For most of these very famous figures, the only thing truly getting old is the term “anti-aging.” With that said, they didn’t always feel so comfortable in their own skin. Some celebs are even revealing how they tried to stop the clock to remain in the spotlight.
Ready for some food for thought? Here are some very wise words on getting older, plastic surgery, and what these aging A-listers consider true beauty.
Linda Evangelista
Not long ago, Linda Evangelista was pro-plastic surgery. But now, the aging model who once declared she wouldn’t wake up for less than $10,000 a day has changed her perspective.
Evangelista is currently in the middle of a huge lawsuit with Zeltiq Aesthetics, following what she calls a “botched fat removal surgery.”
She says the procedure has left her “brutally disfigured” and “deeply depressed.”
Looking back, Evangelista claims plastic surgery is not worth the unforeseen physical and emotional health risks. She’d rather look like herself, flaws and all.
On top of being “permanently deformed” and “misled” by doctors, she’s admitted the media’s scrutiny of her appearance has left her permanently scarred–and now, she’s “a recluse.”
“I have been left, as the media has described, ‘unrecognizable,'” she says.
Courtney Cox
In 2021, Courtney Cox opened up about her past experiences with injections, botox, and trying to maintain her youthful appearance.
In the end, the Friends star says that trying to be younger than she was for the sake of saving face in Hollywood was exhausting, dishonest, and definitely not worth it.
Today, the brunette beauty is taking a more natural approach to aging. After too much Hollywood upkeep, she said “I didn’t look like myself.” So Cox let her fillers dissolve, but not without hesitation.
“You have to accept getting older, and that’s something that I had a hard time doing,” Cox admitted to People.
Cher
Cher says if she could turn back time, she wouldn’t. While she’s not going to let age stop her from living her fullest life, she’s also not going to deny the obvious.
According to the world-class diva, women are forever held to a different standard than men, especially when it comes to those with careers in the spotlight.
“I do think that when it comes to aging, we’re held to a different standard than men. Some guy said to me: “Don’t you think you’re too old to sing rock n’ roll?” I said: “You’d better check with Mick Jagger.” You tell ’em, Cher!
Oprah Winfrey
The Queen of All Media wrote a powerful essay on aging for The Huffington Post. Oprah’s advice? Embrace it.
Declaring 60 is the new 40, Oprah has said she wants to look her best and feel “strong and vibrant” no matter her age. She also believes the pathway to our best lives “isn’t the route of denial.”
According to Oprah, it’s “owning every moment. Staking a claim in right now. And, with gratitude, embracing the age you are” that counts.
Ringo Starr
Like all members of Beatles, it’s hard to imagine Ringo Starr as anything other than an icon. But the drummer is now in his eighties, and he says aging has primarily been a journey about learning who he is.
Ringo once shared his stance with the Los Angeles Times. “I feel the older I get, the more I’m learning to handle life … being on this quest for a long time, it’s all about finding yourself,” he explained.
Naomi Campbell
One of the biggest supermodels of all time, Naomi Campbell credits her agelessness to taking incredibly good care of herself. But the 50-year-old isn’t all too worried about getting older.
While talking to Harper’s Bazaar, she said “I don’t worry about a number.” As for plastic surgery, Campbell says she sees nothing wrong with it, as long as those who have work done are doing it for themselves, not others.
Robert DeNiro
Robert DeNiro has learned a thing or two about aging during his lengthy career in the Hollywood spotlight.
The iconic actor had this to say: “So here’s the thing about aging: You feel it. There are a lot of people who are they can understand. Someday they will.”
Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton has never been shy or ashamed regarding the work she’s had done to her physical appearance. But she says that aging is merely a state of mind.
Now in her seventies, the country queen has famously quipped, “I ain’t never gonna be old because I ain’t got time to be old.”
Viola Davis
Viola Davis says she’s only more proud of her age over time.
The 56-year-old actress/producer became the face of L’Oréal Paris’ Age Perfect Line a few years back and she told InStyle the changes that come with aging are something to be celebrated, but we don’t celebrate them enough.
“People always mention all the negative things about aging, they never mention that sort of beautiful thing that happens when you grow into your skin,” she explained.
Denzel Washington
For Denzel, with age came a life-changing perspective. The award-winning actor wouldn’t trade what he’s realized for anything else.
“When I turned 60 I looked in the mirror, and I said, “Denzel, this is not a dress rehearsal. This is life. It’s not a matter of how much you have, the question is what you’re gonna do with your talents, with your gifts,” he explained.
Judy Dench
Now in her eighties, Judy Dench says there are two “rudest words” that she hears are forbidden in her household. Those words are “old” and “retire.” And those aren’t the only no-no words these days.
