Just a week after learning that eternal beauty Meryl Streep once lost a role for being too "ugly," Jessica Chastain admitted she was told she "wasn't pretty enough" for some parts. I mean, what is wrong with these casting directors? Are they blind? Look, if they didn't want her in their movies (which is stupid because she's amazing), then fine. But did people really have to tell her she was losing out on parts because of her looks?
That's not all. Chastain revealed in a Telegraph interview that, "People would tell me to dye my hair blond when I first started auditioning." Thank goodness she didn't listen to them because her red hair is gorgeous. I don't have an issue with actresses wanting to dye their hair, but when they're basically told they have to alter their appearance or forfeit work, that's so wrong. The actress agrees, and she's not taking it anymore.
Chastain recently spoke up on the need for diversity in film during the Critics Choice Awards, and she also dished to Elle magazine about the importance of complex female characters. "I'm like, 'Send me every [script] where the female character's most important aspect isn't her sex or that she be a sexual trophy.'"
Seriously. As for the casting directors who dissed Chastain's looks? Well, I'd say her various nominations and awards have proven them wrong. But even if she weren't winning things, Chastain refuses to let sexism in Hollywood defeat her. "Only in the past five years have people been telling me I'm attractive," she told Telegraph magazine. "Funny how defined we are by how we present ourselves."
I'm glad Chastain refused to buckle to industry standards, because she's beautiful, and I love her her attitude towards overcoming the obstacles women face in her industry. You go, girl. Red hair and all.
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