‘It changed me,’ the 73-year-old actor says
By Andre Ellington, / AARP / Published November 12, 2025
Hollywood veteran Jeff Goldblum, 73, has chosen to stop eating meat after starring as the Wizard in the Jon Chu–directed fantasy film Wicked: For Good, scheduled to be released on Nov. 21.
“You know, after doing this movie, we talked about the animal cruelty, I stopped eating meat and poultry,” Goldblum said on the U.K.-based talk show This Morning.
In Wicked, released in 2024, animals were depicted as being silenced and kept captive. In Wicked: For Good, Goldblum said that his character would “instigate and facilitate animal cruelty,” confirming the reason for Goldblum’s dietary change. (In the Wicked series, the Wizard is portrayed as a villain, unlike the original film, where he was just a fraud.)
Goldblum said he “may be having something else” during this year’s holiday season to conform to his new diet. He continued: “I’m happy. We need the world to work for everybody on Earth and every creature, too.”
In 2019, the Jurassic Park actor told AARP that when it comes to aging, “it’s just a number” and discussed some steps he takes to stay healthy. “I live a clean life,” he said. “I like to go to bed early and be wholesome and eat well. I’ve never smoked. I don’t drink much. Luckily, everything’s still working.”
Grammy-winning singer Ariana Grande, who stars as Glinda, and Emmy-winning actress Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, are both vegan.
Universal
Erivo discussed the many food options available to vegans now compared with 2013 during a June interview on the Dish podcast. “Everyone goes, ‘Do you want a veggie burger?’ But there’s so many other ways,” she said. “You can make so much, and also, if you want a veggie burger, there’s so many other alternatives. Now you have your meat alternatives, so you can have a burger that’s just as succulent as a meat burger, which is great.”
If you’re considering a vegan or vegetarian diet, some helpful tips include making gradual changes, starting with small adjustments, conducting thorough research and sticking to whole foods. Also, ensure you’re getting essential nutrients like vitamin B12, protein and calcium. AARP has additional nutritional info on why you should eat less meat and what a plant-based diet is.
Andre J. Ellington is an award-winning writer based in Michigan. His work has been featured in Newsweek, HuffPost and Yahoo News.
