How Kate Jackson Created a ‘Peaceful’ Life for Herself on a Virginia Farm After Walking Away from Hollywood (Exclusive)

Brianne TracySat, April 25, 2026 at 11:00 AM UTC

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Kate Jackson at PaleyFest on April 6Credit: Earl Gibson III/Deadline via Getty -

Kate Jackson reflects on her Charlie's Angels fame and the overwhelming response to her PaleyFest appearance

After stepping away from Hollywood, Jackson built a quiet life on a Virginia farm with horses and chickens

Jackson is considering a return to acting and directing

Since making a rare appearance with her Charlie's Angels costars Jaclyn Smith and Cheryl Ladd at the 50th-anniversary celebration at PaleyFest in Los Angeles April 6, Kate Jackson's phone has been ringing off the hook.

"To have that response was just amazing," she tells PEOPLE in an interview days after the event. "When the phone rings and somebody's got an idea and I start thinking about [acting] again — I'm getting pretty jazzed about it."

Prior to PaleyFest, Jackson, 77, last appeared in the spotlight at the 2006 Emmys, when she joined Smith and Farrah Fawcett (who starred in the first season of Charlie's Angels) on stage for a tribute to late producer Aaron Spelling.

"I hadn't done anything like PaleyFest for 20 years, so I was really nervous leading up to it," Jackson says. "I was told, 'What's going to happen is you're going to walk on stage, and the you that is the you that is built in is going to show up.' That's exactly what happened. It was a wonderful time."

Kate Jackson, Jaclyn Smith and Cheryl Ladd at PaleyFest on April 6Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty

Despite her retreat from the public eye two decades ago, Jackson has steadily remained a household name since Charlie's Angels first debuted on ABC in 1976.

When she watched the pilot from a motel room in Sopchoppy, Fla., where she was filming a Roger Corman movie, Jackson recalls instantly knowing the show was something special.

"The guy that I was going out with was visiting, and we watched the pilot on a black-and-white TV with rabbit ears," Jackson says. "I just sat there for a minute, and I stood up and walked to the door and back. He said that I just sort of quietly said, 'My life is changed forever.'"

Kate Jackson in 'Charlie's Angels' in 1976Credit: ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

The next morning, she called to get the overnight ratings and was told they "just went through the roof."

"I knew that was what was going to happen," she says. "And life did change forever. It really did, in a good way. It was mind-blowing."

With their demanding shooting schedules, though, Jackson says it took a bit for her and her costars to realize just how big the show had become that first season. "We were leaving home before the sun came up and wouldn't get back home until the sun went down," she says. "Then, you learn your lines for the next day and jump in bed to do it again."

On weekends, she says, the women would "sleep all day" to make up for lost rest. "We weren't out in the world, so we really didn't know what was going on because we were always working," she says.

When filming wrapped, Jackson got more time to spend off set and quickly realized "suddenly, everywhere you go, people are staring at you."

"It feels like, 'What's the matter? Am I not dressed? What's going on here?'" she says. "Until you get used to it, it's a strange feeling. Sometimes you just wanted to walk down the street."

Kate Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, David Doyle, Cheryl Ladd and Jaclyn Smith in 'Charlie's Angels' in 1978Credit: ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

Ahead of season 2 of Charlie's Angels, which introduced Ladd after Fawcett's departure, Jackson visited New York City to compete on The $25,000 Pyramid, and it helped her understand the scope of her fame.

"There was a young woman who was an associate producer on the show, and we became friendly, so when we broke for lunch we walked Fifth Avenue together," she says. "There were lots of people on the street and people passing us. When we got to the end of the sidewalk, it was time to cross the street. We stopped and I said, 'Okay, turn around, in one, two, three.' We turned around, and everybody we had passed on the sidewalk had stopped, turned around and were now looking at us."

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Jackson remained on the show until the third season. She went on to have a starring role in the CBS series Scarecrow and Mrs. King, which aired from 1984 to 1987. As her career continued to soar, so did her need for more privacy.

"It was very difficult to have your privacy just completely disappear, especially if you've always been a private person," she says.

Bruce Boxleitner and Kate Jackson in 'Scarecrow and Mrs. King' in 1984Credit: CBS via Getty

While filming the fourth and final season of Scarecrow and Mrs. King, Jackson was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a lumpectomy. When her cancer returned two years later, she underwent a partial mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.

"You got to develop a fiercely positive attitude, and for me, that meant I needed to be in a little house right on the beach where the sun shone and I could hear the ocean," she says. "The air was clean, and I would walk up and down the beach and exercise every day."

In 1995, Jackson adopted her son, Charles. Motherhood eventually pushed her to retreat further out of the spotlight.

"I didn't think I could be a good director and a good mom at the same time, and if I'm not a good mom, it really doesn't matter what else I do well," she says. "So I just walked away from everything. I didn't take jobs and after, I don't know, three or four years, they stopped asking. But my life was busy and full and I loved it. I loved everything about being a mom."

"I wanted to be the best mom I could possibly be, and that felt like the way to do it," she adds.

Kate Jackson in 'Charlie's Angels' in 1976Credit: ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

In recent years, Jackson says she's called Virginia her home base.

"I love being in Virginia, and I really enjoy the farm," she says. "I've got chickens, a couple of horses. Most of it's woods, but it's 128 acres and it's beautiful and it's quiet and peaceful. It's a good place for me, and I love being in the mountains. I still get to ski, but I shouldn't."

Jackson explains that during a recent ski trip to Colorado she took a nasty tumble on an Olympic practice run. She's currently in physical therapy for her hurt back.

"I thought, 'Let's see if I can push and go a little faster,'" she says. "I took the most spectacular fall. I torqued my back something awful, but I'm perfectly fine. In my head I'm still 25. I think maybe I'm going to snowshoe now."

Kate Jackson at PaleyFest on April 6Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty

Jackson also has acting and directing on her mind. "I'm in California now and going to see what happens and if there are things to do, if there's work to be had, acting or directing," she says. "Directing was really fun. I'm pretty darn good at it."

When she stepped away from Hollywood 20 years ago, Jackson predicted she might have a desire to come back someday, so she kept her SAG and DGA cards.

"I guess somewhere in the back of my head, I always knew one day I was going to say, 'I think I'd like to do that again,'" she says. "Creative people need to be creative."

For now, she's happy relishing the response she got from the Charlie's Angels fans at PaleyFest. "I hope they know how wonderful they are. Without them, we never would have been here where we are," she says. "We owe them so much. It's such a blessing, and we don't take that for granted."

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