Dame Helen Mirren's Advice for Avoiding Cosmetic Surgery: Bathroom Lighting

Hey there everybody. It is Saturday, January seventeenth.

And wow, I saw an article this week that I was so impressed with.

You love Helen Mirren.

By the way, she's one of your absolute favorite actresses.

You talk about her quite a bit.

Let mean, that sounded creepy, but yes, I'm a fan. Jesus.

She is one of those women I think a lot of us women look up to.

She's eighty years old.

She's aging beautifully and aging very differently than a lot of women were seeing that are in the spotlight, certainly actors and actresses. And I will say, babe, as a woman, knowing that a man can look at someone who's eighty who has chosen not to do anything surgically to her face or and she talks about all of this, that

Don't listen to me. We don't listen to me about it.

Unfortunately, folks, too too often a man and men and women look to outside forces to validate, to make them feel good about what they're doing or how they're looking, and how the miriad for me is not just her appearance. And I think she is regarded as classically beautiful in a lot of circles. She's an eighty year old woman, and my crush probably started certainly after she was sixty. But she's absolutely one of my celebrity without a doubt.

She just doesn't give a shit.

She just wants She's just herself and not trying to put on or be this or be that, and that is attractive as hell.

Yeah, isn't that amazing? There were so many nuggets of wisdom in this article she sat down with L magazine, and I think, look, I'm fifty two, about to turn fifty three. But whatever age you are, if you're a woman listening everyone, I would think most women, unfortunately, are concerned about aging, what they're going to look like, how they're going to handle their first wrinkles or their many wrinkles, or their sagging skin, and are they going to be attractive because valuable.

What are we talking about? But what is a concern? My first wrinkle?

Oh hell, I have a wrinkle now, So this means blank, like, what is the next thing in the concern? I can say it generally, but I'm saying I'm asking someone to articulate it.

What is it.

I'm not going to be able to find a mate, I'm not going to be as attractive in the office. They're going to be younger women out. What is the thing?

It actually completely speaks to a woman's value. And I remember a friend of mine when she turned sixty, she said to me, there is nothing more lonely than being a middle or older, aging woman because you become invisible and you recognize it that all of a sudden, Because I do think women, without realizing it, recognize their value or feel their worth in.

How they're viewed.

So I guess that's never going to change. Is that where we are?

I think all of us would like it to change, But if we're being honest and having an honest conversation, it's probably not going to change. So you can blame society, and you can blame the culture, and you can blame that women have traditionally been given value for their ability to have children, and your ability to have children is your ability to attract a man, and your ability to attract a man has everything to do with how you look.

So, yes, that is where we are and probably where we're going to stay.

But women make different decisions and that's okay. Yeah, you can make a decision like Helen Miron has, or you can make a decision like Chris Jenner has. Correct both are okay, and both send very different messages. But who is going to be following along at the age as they're watching at eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen watching Keeping Up with the Kardashians, are they going to see that as the option or are they're gonna say, you know what, dame, oh the dame.

What's her name again?

Oh yeah, Helen Mirren one of the movies I've seen, she's you know what, I'm gonna go with her route because I don't believe because I got a thirteen year old now who knows where everything is, and Sophara, that's a problem for me at least, excuse.

Me, no, And I get that, and we can and that's something to talk about because I do think though an article like this and seeing Helen Mirren be as confident and as strong and as beautiful as she is, it is important. And I'm so happy that she spoke up and spoke out about this because she isn't judging anyone, but it does give women, young girls, aging women. We're all getting older obviously by every day, another alternative to thinking I have to get the surgery, I have to

That is why I really wanted.

To do this episode, because what she had to say is not being heard very loudly by a lot of people.

And will her mercers get amplified? Who knows well?

Hoping to do so by talking a little bit about what she said, I started out with my favorite quote she had during the entire article. She said, I don't call it growing old, I call it growing up. She is an adult, and you've always respected that about people when they act like adults.

You act your age and you look your age.

It's okay to age, and I look, I'm everybody's fighting it, right. Every commercial you see is of when you watch sports. It's a rod Gain commercial, right. Those guys want to hold onto their hair. I mean everybody is vain to some degree, to a great degree. And while we don't admit that, I don't know. I don't know where we get and where she has gotten. I guess when you have dame in front of your name, you know you can afford not to give a damn.

Yeah, But I don't know.

I'm trying to think of another Who else out there is aging? Who is elected to their couple of women Alicia Keys and Pamela Anderson who've made a declaration about makeup? Yep, Who out there is aging beautifully and gracefully and appropriately. I'm thinking about the Glenn Closest of the world, the Meryl Streeps of the world.

The Glenn Closest had work done for sure.

The Angela Bassetts of the world, who doesn't seem to age at all.

I don't know what she's doing, yes.

But I'm thinking about those women who are I think, become sexier and more attractive because they are their age and they look their age and they're acting confidently in their age. That is attractive. The lip flip thing is again for everybody else, that's fine. But you see people trying to in such obvious ways alter and that's fine. I hate to say it in such a way that I'm shitting on folks who do that.

That is not the case. I'm just saying you.

