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Stop Talking About How “Different” Renée Zellweger Looks; It’s Sexist

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UCSB chapter.

The Elle‘s 21st Annual Women in Hollywood awards night was on Monday and according to Jezebel, “it seems like almost every woman in Hollywood showed up.” Here are Ashley Madekwe, Kaley Cuoco and Tina Fey being fabulous:

The Elle awards night celebrates actresses, screenwriters, casting directors, executives, agents, etc “who are influencing Hollywood today.” (Elle). These women are supposed to be the most remarkable and inspirational women in the business.

So then, as rad as this night sounds, why is the focus so skewed? Why are people tripping out about Renée Zellwegar’s “unrecognizable” look? My Facebook is blowing up right now with the trending topic being about Renée Zellwegar’s face! (Second trending to Ebola). Why is the focus on how these women look, rather than on their successes?

The Huffington Post says,you’d be forgiven for not recognising her as she appears to be wearing someone else’s head.” Fox News unapologetically points out how “actress Renée Zellweger caused an Internet frenzy after she stepped out Monday night looking like a completely different person.”

There are rumors circulating that she’s gotten plastic surgery. Well, so what if Renée Zellwegar had some work done. This isn’t a big deal; I mean, it’s Hollywood, it shouldn’t be such incredible news.

This type of behavior is not just mean, petty bullying, it’s sexual objectification and it’s super sexist.

Couldn’t it be possible that perhaps Renée Zellweger looks different because she’s aged? It’s baffling, I know, but stay with me here. Maybe people, people like us, you know, celebrities, look different when they grow older. Maybe it’s not plastic surgery at all! Good golly!

Let’s remember that Renée Kathleen Zellweger is a renowned actress, producer and voice artist. She killed it in Bridget Jones and Chicago; she’s won an Academy Award, three Golden Globe Awards, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards.

She’s also an activist. In 2011 she visited Liberia with The GREAT Initiative, a charity that spreads awareness about gender equality, and she worked with Tommy Hilfiger to design handbags to raise support for the Breast Health Institute. (Cred to Wiki for the info. Thanks Wiki!).

So let’s STFU about Renée Zellweger’s face, shall we? There are certainly more important things to talk about.

Mya McCann is a fourth year literature student in the College of Creative Studies at UCSB. She currently lives in Bangkok, Thailand and is in the business of running BKK. On the weekends you can find Mya either in the jungle or on an island. On the weekdays she studies Thai and Buddhism and teaches English to sex workers in the red light district. You can follow her adventures on IG: MyaJoy
Allison is a Global Studies major at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She is the Assistant Editor at Her Campus UCSB a contributor to the chapter's Instagram, @hercampusucsb. Allison believes that life is about balances, but that you can never have too many breakfast burritos. You can follow Allison's personal Instagram at @allycnco for life around Santa Barbara, good eats, and travels!