In a new interview, Academy Award-winning actress Kate Winslet appeared on the BBC’s Woman’s Hour podcast to chat about her new film for Channel 4, I Am Ruth, and opened up about Hollywood’s unrealistic expectations put on women’s appearances.
Debunking the idea of “anti-aging,” and the message the women should strive for youth and dread getting older, Winslet said, “I think women come into their 40s – certainly mid-40s, thinking, ‘Oh well, this is the beginning of the decline… things start to change and fade, and kind of slide in directions that I don’t want them to go in anymore.’”
She continued, “I just decided, no. We become more woman, more powerful, more sexy… we grow into ourselves more. We have opportunity to speak and speak our mind and not be afraid of what people think of us. Not care what we look like quite so much. I think it’s amazing. Let’s go girls. Let’s just be in our power. Why not? Life’s too flipping short.”
When the HBO smash hit Mare of Easttown was released, Winslet faced criticism regarding her less than glamorous appearance as Mare Sheehan, with many suggesting she hadn’t worn any make-up for the role. Portraying the police officer investigating a brutal murder and a series of missing persons cases, Winslet said, “You’d never make that much fuss or that much noise about a male actor’s appearance, would you now? No, you flipping wouldn’t. I absolutely had make-up on and so when I came to do I Am Ruth, which was the next thing I filmed after Mare of Easttown, I thought: ‘Well, I’ve only got one option here and that’s to go one step further and really actually not wear any make-up and just scrape my hair back into a crappy old ponytail like I do every day of my life anyway.”
She said, “There are a lot of myths, I think, around perfection and actresses looking perfect all the time and, and how real that is or that isn’t. And I do care about being real and telling stories that are truthful and come from a place of integrity.” Winslet continued, “That’s certainly something that I feel is a shift in this time in my life. I care passionately about highlighting issues that need to be talked about that perhaps people find hard to talk about. And not shying away from truly looking like a hot mess a lot of the time. I mean, who puts on make-up while they’re doing the school run? I don’t.”
I Am Ruth was released on Dec. 8 on Channel 4 as apart of Dominic Savage’s I Am anthology series. The 47-year-old actress stars alongside her real-life daughter Mia Threapleton, with whom she shares with her ex-husband, director Jim Threapleton.
The actress will also be starring in Avatar: The Way of Water alongside Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, CCH Pounder, and Edie Falco. The film is set to hit theaters on December 16.
Proving that age doesn’t have to plateau a woman’s career in Hollywood, Winslet is better and busier than ever. Set to star in the forthcoming film Lee, directed by Ellen Kuras, Winslet is taking on the role of the model-turned-World War II correspondent. Appearing alongside Alexander Skarsgård, Josh O’ Connor, and Marion Cotillard, the project is currently being filmed in Croatia and is awaiting a release date.
Watch this space for updates.
