By Jennifer McShane
08th Jan 2016
08th Jan 2016
Here at IMAGE, we’re in a constant state of despair when it comes to the to subject of ageism. Some of the most beautiful and talented women in the industry have spoken at length about the topic – Helen Mirren, Emma Thompson and Kirstin Scott Thomas, to name a few – and voiced their concerns over the fact that there are little or no prime roles for women once you’ve hit 40. The fact that any woman could even be considered “past it” at that point is deeply depressing and so very wrong. And it seems female stars over 25 just don’t cut it either – look at Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson. These ladies already fear they’ll never work again, despite only being in their early thirties. While this is all rather grim, some brands are recognising the need to be inclusive of women of all ages in their campaigns, most notably L’Or?al Paris.
The iconic brand revealed today that they have chosen actress Susan Sarandon as their newest international spokeswomen, and at 69 years old, she is looking as beautiful as ever.
“I look forward to being older. When what you look like becomes less and less an issue, and what you are is the point.”
The French beauty giant has gone out of their way to use amazing women of all ages in their beauty bands previously and has been praised for appointing post-50 ambassadors such as Andie MacDowell, Diane Keaton as well as?Helen Mirren to realistically promote products aimed at women over 50 and beyond. They are all about embracing age and being the best version of yourself, which is pretty inspiring. Getting older, with wrinkles and all, is par for the course, and L’Or?al stand true to this, which is why Sarandon was only too happy to come on board.
The actress, who turns 70 later this year, said she was “surprised” and “flattered” to be asked to join L’Oreal’s campaign. Though the company offers a number of anti-ageing products, Sarandon says she’s welcoming ageing and has no wish to turn back the clock. “I look forward to being older,” she told Vogue. “When what you look like becomes less and less an issue, and what you are is the point.”
The Thelma and Louise star added that she loved what the campaign – of being “worth it” – stands for. “The emphasis is not on becoming more attractive to lure somebody in, but to be all you can be because you love beauty and you love yourself and want to treat yourself well. How you spend your energy is ultimately what creates who you are. All of the L’Or?al ambassadors have careers, and are concerned about things outside of themselves, and most of them are raising children. So they’re very well-rounded and thoughtful, conscious, present, modern women,” she said.
A true woman of worth @susansarandon #worthit #lorealista #nofilter
A video posted by L’Or?al Paris Official (@lorealparisofficial) on
Of her beauty routine, she said she favours a natural approach, using solid basics: “Things that I regularly do are to put on my sunblock, keep my face clean and use moisturiser. It’s about eating proper fruits and vegetables, drinking lots of water and – most importantly – not smoking cigarettes.”
Asides from the sheer gorgeousness of her campaign, we love that Sarandon voices her passionate opinions on issues such as the wage gap: “Pay equality is not going to happen because we scream and yell about it, it’s going to happen when we start demanding it, but I think we need to focus on a lot of other inequalities in other places too, in terms of health care and low-income housing and all of the other things tearing families apart,” and getting older in Hollywood: “Hollywood is not political. They’re interested in making money and that’s the way it’s always been. But there are women producers and female actors and a lot of comediennes now who are very powerful. And they can create parts and hire women and change things.”
We’re always saying it, but Hollywood needs to recognise that these brilliant women captivate audiences every chance they get. Their talent should be embraced, no matter what age they happen to be.
Via Vogue
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