Jennifer Love Hewitt Discusses ‘Hurtful’ Ageism In Hollywood

Jennifer Love Hewitt recently discussed ageism in Hollywood, sharing how difficult it is for fans to accept her getting older.

Despite public criticism, the actress embraces her 40s, valuing self-acceptance and evolution.

Jennifer Love Hewitt also expressed concern over negative comments affecting her children, especially her daughter.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Hewitt discussed how ageism has impacted her lengthy career in Hollywood and how she is embracing the journey of self-love and aging with grace.

The 45-year-old actress shared: “I feel like fans pick this age that they love that they think represents you, and you’re never supposed to grow beyond that. For me, it was like me and my 20s. People seem to have a really hard time accepting that I don’t look that way anymore.”

She continued: “It’s hard because I think as humans, we want to evolve … we want to have lines on our faces, and you know, our boobs be lower from breast-feeding our children, or you know, our butt’s bigger.”

“Whatever it is, you just want to have the freedom to be whoever you are at that age. And it’s hurtful sometimes when people reject you as you are verbally on Instagram or the internet because they’re having a hard time adjusting to it,” Hewitt added.

Hewitt, who shares children Autumn, 11, Atticus, 9, and Aidan, 3, with her husband, Brian Hallisay, expressed her concerns about how negative comments affect her kids.

“I have a daughter, I’m sensitive to it because I don’t want my kids to read those things and feel that way … or worry about me being hurt by it … it’s hard to do that sometimes,” she explained.

However, despite the public’s reaction to her aging, Hewitt shared that she is at peace with where she is in life.

“Age is age,” she noted. “I think women really come into this … acceptance of themselves and comfortability in their 40s that is beautiful. I love being in my 40s. I really do.”

During the chat with Fox News Digital, Hewitt shared the advice she would offer her younger self.

“I was always a worrywart,” she said. “I was just always worried… I had so much fun on the job, and [thought] it was going to be my last or that… people were going to kick me out of Hollywood and not let me act anymore.”

She acknowledged that despite these worries, she had a great time and was present at the moment.

“But I wasted a lot of time worrying,” Hewitt continued before adding, “And I think I would just say to her, like, ‘Look, it’s going to work out. You’re going to start getting old, and they’re still going to let you do things… it’s OK. You’re fine.”

In 2023, Hewitt responded to critics who called her “unrecognizable” after she shared a makeup-free photo with a filter on Instagram. Many commenters remarked that she looked different.

“The picture ended up somewhere. And a bunch of people were like, ‘Jennifer Love Hewitt is unrecognizable,'” the actress recalled on the “Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum” podcast.

The actress continued, “She’s unrecognizable and so she’s gone to filters because she doesn’t want us to know how bad she actually looks now in her 40s.’ And I was like, ‘This is crazy.’ Right?”

Hewitt joked, “I was a looker,” but admitted that she didn’t feel confident in herself at ages 23, 24, and 25.

“I felt watched. I felt like I had to be everything for everybody all the time,” the actress shared, per the New York Post. “I was called sexy before I ever knew what being sexy was. I was 17 years old on the cover of Maxim, and I had no idea why.”

Hewitt’s career took off when she was young. She started on “Kids Incorporated” before landing her breakout role as Sarah Reeves on “Party of Five” at 16.

She became a household name after starring in the 1997 slasher “I Know What You Did Last Summer” and its sequel.

In addition to a successful television career, which includes roles in “Ghost Whisperer” and “The Client List,” Hewitt has also released four studio albums.