Andie MacDowell Says She's "Too Old to Starve Myself" to Fit Into a Dress

"I just can't do it anymore."

Andie MacDowell is no longer living by Hollywood's unrealistic beauty standards. While attending L'Oréal Paris' Women of Worth Celebration in Los Angeles on Thursday, the 66-year-old actress opened up to People about the expectation she used to feel to fit into a certain size how she's "too old" to cave into the pressure anymore.

Recalling how she once did a fitting in a dress that "was really tight around my waist," MacDowell says she "shamed" herself for not being able to fit into the dress. "It looks so good, but I woke up and I just knew it was not the right thing for me to do,” she said. “I wanted to wear something that was comfortable."

“But that's Hollywood,” MacDowell continued. “It's this expectation, like you see in The Substance, to be something that you can no longer be and that was easier at a certain time in your life, but I can't. I'm too old to starve myself for 5 lbs. nonstop. I just can't do it anymore.”

The former model—who was surrounded by her fellow L'Oréal Paris ambassadors Cara Delevingne, Helen Mirren, Aja Naomi, and Elle Fanning on the red carpet—admitted that when she takes a break from Hollywood, her self-esteem improves. “I used to live in Montana. When I'm at home, I feel skinny,” she said. “It's only when I come out here that I feel like the bar is raised so high and the expectations are beyond anything that anybody can accomplish unless you're completely devoted to being skinny.” 

She continued, “If that were the only thing that I thought about, I could do it, but there are other things I want to do in my life. I want to learn about birds and I want to walk on the beach and I want to be smart and I want to read books." And while MacDowell wants "to work out," she doesn't "want that to be the only thing," adding: "I'd rather have the 5 lbs. on me and wear something that fits.”

This isn't the first time MacDowell has rejected beauty "norms." Back in 2021, the Groundhog Day star caused quite a sensation when she walked the Cannes Film Festival red carpet with her natural gray hair. 

When asked by Vogue when she decided to start embracing her salt-and-pepper strands, MacDowell revealed it happened during the COVID-19 lockdowns. "My hair started growing and every time my kids would see me, they kept telling me I looked badass with my gray hair," she said. "I’ve been saying for a while now it was time for me, personally, to make that transition because I felt like it was appropriate for my personality and just who I am."