I do look at them, and I find value and attractiveness in people doing things that other people do to make themselves attractive.

Correct, Yes, And I do think there is this danger, and look, I struggle with it. I struggle with what I am doing and what I will potentially do You start to think about when you get to a certain age, what will I do when I'm sixty? What will I do when I'm seventy? Will I get a facelift? Do I want any of these things that I see other women doing.

I mean, even my twenty three year old.

Sent me when Chris Jenner revealed her second facelift for her seventieth birthday, she does look incredible. That surgery, or those surgeries I believe, have been estimated to cost upwards of two hundred thousand dollars. So it's not available to the vast majority of us. But you start to wonder, like that, is that what the ideal look is at seventy or do you look at eighty year old Helen Mirren and say, is that you know is a symbol of beauty?

But isn't it just to each her own, to each his and her own? And shouldn't it be that no one should be criticized Helen Mirren shouldn't be, and Chris Jenner shouldn't.

Be, shouldn't be, but the pressures on and the comments are a plenty, and that is the issue.

I do think it's interesting.

Helen Mirren, and I appreciate her approach, again completely non judgmental. But she talked about that early on in her career, a film director told her she would never have a career unless she had a nose job, and she now says that was one rather silly man. So I love how she just let that role offer and even as a young woman wanting to get into the business, she didn't let that directive put her in that position where she felt like she had to.

She did it her way. She kept her is exactly as it is.

And it actually made me look at her nose in this picture is like, wow, could she It's a little crooked, but.

It's her nose and it's cool and that's her choice.

Well, how many same thing singers, actors that you see are before in an after picture and they do not look at all. They have turned themselves into something that they at least feel is more photogenic, maybe more teleigenic, and they are wildly successful.

Yeah, that's true.

Someone can make.

The same argument that yeah, I didn't change mine and I still made it through. Others will say, yeah, I change up, and when I did, things took off for me.

I think the point with what Helen Miron is saying is that she provides another alternative that feels like a very positive way forward, and we need more of those folks in the spotlight. So young girls, middle aged girls, aging women can see that and go I can see that as a way forward versus feeling the pressure of doing the opposite. She said, I'm not against plastics, and I want to say that very clearly. If it makes

Of your face.

How would you feel if Sabine said she wanted to change or get plastic surgery.

She wanted to. I don't know whatever it is that she would do. She's gorgeous.

Tough conversation. I have to listen.

That's a very very tough conversation. And we spend a lot of time with her and having conversations about being very careful about how she dresses, what impression she's giving to other people. How many of these things do you really need from Sophora right now?

Now?

What do you need this for? The eyes? And what is it?

We are constantly engaged with her about what she's doing and.

Look it. What'd you say, eleven to twelve to thirty?

When was the year that it might have been eleven to twelve, like it was a different child.

Yes, yes, I think that's exactly from sixth to seventh grade. A lot of people will say it's around the time a girl, it's her period. That is when everything changes, hormones, body mind.

Different kid, different concerns, everything, hair, how she dresses, what she's concerned about, how people view her.

It's totally different.

We talk all the time. When we're walking down the street, we watch people. It's something we love to do. But you see a girl who is under the age of ten and under, and the confidence almost every one of these girls has, walking with just her chest up, her arms, swinging a skip in her step, doesn't care if her hair is a mess, what she's wearing, what shoes she has on, It doesn't matter.

There's just this freedom, and this a freedom.

To be her, to express herself without worrying about what she looks like and can see the moment it changes.

Yeah, and a few months ago we were literally hiding in Oculus Mall because she didn't want to be seen with her dad, because she's worried about how she would appear to some other friends that she knew were running around the building. I'm saying, is to that what you're saying, something happens to where you always say this. Girls realize how much power they have in their parents.

Yep.

They start getting attention for it, and now it becomes so important. And to see that happening with a child now twelve and thirteen.

Is uncomfortable yep.

And then so you see it happening when they start realizing their power but then realizing how quickly it could go away. Then you have the flip side of women who are in their thirties, forties, fifties, sixties, seeing that power. I hate to use it like that, but that influence they have or fading and going away, and so they're desperate to bring it back. And so you can see the two ends of that spectrum and what is it?

One are what is that?

Right as we're doing this, we're just happen to have the TV on and all these beauty products are being Yes, there's.

A big focus now on these red light masks or these masks that you could.

I don't know if that's one.

Of those, but boosting this is mask.

Look, I'm constantly looking to boost coologen.

You know. Is this struggle like trying to fight aging and fight nature a little bit without amending how I look or changing, you know, but you are in a way.

Oh my gosh, the Vegas, the Vegas situation. We went down to a gift shop. We were just trying to get something in our Vegas hotel, just to grab a quick something. We were in that two hours and some dude made us spend untold amounts of money because he sold you on some beauty product.

It's so true, I fully admit it. Oh my god, it was you get sucked in. Someone tells you, if you just put this on your face, you'll look ten years younger.

I'm in, who wouldn't be in? I get that.

But when we come back, I want to I want to get to the part of the article where Helen Mirren gives an incredible life hack for anyone who.

Is considering plastic surgery.

