The Oscar-nominated star of The Long Good Friday and Mona Lisa said he had enjoyed a wonderful career and wished to spend time with his family.
He disclosed yesterday (Wednesday) that Parkinson's, an incurable condition which causes tremors and unsteadiness, was diagnosed last autumn.
In a statement, the actor's agent said: "Bob Hoskins wishes to announce that he will be retiring from acting ... He wishes to thank all the great and brilliant people he has worked with over the years, and all of his fans who have supported him during a wonderful career.
"Bob is now looking forward to his retirement with his family, and would greatly appreciate that his privacy be respected at this time."
Hoskins, a best actor Oscar nominee for Mona Lisa, appeared this summer in the Hollywood adventure Snow White and the Huntsman.
In an interview published in April, Hoskins discussed retirement but gave no hints about his diagnosis.
He said: "I'm trying to retire. I'm not doing very well at it though. Every time I say, 'Nah, I don't want to do it'. They say, 'Bob, I know you're trying to retire but I've got a little swansong here' and I get talked into it."
He added that he was beginning to take his health seriously by eating healthily and cutting down on alcohol. "Getting older is not for sissies," Hoskins said. The father-of-four lives in north London with his second wife, Linda, and has said that he is looking forward most to having grandchildren.
Hoskins fell into acting by accident when he accompanied a friend to an audition in 1968 and was mistaken for a candidate. He read for the part and got the role.
bob hoskins and parkinsons - A string of bit-parts followed in the 1970s until his big break, playing Arthur Parker in Dennis Potter's 1978 BBC serial, Pennies From Heaven.
His breakthrough film role came two years later, as gangster Harold Shand in The Long Good Friday. Roles followed in Francis Ford Coppola's The Cotton Club in 1984, Mona Lisa in 1986 and A Prayer For The Dying in 1987, and Hoskins had his first Hollywood lead in Who Framed Roger Rabbit in 1988, considered a landmark in film for the way that it merged live action and animation.
Although he is one of Britain's most successful actors, Hoskins has always been keen to play down the importance of his career. "Actors are just entertainers, even the serious ones. That's all an actor is. He's like a serious Bruce Forsyth," he told The Daily Telegraph in 2009. Frances Barber, who appeared opposite Hoskins in the BBC One drama The Street, was among those paying tribute to his career.
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