Jennifer Love Hewitt is not one to sit lightly and take the comments coming from "fans" and those on social media about her appearance in her 40s.
The actress, 45, spoke with Fox News Digital recently about experiencing hurt from ageist comments over the years, especially from those who've grown up seeing her in the spotlight.
The star made her first on-screen appearances as a child, starring in the Disney Channel variety show Kids Incorporated from 1989 onwards, when she was just 10 years old.
She achieved stardom, however, at the age of 18, when she starred in the hit horror film I Know What You Did Last Summer (and will soon reappear in the third film of the franchise in July 2025).
"Age is age," she stated, looking back on her early days of fame and aging in the public eye. "I think women really come into this… acceptance of themselves and comfortability in their 40s that is beautiful."
She candidly shared that the aspect of aging she enjoyed the least was public reactions. "The times that it's hard for me though… I feel like fans pick… this age that they love that they think represents you, and you're never supposed to grow beyond that."
© Getty Images"For me… it was like me and my 20s… people seem to have a really hard time accepting that… I don't look that way anymore," Jennifer, who has been married to Brian Hallisay since 2013 and is now a mom-of-three, continued.
She joked: "It's hard because I think as humans, we want to evolve… we want to have lines on our faces, and you know, our boobs be lower from breast-feeding our children, or you know, our butts bigger."
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"Whatever it is, you just want to have the freedom to be whoever you are at that age. And it's hurtful sometimes when people reject you as you are verbally on Instagram or the internet because they're having a hard time adjusting to it."
© I Know What You Did Last SummerThe 9-1-1 star, who has previously slammed fans online for thinking she'd resorted to filtered photos on social media to hide her age, also spoke of such a reception adversely affecting her kids, particularly her daughter Autumn, now 11. She and Brian, an actor as well, also share sons Atticus, nine, and Aidan, three.
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"I have a daughter, I'm sensitive to it because I don't want my kids to read those things and feel that way… or worry about me being hurt by it… it's hard to do that sometimes," Jennifer admitted.
© The Holiday JunkieWhile looking back on her illustrious career, she revealed the advice she'd give her younger self: "I was always a worrywart. I was just always worried… I had so much fun on the job, and [thought] it was going to be my last or that… people were going to kick me out of Hollywood and not let me act anymore."
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"Or that I was going to be dorky… whatever it was. I was just always worried… I definitely enjoyed it and was present… had a good time and all those things."
© Instagram"But I wasted a lot of time worrying. And I think I would just say to her, like, 'Look, it's going to work out. You're going to start getting old, and they're still going to let you do things… it's OK. You're fine.'"