“I don’t allow that in my house. And being called “vintage.” I don’t want any of those old words. I like”‘enthusiastic,” and I like the word “cut” because that means you’ve finished the shot,” she says.
Reese Witherspoon
Reese Witherspoon told Allure she’s enjoying her 40s much more than her 20s, and that she’s proud of her fine lines and grey hairs because she feels like she “earned them.”
The Morning Show star says, “I have a point of view because I’ve been on this planet for 43 years, and I didn’t feel that same way when I was 25,” adding, “I didn’t have the same things to say. I’m 43 and I’ve had a whole bunch of experiences, and I can speak with a thoughtfulness about the changes I’d like to see in the world.”
Halle Berry
Today, Halle Berry says “I just want to always look like myself, even if that’s an older version of myself.” But she didn’t always feel that way.
During a chat with Bobbi Brown for Yahoo Beauty, the Academy Award-winning actress admitted she’s felt pressure to get work done for the sake of her career.
Ultimately, Berry changed her mind and accepted that “aging is natural” and something that happens to each of us.
“We have to stop wanting to look like that decade before. We have to stop coveting that. Let it go and embrace it now and really be OK. It’s easy to say, I guess, but that’s the goal,” she says.
Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer Aniston resents people telling her she looks great for her age. To her, that implies that being of a certain age inevitably means looking terrible. She says the backhanded compliment needs to be laid to rest.
As for plastic surgery, Aniston says she’s learned from the mistakes of other women in Hollywood who are “trying to stop the clock.” Aniston says, “all you can see is an insecure person who won’t let themselves just age.”
Gabrielle Union
When it comes to aging, the timelessly gorgeous Gabrielle Union admits that she’s in a unique position because she doesn’t look “dramatically different.”
She admitted to Elle, “It’s easy for me to say, ‘Oh, aging is nothing, It’s a presence of mind!’ I would hate to hear that from somebody like me.”
Nonetheless, Union stands by that it’s a state of mind. She goes on to say that some days she looks 32 and some days she looks 52, and while she’d always prefer to look her freshest, on the days she doesn’t, “it’s okay.”
Cameron Diaz
Now nearing 50, Cameron Diaz says it’s time we stop looking at aging as “a bad thing.” Instead, Diaz says we should decide what aging means to us, and we should each decide for ourselves.
She’s even written a book about it called “The Longevity Book.”
“We are the masses. We have the power to say, ‘I’m actually going to embrace this because I am valuable and I have more to offer than someone who hasn’t had the experience that I have,” Cameron told The Pool.
Iris Apfel
Iris Apfel celebrated her 100th birthday this year. And while she considers age “just a number,” she admits that “aging ain’t for sissies.”
“You start falling apart, but you just have to buck up and paste yourself together… You may not like getting older, but what’s the alternative? You’re here,” she says.
Her hard-earned advice on aging? “Embrace it. I say put your experience to work, to give something back to other people.”
Harrison Ford
The Indiana Jones star says that with age, his life only becomes fuller, adding, “I just don’t think of age and time in respect of years.” To Harrison Ford, there’s just too much life left to be lived, and youth seems all too wasted on the young.
“I just have too much experience of people in their 70s who are vigorous and useful and people that are 35 that are in [lousy] physical shape and can’t think straight. I don’t think age has that much to do with it,” he told People.
Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah believes that too often, aging comes with impossible expectations, especially for women in Hollywood.
The rap royal told InStyle that those who “have problems with aging” set goals with deadlines and feel like failures if they don’t meet those marks. But as she sees it, age is something we should strive for, not fear.
Sharon Stone
In an interview with Allure, Sharon Stone said too many people are confused and unkind about beauty. She sees beauty as one of the many “gifts from nature.” Now in her sixties, that’s how she now sees aging too.
“I started to understand that I was going to go for being more like a European woman who got more beautiful with age and who could understand that women are more beautiful than girls because they know something,” she revealed.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Julia Louis-Dreyfus says she used to contemplate plastic surgery, but ultimately decided it wasn’t for her.
Now, she’s embracing aging gracefully and says she hates the word anti-aging, telling Huffington Post, “It should be something positive, like pro-aging.”
Keith Richards
Still rocking and rolling, Keith Richards says he’s “fascinated” by the aging process. And with a life like his, I can’t say I blame him.
Iman
When iconic supermodel Iman was asked about her secret to looking gorgeous and youthful, her advice was short and simple.
In Harper’s Bazaar, Iman says the trick is not worrying one bit. Or as she puts it “not giving a da*n.”
Brava, Iman!
