Demi Moore is astounded by how “cruel” humans can be to themselves about their bodies.
Demi Moore is astounded by how ‘cruel’ humans can be to themselves about their bodies
The ‘G.I. Jane’ actress, 61, opened up about self-hatred while talking about her latest role as Elizabeth Sparkle in body horror film ‘The Substance’ – which sees her lonely washed-up fitness influencer ditched from her aerobics show on her 50th birthday, before she takes a futuristic drug to produce a younger, flawless version of herself.
Demi told The Guardian the nightmarish plot resonated with her as it showed the “circumstances of a woman in the entertainment industry who's facing rejection and deep despair” as “everything in her life that seemed meaningful is being ripped out”.
She added about how it led her to ponder people’s cruelty to themselves when it comes to their bodies: “What really struck me was the harsh violence against oneself. It’s not what’s being done to you, it’s what we do to ourselves.”
Demi added there is a “depth to the exploration of our psyches” and “our inner dialogue” the body horror genre “seems to amplify”.
The actress’ Guardian profile says she declared in the 1990s and noughties women were not seen as attractive unless they were thin.
Referring to the decades of diets and exercise she has put herself through in Hollywood, Demi added: “What I did to myself. What I made it mean about me. Really looking at that violence, how violent we can be towards ourselves, how just brutal.”
Turning to how men also suffer from body insecurities, Demi said: “Self-judgment, chasing perfection, trying to rid ourselves of ‘flaws’, also feeling rejected and despair, none of this is exclusive to women.”
“We’ve all had moments where you go back and you're trying to fix something, and you're just making it worse to the point where you’re incapacitated.
“We’re seeing these small things nobody else is looking at, but we’re so hyper -focused on all that we’re not.
“All of us, if we start to think our value is only with how we look then ultimately we’re going to be crushed.”
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