‘The Sandlot’ star reveals why he quit Hollywood

Heroes get remembered, but legends never die.

“The Sandlot” star Chauncey Leopardi, 44, has opened up about why he slowly stepped back from Hollywood following a slew of successful roles in the 90s and early 2000s.

“I loved when I was acting, but I didn’t necessarily like the business side of Hollywood,” Leopardi, who portrayed the glasses-wearing, snarky centerfielder Michael “Squints” Palledorous in the 1993 baseball classic, explained during an interview with People published Wednesday, Oct. 8.

“Who knows what it’s like anymore with streaming and more of a focus on social media, but growing up, there were a lot of powerful people in high places that had their sway on who and what was popular, so to speak,” he continued.

Leopardi added that “the grinding” and “the auditions” in particular were what led him to take a step back and reevaluate his acting career.

“Do I even like doing this?” he asked himself shortly before leaving Hollywood behind. “Is it something I’m truly passionate about?”

However, the “Freaks and Greeks” alum clarified that he “transitioned better than a lot of child actors” because he always managed to maintain a life outside of acting.

“I was in the industry but not completely in the industry, and I think that definitely helped me balance away from things that happened to some other child stars,” Leopardi, who was 11 when “The Sandlot” was released more than 30 years ago, explained.

“It’s a really weird time change,” he added. “As a child, you can become very popular and successful, and normally around age 15 and 16, the business side of things changes.”

Leopardi and his “The Sandlot” co-stars still stay in touch three decades later, including Tom Guiry (Scott “Scotty” Smalls), Mike Vitar (Benjamin Franklin “Benny” Rodriguez) and Patrick Renna (Hamilton “Ham” Porter).

“We have multiple group chats,” he shared. “They’re funny, they’ll hit you at random times.”

“Also, we’re together a lot,” Leopardi continued. “‘Sandlot’ is an interesting project because it hits so many things in the culture. We do big national sports signings, and we do pop stuff and comic con type things.”

As for “The Sandlot” itself, Leopardi looked back on his time filming the David Mickey Evans-directed sports flick fondly.

“We were staying in a condo complex, all the kids and all our families,” he remembered. “We had a pool there, and we were playing video games. On set, there was a baseball field and a treehouse that was built for the film, and it was all incredible.”

“We were working long hours in the heat, but at the same time, we had this amazing summer camp experience,” the “Father of the Bride” actor continued. “It was very fun and pleasurable, and it translated to the screen to live forever as this one moment.”

Although Leopardi now spends his time raising his five children and running his Squintz cannabis brand, which was aptly named after his “Sandlot” character, he acknowledges how important the beloved movie is for new generations of fans.

“At the end of the day, it’s something that has given people genuine joy, so I feel like if that’s my life and that character has to be something I have to keep alive, then that’s a blessing,” he said.

“It makes people happy and offered us all tons of core memories,” Leopardi concluded.