INTERVIEW|Don’t look at yourself with shame: Brooke Shields
Brooke Shields started modelling before she could speak. By the time she was 11, she had bagged her first film role. It was that of a girl raised into sex work in Louis Malle’s Pretty Baby. A series of controversial Calvin Klein ads contributed to her career getting defined by sexuality. However, a long and fulfilling career later, at 59, Shields has come up with her book, Brooke Shields: I’m Not Allowed To Get Old. The Eighties movie icon reveals all about how she has come to “forgive herself” for not looking like the poster girl she used to be and how she hopes to inspire women everywhere to embrace her new outlook on life and ageing.
The title of your memoir is very striking. Where did it come from?
It’s something that I feel is part of Brooke Shields. Referring to myself in the third person has become a joke. It’s a thing. People come up to me, even little kids, and they are like, “Hello, Brooke Shields!’ It’s like the name is one word. People still remember the 15-year-old Brooke Shields from The Blue Lagoon. That was a long time ago but for some people, it’s hard to contemplate that I am now 59 years old. You can almost feel their disappointment. That’s where the title came from.
What kind of discussions do you hope your book opens up?
I hope people read it and think about what we do to women in society. I hope it opens up conversations on how we talk about women, beauty, and why we covet it so much. What does beauty really mean? I think we need to have conversations without judgement.
You are very open and honest in the book. How hard was it to write about yourself like that?
It really wasn’t hard. I have been open and honest my entire life. Writing this book, I knew I needed to be more honest than I have ever been. I also wanted it to be funny and about this era and not just about looking back. I hope it is that.
What would you say is the biggest change between you now and who you were 30 years ago?
The older I have gotten, the more I have forgiven myself for not chasing the things I used to. I am not as judgemental about myself as I used to be. I don’t compare myself to others the way I used to. I have forgiven myself for not looking a certain way or having a certain type of body in the way our society so often perpetuates.
Do you ever find yourself reading negative comments about yourself online?
It’s something I have to constantly remind myself not to do. Don’t read the comments! Sometimes it happens, but you have to understand that we live in a society where anybody can say whatever they want. Some people are so quick to make a comment without really understanding how out of touch they are.
You have a big birthday coming in May. How do you plan to celebrate?
Yeah, 60. It’s a big birthday! I’m going to celebrate for sure, but not just on the day. There are some things I want to do with my most special friends. So, we are going to do things throughout the year and just celebrate.
Is it important for you to set the right example for your daughters?
Absolutely. They are a very different generation, but I want them to have that conversation and to celebrate their bodies in a way that I never did. I want my daughters to see what I have done, to understand that I have had babies, kept a marriage going, and all of these things, but that it’s not over. I don’t want them to think that it’s never going to be better than now for them.
Finally, what message do you want to share with women who may be struggling with the pressure to be beautiful and the effects of ageing?
I just want all women to know that they are fabulous and to step into your own power and your own self. We don’t have the time anymore to be envious, jealous, afraid, or insecure. Stop beating yourself up and the age you are right now can be a wonderful time. Sure, get in shape, be healthy, get your roots done—that’s your choice. Just don’t look at yourself with shame, fear, or trepidation. You can do what you want and be who you want to be.
—Asia Features
“I am not as judgemental about myself as I used to be. I don’t compare myself to others the way I used to.”
Brooke shields, Actor