Charlize Theron doesn't agree that Hollywood is ageist towards women as she works more now she's 41 than she ever did when she was in her 20s.
The 'Mad Max: Fury Road' star accepts there are problems within the movie business but she thinks the days of actresses being sidelined and having less roles available once they hit their 40s are over.
In an interview with Vanity Fair Italy, she said: "The time has come for women to realise that the way we look outside is not the most important thing and it's not true we are worth less when we age.
"Now that I'm 41 I work much more than 20 years ago, and I enjoy it even more. And all the women I know say the same thing, so it's time to stop this cliché."
When told it was unusual to hear that opinion from an actress who makes her living in Hollywood, Charlize added: "I don't agree with that, and I'm not happy to hear people talking like that about Hollywood ... Movies are just the mirror of society; the real problem is there. Hollywood's gender problem is nothing compared to the society's problem."
Charlize - who has two adopted children, four-year-old son Jackson and daughter August - has never been afraid of ageing as she accepts it is an unavoidable aspect of life.
The Best Actress Oscar winner says the best thing that has come with the passing years is the worldly wisdom she has acquired.
She said: "How could I be afraid of something so natural? Ageing is part of our life, we can't avoid that. And a part of me is really grateful for all the things that have happened since I started ageing, now I'm much wiser than 20 years ago. A wrinkle is nothing compared to that."
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