Chris Tucker explains why he took a step back from being the highest paid actor in Hollywood

Chris Tucker has opened up about why he's not been seen on the big screen since 2016.

Tucker started his career as a stand-up comic appearing as a regular on HBO's Def Comedy Jam.

However, it didn't take long for him to become the 'highest paid actor in the world' at the 'peak of his career in the late 1990's' - best known for his role in the Rush Hour franchise, negotiating $20 million (£16m) to appear in the sequel, equivalent to double that amount today.

So why did Tucker then decide to take a break from Hollywood?

Tucker hasn't been spotted on the big screen since the 2016 war drama Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk.

In an interview with Classix ATL, the actor explained: "I felt like there was a ceiling right there and I wanted more and it wasn't enough.

"So I stepped back and lived a little bit, travelled the world and did a lot of humanitarian stuff that really broadened my perspective of the world, that - you know - it ain't just about me being the biggest comic actor in the world, it's about becoming somebody to give to the world, inspiring in some kind of way, hopefully.

"I like that I did that. I met so many great people."

Sony Pictures

Tucker went on to reflect on the time he spent with Sidney Poitier as well as Quincy Jones.

"Quincy Jones I travelled the world with him and now he's just turned the big 90," the actor continued. "You know he ain't travelling like that no more so I didn't miss that opportunity, all that wisdom they gave me."

Tucker wants to now put into action and utilise the wisdom and 'stuff [he] experienced in the world' and what he's learnt from movies that inspired him as a kid, such as Casablanca.

And utilise such wisdom he will, as after a seven-year hiatus Tucker is back on the big screen and back oh so soon.

Tomorrow (5 April), Air directed by Ben Affleck hits theaters in the US, Canada and the UK, which sees Tucker take on the role of Howard White - the Vice President of Jordan Brand for NIKE.

At the premiere of AIR during SXSW last month, Tucker explained why he decided to dust off his acting shoes for this movie in particular.

He told People: "My agent called me and said they got a movie about something to do with Michael Jordan, and they want you to play this character called Howard White. There wasn’t no words, it wasn’t no character, it wasn’t there in the script. I said, ‘Wait a minute, that’s my friend.’ So I called him [White] and found out that he was in this movie and I said, ‘Whoa man, but they said it’s not much, but you know, I’m considering it cause it’s you.

"Then I talked to Ben and Matt and they said, ‘Hey man, we want you to come in, have fun. This is what we are doing. It’s like making a movie with your friends’. And I said, ‘Okay.’ I love Michael Jordan. It’s my friend Howard White. Ben said I can do whatever I want to do. I love the brand, the Jordan brand. Let’s do it."