Charlize Theron just got pretty real about Hollywood's double standards when it comes to ageing. In a new interview with Allure, the 48-year-old actor didn't hold back when unpacking her experiences in terms of the disparity, while also openly addressing how - in some aspects of getting older - she's embraced it, and in others, has found it difficult.
"I've always had issues with the fact that men kind of age like fine wines and women like cut flowers," she said. "I despise that concept, and I want to fight against it, but I also think women want to age in a way that feels right to them."
Following this, Charlize was eager to shut down rumours she's had a facelift - instead - keen to let people know she's literally "just ageing," and there's nothing wrong with it. (PSA: there's also nothing wrong with undergoing cosmetic surgery if it's something you want - your body, your choice.)
"My face is changing, and I love that my face is changing and ageing. People think I had a facelift. They're like, What did she do to her face?' I'm like, 'B*tch, I'm just ageing! It doesn't mean I got bad plastic surgery. This is just what happens.'"
Elsewhere, while Charlize's changing face is something she loves, the actor admitted that her older body has been somewhat harder to accept. Physically, that is. Noting that her body takes "way longer to heal" in her 40s in comparison to her 20s, she expressed that if she hurts herself while making an action movie, the longer healing process is what "really bums [her] out."
"More than my face, I wish I had my 25-year-old body that I can just throw against the wall and not even hurt tomorrow," she said, before adding that, now, if she doesn't work out for three days and then goes back to the gym, she can't walk or "sit down on the toilet."
"It’s all those very real moments," she added.
However, Charlize revealed that it's her two young daughters - 11-year-old Jackson and seven-year-old August - that remind and encourage her to always feel beautiful, regardless of age. While explaining that they have "no concept of what age is like," she said: "They see somebody, they like what they're wearing, or they think they're pretty, and they don’t really know if she's in her 20s or she's in her 60s."
"It’s so great. I love that. I wish we could just maintain that."
Sophie Williams is a Freelance Journalist and Copywriter, covering everything from Fashion to Entertainment to music, Lifestyle and Features. She has interviewed a range of musical artists and authors including Alyssa Edwards, Courtney Barnett, Confidence Man, The Vaccines, Loyle Carner, Gabrielle, and John Niven, and has written for publications like Metro, Reader's Digest, ITV's Woo! and Vice’s NBGA. She is also working on a book for HarperCollins about Taylor Swift, due to be published in 2024.