She says, do this before you make that appointment with a surgeon.

All right, welcome back here, folks. We'll continue on Amy and TJ. We are getting beauty tips from eighty year old Dame Helen Mirren, one of my absolute favorite. She is one of my celebrity crushes. And we were going in talking about a hack. All right, this is the thing. Now everybody has a hack. You want plastic surgery, Oh, we got a hack for that. Come on, now, can you really have a hack pleasant for plastic surgery.

Maybe even for avoiding classic surgery. Honestly, this was my favorite.

This was such a hilarious way to put it, and I think any woman who's listening to this will admit this is so true and actually phenomenal advice.

I never thought about it like this, she said.

Before contemplating anything, get really good lighting in your bathroom, so that whenever you look in the mirror, you are lit beautifully and you look because from that point on it really doesn't matter. You've just seen that last image of yourself and think, oh, I look fabulous, and off you go. It is a lot cheaper than getting a facelift. I am serious about the good lighting in the bathroom.

Your face changes.

I don't like to criticize or attack people for doing what makes them happy, but do try to take a look to sorry, but to try to look like a fake picture of yourself would be terrible. And that's so interesting. To try and look like a fake picture of yourself would be terrible. With all of the filters we have now and these apps, you can put your pictures through so many if you really start looking at Instagram and Bibe.

I've got to do something about this. That is real. You are comparing yourself.

To a fake picture of other people or a fake picture of yourself, and it's a standard you cannot meet, and it's depressing.

It makes sense, but that's what everybody's doing every day. It's the first thing people do when they wake up in the morning. They pick up the phone and see what their competitor is doing and how wonderful their life is. And I say competitor, that could be somebody in off is that could be a friend. You're competing with that that thing. So yet it's I hear you don't. Don't we all understand now? Aren't we all smart enough to

Yes, I think that's a really good way to put it. Yes, And Helen also offered something that she learned. She said playing different characters. This is really interesting as an actress, you'd think, okay, you're an act or. I even wondered, you know, obviously your looks are a huge part of you getting cast and whether or not you get a certain type of role. But she said she always appreciated that she was somebody who could play different characters because

Because it makes them feel good.

But I thought it was an interesting thing to have to see yourself as a different character, not you. You have to kind of submit to just what your face looks like without.

All that stuff.

Yeah, you have to give your appearance over to somebody else. You have to totally submit, and nobody does that day and day out. Nobody gets the opportunity to so give her and this she has to go be presented in front of millions with that look.

Oh this woman. And I've read up some some of.

Her history over the past, but she is different, and I just I adore this lady for how she's in her career and her achievements. And one of the favorite things I've ever seen her do was a Super Bowl commercial. Remember about the she was telling drink responsibly, you idiots, like she was. She was just who was there? It might have been Ah, I want to say it was Bud Wiser, but I just how she goes about it. And one of the biggest things I hate, I hate, I hate, I missed she came by GMA once her

A chance to meet her.

I've never met her either.

I did the same with Angela Bassett at GMA, but that what worked out.

You did meet her.

I am creepy, as Helle.

Apparently you just started the podcast saying, well, that sounded creepy.

I'm not creepy. Now you're like, I'm creepy as hell.

I absolutely I stalked her and never I've never got a chance to meet. I never did, but anyway, sees I do. I adore and she is absolutely one of my celebrity crushes and this just is a furtherance of that adoration.

Yeah, and look, I know that this is maybe defeating the purpose of me saying that, it does help to hear men say that they admire love and are even attracted to women who are older, who aren't wearing makeup, who haven't had a bunch of stuff done to try and look younger. I know we shouldn't care about that, but hearing you say that actually does matter. And if more men were able to because I think we all think, oh, see the guy, when he's got money, what does he do?

So it is good to hear men.

Say look, trust me, most adult men and what I mean by that is grown just grown ass man, get it. Women get older, the hairgage thinner. There's a wrinkle here, there's a stretch mark there. It's not as tight, it's not as this. But you know what, there ain't a damn thing I can talk to a twenty four year old about.

Like, there's nothing we can sit down and.

Have a good I mean, I'm not insulting twenty four I'm making the point that as you get older, you want people who have matched your life experience, who have matched your your intake of world events, who have something to say. You have no idea roades. It's one of the most attractive things you can find as a woman in Central Park with a double stroller with juicy sweats and a Yankee hat on.

That's hot, you know what I'm saying. I mean that says a lot.

About her, and not necessarily because her hair is this long, and it's got the many extensions, and this nip and this tuck and these lifts.

Brazilian bun lift her and her cleft.

Knock yourselves out.

But if I'm telling you, grown men appreciate grown women, and I guess that's not coming across enough because too often he's successful. Now he's got someone thirty forty. We've seen even fifty years younger, knock yourself out. Love can look different in a lot of ways with man. Grown men recognize grown sexy ass women.

I love period, Yes, Helen Mirren. I don't call it growing old. I call it growing up. So I guess the advice is data grown up and maybe you don't have to go through all this stuff. And with that, everyone, thank you so much for listening to us. We always appreciate you. I made me Robach alongside TJ.

Holmes.

We will talk to you soon.