in 2019, she thrilled fans of The Craft when she made a cameo appearance as Nancy in the movie’s sequel, The Craft: Legacy, in 2020. Even though she’s passionate about her life now, she also has not completely ruled out a possible return to the character again in the future.

“It would really depend on the script and how they approach the character,” Balk told The L.A. Times. “Not out of the question. But it’s got to be good.”