Updated April 24, 2026, 10:11 a.m. ET
Unlike Jack Torrance in “The Shining,” this is a Jack Nicholson grin we can all get behind.
The Oscar-winning actor, who’s been retired from Hollywood since 2010, turned 89 on Wednesday, April 22. In honor of the birthday milestone, Nicholson’s daughter, actress Lorraine Nicholson, shared a new photo of him on social media.
Lorraine Nicholson paid tribute to her dad with a nostalgic side-by-side photo set on her Instagram stories. The first picture was a throwback photo of Nicholson smiling with a cigar in his hand while wearing a red Coca-Cola T-shirt. “89?” Lorraine wrote.
The second photo, captioned “89!!,” showed a present-day Nicholson smiling and sitting in a chair during what appeared to be a birthday gathering for the actor. Singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell was seen in attendance.
A three-time Academy Award winner, Nicholson’s captivating screen performances throughout the ’70s and ’80s made him a silver-screen icon for his generation. He is best known for his roles in “Chinatown,” “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” “The Shining,” “Terms of Endearment” and “Batman.”
Nicholson’s final film appearance was in the 2010 James L. Brooks romantic comedy “How Do You Know,” which featured the cinematic titan alongside Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson and Paul Rudd.
The “movie business is the greatest business,” Nicholson said in a 2013 interview with The Sun, per Vanity Fair. “But I only want to do films that move people, films about emotions and people.”
Nicholson’s son, fellow actor Ray Nicholson, reflected on the prospects of his father returning to Hollywood in a March 2025 interview with USA TODAY.
“I think my dad is really happy with his body of work. He has done enough,” said Ray Nicholson, who called Jack his “favorite actor.”
“He has provided me and my sister with an amazing life. To continue to make him proud is all I want, and hopefully I have kids and they look at me the way that I look at my dad.”
Contributing: Brian Truitt, USA TODAY
