Kate Beckinsale Responds to Criticism About Acting Her Age
Kate Beckinsale, known for her roles in films like “Serendipity” and “Underworld,” has recently addressed criticism about her age and the roles she chooses to play. The actress, who has been in the industry for decades, has faced scrutiny over whether she should “act her age” and how she presents herself both on and off the screen.
In a candid conversation, Beckinsale opened up about the misconceptions people have about her, especially given her diverse filmography. She noted that her roles in action-packed movies like “Underworld” have led some to pigeonhole her as a certain type of actress, which doesn’t fully capture her range or personality. “I found, to my surprise, that doing a couple of movies in which I’m holding a machine gun definitely affected people’s perception of me,” she said. This typecasting has been a point of contention for Beckinsale, who has always wanted to explore more comedic roles.
Beckinsale’s Instagram feed offers a glimpse into her true personality, which is often humorous and light-hearted. She uses the platform to share funny exchanges with her mother and playful videos with her cat, showcasing a side of her that many fans might not expect. “It’s sort of the only area in which there’s a lens through which my slightly weird personality comes through,” she explained. This candidness on social media has helped her combat the inaccurate persona that has been crafted by her film roles.
The actress also touched on the challenges she faced early in her career, particularly the pressure to conform to certain expectations. “I think people are quite ready to believe a posh English girl might be like that in real life,” she said, referring to the emotionless and humorless characters she often played. This stereotype was something she actively worked against, especially when she took on roles in action films to break away from being seen as “soft and English and fragile.”
Despite these challenges, Beckinsale has always had a passion for comedy. “I’ve always wanted to [do more comedies]. I think being an incredibly unattractive child for a key period of time and having four brothers means you have to have a sense of humor, or nobody’s going to give you any dinner,” she joked. Her father, a well-respected comic actor in England, also influenced her comedic aspirations, although she initially avoided stepping into his territory.
One of Beckinsale’s most beloved roles is in the romantic comedy “Serendipity,” a film that has become a comfort movie for many fans. Despite its initial mixed reviews, the film has found a new life as a nostalgic Christmas rom-com. Beckinsale’s performance as Sara, a young British woman obsessed with fate, is both charming and believable. She fought to make the character more grounded and less of a “wispy fool,” ensuring that Sara’s belief in fate didn’t make her seem implausible.
Reflecting on her career, Beckinsale shared that she often felt out of place in the industry, especially as a young woman with strong opinions. “One of the things I found most striking about the industry is that I’d come from a very academic high school and went on to Oxford, where all you were encouraged to do is to argue and defend your opinions,” she said. This background made it challenging for her to navigate an industry where having an opinion as a young woman was often contentious.
Beckinsale also addressed the criticism she has faced about aging, particularly a line from “Serendipity” where a character says, “British women don’t age well.” She found this line particularly irksome, given her own family’s history of aging gracefully. “My mother is 1,000 years old but looks about 40, with no interventions whatsoever,” she said, highlighting that aging is not something she is particularly concerned about.
In fact, Beckinsale believes that her happiness has contributed to her youthful appearance. “I honestly think that being happier in your life and relationships, it does show up on your face and in your spirit,” she said. This happiness, she noted, has come from being in a better place in her personal life and relationships compared to earlier in her career.
The actress also touched on her experiences with bullying in the industry, including her encounters with Harvey Weinstein. While she was never sexually attacked by Weinstein, she did experience extreme bullying. “There was really extreme bullying. And that’s not just Harvey. I have eight or nine anecdotes I could have said about Harvey, and countless I could have said about other people,” she revealed. This pervasive bullying is something she believes still exists in the industry, even if it isn’t always prosecutable.
Despite these challenges, Beckinsale remains optimistic about her career and the roles she hopes to take on in the future. She continues to defy expectations and push against the limitations that others try to place on her, proving that age is just a number and that talent and passion know no bounds.
Source: Vulture, Miramax