Cate Blanchett
Cate Blanchett says to her, aging is the evolution of her history and it’s important “not to eradicate” that history. She feels lucky to like her ongoing evolution throughout her life. As for cosmetic surgery, Cate says hasn’t had any yet, but “who knows” what the future holds.
“I look at someone’s face and I see the work before I see the person. I personally don’t think people look better when they do it; they just look different … And if you’re doing it out of fear, that fear’s still going to be seen through your eyes,” she told Vanity Fair.
Vivica A. Fox
During a conversation on The Rundown, Vivica A. Fox said she’s comfortable in her own skin, but it took her a very long time to get comfortable.
When it came to aging, Fox admits she had to learn not to listen to her own judgment,” adding, “we’re blessed to get older. We’re blessed to be able to go through different chapters. Embrace it. Look good. Take care of yourself.”
Christy Turlington
Christy Turlington is one of many former supermodels who says she’s not digging the “anti-aging” idea. In a revealing interview with Elle, she said, “I don’t want to look younger than I am.”
Turlington also says that there’s no image that can capture a woman fully because we’re changing all the time, and that reality is something to be embraced. “Our face is a map of our life; the more that’s there, the better,” she says.
Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder says she loves getting older. The Stranger Things star says that growing up onscreen, she waited a long time to be seen as an adult and won’t be attempting to go back in time now.
“It’s interesting because, these days, cosmetic surgery is treated almost like hygiene. I’ve had people say to me, ‘Oh, you should, you know…’ and they point to my forehead. ‘Get that seen to!’ But I’m like, ‘No! I’ve been waiting so long for that to happen!'” she told Net-a-Porter.
Lisa Bonet
When Lisa Bonet was in her 40s, she gave birth to her second child. When asked about giving birth at “her age,” Bonet told People that “the number” was completely irrelevant to her.
Of her outlook on beauty, Bonet says, “I look in the mirror and I see in this face all the life that has occurred.”
Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon has opened up about getting liposuction, but the iconic actress says there are some lines she’ll never cross, and that includes getting rid of her fine lines with botox.
The 75-year-old stunner told Allure, “I just find it so scary-looking when people’s faces don’t move, so I’ve never done Botox,” continuing, “I find that fillers and implants are so scary because you’re at the mercy of the artistry of whoever’s doing it”
In the end, Sarandon says that even though she’s “getting that saggy-ness” and doesn’t love it, her fear of botched surgery outweighs the dislike of anything that droops.
Kerry Washington
When Kerry Washington turned 40, Glamour asked how she felt about the milestone. According to the Scandal star, it felt like “a beginning.”
“I’m in the middle of so much new – with this career, the kids, and I’m still sort of a newlywed. I’m excited to be at this stage in life,” she said.
Penelope Cruz
When she’s asked about getting older, Penelope Cruz typically chooses not to dignify “such a crazy question” with any kind of response. But a few years back, she explained her stance to Interview Magazine.
“Journalists have been asking me, since I was, like, 22, ‘Are you afraid of aging?’ That is such a crazy question for a 22-year-old girl or, for that matter, for a 42-year-old. I combat that craziness by refusing to answer the question,” she explained.
Tracee Ellis Ross
A few years back, Tracee Ellis Ross told InStyle that the key to aging is liking it, noting that she feels more comfortable in her own skin now than ever before.
“At 45, I feel the sexiest and the most beautiful I’ve ever felt,” she says. “I didn’t say I look my most beautiful, I said I feel my most beautiful, and that’s what’s important to me.”
Diane Keaton
While Diane Keaton says nips and tucks aren’t for her, she passes no judgment on anyone who wants to do it. In her memoir Let’s Just Say It Wasn’t Pretty, here’s what she had to say.
“I don’t see anything wrong with face-lifts or Botox or fillers…They just erase the hidden battle scars. I intend to wear mine, sort of,” Keaton wrote.
Paulina Porizkova
Paulina Porizkova will go down in model history as one of the most stunning women on the planet. And she’s not denying that she’s been blessed with good genes. Instead, she’s sharing the wealth in her own way.
Encouraging all women to “age confidently,” the 56-year-old powerhouse has been using her Instagram as a “pro-aging platform” every chance she gets.
Along with sharing makeup-free and filter-free photos, she’s been urging women all over the world to own their age, whatever it may be. Post after post, Porizkova reiterates that aging is beautiful and so is acceptance, even if not every part of getting older is “pretty.”
While that may be easier for a still gorgeous former supermodel to say, she’s not wrong. Of her pro-aging goals, she says, “I want to shine a bright light in the dark corners of the shame that is heaped on women for daring to age.”
