Julianna Margulies: Why I Turned Down $27 Million to Stay on ‘ER’

After 12 years, Julianna Margulies has finally broken her silence on her decision to leave "ER" at the height of her career — and a $27 million payday. " She reveals in the April issue of More that although everyone said it would be "career suicide" not to return to the medical drama she had starred on for six years, she was never concerned of the consequences. "I'm a smart girl," Margulies, 45, tells the magazine. "I had a year's worth of work waiting and a mortgage completely paid at age 32. I was under no illusion that I was going to be some big movie star. My dad said, 'If you got hit by a bus tomorrow, were you living your life truthfully, or were you waiting to get rich?' If I died and my soul started leaving my body, would I be looking down going, 'You idiot. You could have gone to Prague, you could have been on Broadway'? Those are the things I wanted to do." And after realizing all those dreams, Margulies made her triumphant return to TV in 2009 on CBS' "The Good Wife," as a scorned woman who decides to stay with her cheating politician husband (played by Chris Noth) after his indiscretions are made public.