After a career spanning seven decades and more than 70 films to his name, Clint Eastwood has officially retired from Hollywood.The four-time Oscar-winning actor and director, who turned 96 on Sunday (31 May), shot to fame on TV series Rawhide in the 1960s, before starring in Sergio Leone’s spaghetti western Dollars trilogy, which included The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.He directed his first film – Play Misty for Me – in the 1970s, and in the following six decades, released films including Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby, Changeling, Gran Torino, American Sniper and The Mule. Eastwood is one of the most successful actors-turned-directors, refusing to be bound by a specific genre; he adeptly turned his hand to westerns, thrillers, biopics, romances, war films and musicals, and was known for his quick-speed directorial style, often wrapping ahead of schedule and under budget. Clint Eastwood has officially retired (AFP/Getty)For those wondering whether Eastwood is lining up a new movie, his son, musician and composer Kyle, who scored several of his father’s films, has officially confirmed Clint’s retirement.He said at a gig in November, in a video that’s currently doing the rounds online: “I have many fond memories of working with him. Now he’s retired, he’s 95 years old. But I was very lucky to be able to work with him on quite a few films. It was a great experience for me.”Eastwood, known for his relentless work ethic, often starred in the films he directed, with his last on-screen performance arriving in Cry Macho in 2021. His last film as director was 2024 legal thriller Juror No 2, starring Nicholas Hoult and Toni Collette.Clint Eastwood's career kicked off in the 1960s (PEA)Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 dayNew subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.Try for freeADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 dayNew subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.Try for freeADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.Earlier this year, Laura Linney, who worked with Eastwood three times, shared her insights into working with the him over the years.She told The Independent in new interview series Life in Pictures that his hesitancy to shout on sets stems from his experiences working on westerns, including Rawhide, where making too much noise would alarm the horses in the production.Linney, who starred in Clintwood movies Absolute Power (1997), Mystic River (2003) and Sully (2016), said: “I learnt an invaluable lesson on how to relax on set. He only does one take, he works with same crew, you come on set, it’s pre-lit – it’s done – and he goes ‘OK, are you ready to go? OK, go ahead.’ “He talks in that level voice. He stands next to the camera, watches the scene, goes, ‘OK you can stop. Did you feel good about that? I felt good about that. Were we in focus? OK, we can move on.’”Linney continued: “That’s how he rolls. The reason he doesn’t yell ‘action’ or ‘cut’ is because of the westerns he made. Because if someone yelled, the horse would jump and get scared, so everybody’s quiet on set.“Because we all have nervous systems and it’s true – when someone screams ‘action’, particularly if it’s a scene where you have to concentrate, it takes a little time to recover from that.”Eastwood directed five actors to Oscars throughout his career: Gene Hackman (Unforgiven), Sean Penn, Tim Robbins (both Mystic River), Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman (both Million Dollar Baby).The late Richard Harris, who worked with Eastwood on 1992 western Unforgiven, said that he had never starred in such a well-organised movie, calling the actor-director’s preparation “astonishing”, while Swank said: “He just made me feel right at ease. He quickly makes everyone feel really comfortable.” Freeman named Eastwood his favourite director he’s ever worked with.Morgan Freeman named 'Unforgiven' director Clint Eastwood his favourite director he's ever worked with (Warner Bros)Meryl Streep, who starred alongside Eastwood in 1995 romantic drama The Bridges of Madison County, said the star stuck up for her when the studio deemed her too old to play the female lead, when she was just 45 – the same age the character was supposed to be. “Clint made a, I gather, case for me, which I was glad about – and I would certainly have made a case for him,” she once said.