Maika Monroe Nearly Quit Acting After 'Some Bad' Experiences: 'It's a Very Weird Job'

"I did about seven films back to back, and they weren’t all great experiences," the actress recalled

• Maika Monroe is opening up about times in her acting career that she has felt the urge to quit

• "I was in this phase of wanting to take every job, and I felt like that’s what I had to do," Monroe shared

• In response to these feelings, Monroe declared that "taking my time, being patient, not needing to do everything and being picky has been key" to establishing a healthy relationship with her work

Maika Monroe is getting candid about her time as an actress — and how certain moments in the past nearly deterred her from working in the field.

The Longlegs star, 31, revealed that she almost quit acting after a few poor experiences in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published on Tuesday, July 9, telling the publication that she was feeling "overworked" in the earlier days of her career.

"I was in this phase of wanting to take every job, and I felt like that’s what I had to do," Monroe shared. "I did about seven films back to back, and they weren’t all great experiences. Some good, some bad."

The actress continued to say that she began to feel disillusioned by the career path.

"It’s a very weird job and it’s a very weird industry, and there can be a darkness around it. So I was just in a mental state where I was like, 'This isn’t feeling good to me anymore.' And so I just needed to disconnect for a second," she said.

Monroe rekindled her passion for acting when she starred in the 2018 comedy horror flick Villains, which was directed and written by Dan Berk and Robert Olsen. The actress collaborated with the filmmakers again for the 2022 horror movie Significant Other – opposite Jake Lacy.

"This industry and this job can be really hard on you, mentally, and I just needed to take a step back and then enter in again. I’m now having such incredible experiences on movies that people are connecting with, so taking my time, being patient, not needing to do everything and being picky has been key," she explained.

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In the interview, Monroe also recalled meeting with director-writer Osgood "Oz" Perkins for a role in the 2024 horror movie Longlegs.

The actress recalled leaving "the meeting" with Perkins "feeling great," but then being told by her team that the director wasn't sure if she was the right fit for the role.

"And I was like, 'No! I have to play this role.' That happens sometimes where you’re sent a script. You just get this feeling that it’s a necessity," she said.

"I talked with my team about it. I was like, 'What can I do? I will send in a tape. I’ll do whatever.' So I ended up picking a couple scenes from the script and sent a tape in, and that’s how I got the job," she continued.

Now, she stars in the movie as FBI agent Lee Harker opposite Nicolas Cage – who plays the titular serial killer. In the movie, Lee "uncovers a series of occult clues that she must solve to end his terrifying killing spree," according to the official synopsis.

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Monroe has made herself known in the horror movie genre, having starred in the 2014 cult classic It Follows. She is expected to reprise her role in the upcoming sequel.

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At the time, in 2015, Monroe spoke with PEOPLE about starring in her first horror movie.

"It was very difficult. I didn’t realize how hard it is to make a horror film, especially this movie. Every day was something else: screaming, running, crying, all that good stuff. It was emotionally and physically exhausting, but it was a very special group of people," she said.

Longlegs is set to be released in theaters on July 12, 2024.

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