--- title: Renée Zellweger Says the Scrutiny Over Her Appearance is Sexist description: She's sick of talking about the scrutiny over her looks. canonical: https://time.com/4464821/renee-zellweger-sexist-criticism/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-24T17:41:26.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T09:03:13.708Z og:title: Renée Zellweger Says the Scrutiny Over Her Appearance is Sexist og:description: 'It's simply not a conversation' og:url: https://time.com/4464821/renee-zellweger-sexist-criticism/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb39c828bda6bbaa1/6988a37f524fc0e6dddf9436/renee-zellweger-hollywood-reporter-sexism.jpg?branch=production&width=753&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 753 og:image:height: 424 og:image:alt: SeriousFun Children's Network - London Gala og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Renée Zellweger Says the Scrutiny Over Her Appearance is Sexist twitter:description: 'It's simply not a conversation' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb39c828bda6bbaa1/6988a37f524fc0e6dddf9436/renee-zellweger-hollywood-reporter-sexism.jpg?branch=production&width=753&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Renée Zellweger Says the Scrutiny Over Her Appearance is Sexist > Sponsored content. 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Worth Your Time is TIME's culture recommendation newsletter, edited by culture editor Eliza Berman. Each week it surfaces the books, shows, films and ideas TIME's editors think are worth your attention, and explains why. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Does TIME have a culture newsletter? Yes. Worth Your Time is TIME's culture newsletter, published weekly. #### Who writes TIME's culture recommendations? Culture editor Eliza Berman writes Worth Your Time, drawing on TIME's critics and culture desk. #### Is Worth Your Time free? Yes. It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-worth-2026q3/newsletters?i=f84ee38b-f523-4c3f-a9e0-8b8c5f6c4be2&cr=time-nl-worth-2026q3-v1) by [Julie Mazziotta/People](https://time.com/author/people/) ## Julie Mazziotta/People Contributor Aug 24, 2016 5:41 PM UTC  Renee Zellwegger attends the SeriousFun Children's Network - London Gala at The Roundhouse on November 3, 2015 in London, England. Renee Zellwegger attends the SeriousFun Children's Network - London Gala at The Roundhouse on November 3, 2015 in London, England. Eamonn McCormack—WireImage/Getty Images by [Julie Mazziotta/People](https://time.com/author/people/) ## Julie Mazziotta/People Contributor Aug 24, 2016 5:41 PM UTC To [Renée Zellweger](http://www.people.com/people/renee%5Fzellweger), the continued [scrutiny over her appearance](http://www.people.com/article/renee-zellweger-doesnt-care-about-scrutiny-over-her-appearance) is sexist, plain and simple. The [_Bridget Jones’s Baby_](http://www.people.com/people/news/category/0,,MediaProductsTax:BookBridgetJonessDiary,00.html) star talked about aging with [_The Hollywood Reporter_](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/renee-zellweger-interview-gender-inequality-921947), but pointed out the conversation would not be happening if she were a man. “I’ve never seen the maturation of a woman as a negative thing,” Zellweger, 47, told _The Hollywood Reporter_, after she was asked about aging in Hollywood. “I’ve never seen a woman stepping into her more powerful self as a negative.” “But this conversation perpetuates the problem. Why are we talking about how women look? Why do we value beauty over contribution? We don’t seem to value beauty over contribution for men. It’s simply not a conversation.” Since returning to the public eye in October 2014 after a long hiatus, Zellweger’s appearance [led to criticism and questions](http://www.people.com/article/renee-zellweger-appearance-today-show) about whether she had plastic surgery. Zellweger [told PEOPLE at the time](http://www.people.com/article/renee-zellweger-speaks-out-different-look) that the conversation was “silly,” and that she’s feeling better than ever. “I’m glad folks think I look different! I’m living a different, happy, more fulfilling life, and I’m thrilled that perhaps it shows,” she said. But the chatter didn’t end, and with [premieres](http://site.people.com/style/renee-zellweger-bridget-jones-diary-premiere-looks/) of _Bridget Jones’s Baby_ starting, Zellweger [penned an essay](http://www.people.com/article/renee-zellweger-addresses-plastic-surgery-rumors-huffington-post) for the _Huffington Post_ Aug. 5 refuting the plastic surgery rumors. “Not that it’s anyone’s business, but I did not make a decision to alter my face and have surgery on my eyes,” she wrote. Zellweger’s costar, Patrick Dempsey, agreed that he doesn’t get asked the same questions about his appearance. “She should not have to face such scrutiny,” Dempsey, 50, told _The Hollywood Reporter_. “Hollywood can be unsparingly brutal – and it’s always worse for women.” The private star also shied away from [talking about her relationship](http://www.people.com/article/renee-zellweger-on-quitting-acting-finding-love) with boyfriend Doyle Bramhall II in the interview. “We have shared history, the same mutual friends from eons ago, before either of us was doing anything public,” she said. “I appreciate you asking. But let’s stop.” _This_ [_article_](http://www.people.com/article/renee-zellweger-aging-sexism) _originally appeared on_ [_People_](http://www.people.com/people/)_._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4464821/renee-zellweger-sexist-criticism/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4464821/renee-zellweger-sexist-criticism/"},"headline":"Renée Zellweger Says the Scrutiny Over Her Appearance is Sexist","datePublished":"2016-08-24T17:41:26.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T09:03:13.708Z","description":"'It's simply not a conversation'","url":"https://time.com/4464821/renee-zellweger-sexist-criticism/","keywords":["motto"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb39c828bda6bbaa1/6988a37f524fc0e6dddf9436/renee-zellweger-hollywood-reporter-sexism.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Julie Mazziotta/People"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb39c828bda6bbaa1/6988a37f524fc0e6dddf9436/renee-zellweger-hollywood-reporter-sexism.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"SeriousFun Children's Network - London Gala","caption":"SeriousFun Children's Network - London Gala","creditText":"Eamonn McCormack—WireImage/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/motto/","name":"motto"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4464821/renee-zellweger-sexist-criticism/","name":"Renée Zellweger Says the Scrutiny Over Her Appearance is Sexist"}}]}] ```