How turning 50 became something to celebrate in Hollywood
Turning 50 once meant a showbiz career was all but over but today, as stars from Cate Blanchett to Jennifer Lopez, Peter Dinklage and Matthew McConaughey prove, it’s just another birthday
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Kylie and Hugh Jackman are in the club, now it’s the turn of everyone from Cate Blanchett to Jennifer Lopez, Peter Dinklage and Matthew McConaughey to join the golden jubilee, as they celebrate their 50th birthdays in 2019.
Once a milestone that meant a showbiz career was all but over, today 50 is just another number. And rather than hide their age, these stars are flaunting it
CATE BLANCHETT
May 14
The Oscar-winning actor says she is not panicking about ageing. “I think about it on an existential level, sure, but on a career level, I refuse,” she told Harper’s Bazaar. “It’s important to keep karate-chopping those doors down and creating new opportunities.
“I’m not panicking on a work level. It’s more that there are so many lives I want to live.”
JENNIFER LOPEZ
July 24
J.Lo. has decided to turn her big birthday into the ultimate party and go on tour, announcing the It’s My Party: The Live Celebration Tour on the Ellen show. “My birthday’s in July, and so this summer
I decided I wanted to do something big,” she said, “because it’s a big birthday.”
DONNIE WAHLBERG
August 17
He might not be a kid anymore, but Donnie Wahlberg is still touring with New Kids On The Block and says ageing helps him enjoy it more. “When you get older, things slow down. You are able to appreciate each moment a lot more. Walking into a sold-out arena will never get old,” he told US ABC News.
JACK BLACK
August 28
He acts like a big kid but Jack Black has been on screen for an incredible 35 years and is still rocking. He is currently filming the Jumanji sequel and touring with his band Tenacious D. He thinks School Of Rock was his best work. “School Of Rock, now that’s my tombstone. That’s my finest moment,” he told news.com.au. “It’s where all the planets aligned perfectly for me.”
JENNIFER ANISTON
February 11
The Friends’ star had all of her friends and family around her for her 50th birthday party recently, including ex Brad Pitt, who was spotted going into the Hollywood bash alongside Sandra Bullock, Gwyneth Paltrow, George and Amal Clooney, Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom, Reese Witherspoon, Demi Moore and Ellen DeGeneres. “I don’t think life stops after 50. If anything, it gets more and more exciting,” she told Glamour magazine. “I don’t understand why it’s not something that’s celebrated.”
PETER DINKLAGE
June 11
The Game Of Thrones actor (left) says despite the success of the show he will always be establishing himself. But he thinks life gets easier as you age. “Everything gets easier as you get older. It sounds weird to say, but everything matters less,” he told Vulture.
GWEN STEFANI
October 3
It’s incredible to believe, but Gwen Stefani hits the big 5-0 in October — not that she looks like it. Currently doing a residency in Vegas, she told James Corden that her youthful looks are down to falling in love. “What happened was, my life blew up. After that, I kind of started falling in love. That’s what the facelift is, I think,” she says.
MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY
November 4
The Dallas Buyers Club actor turned motivational speech maker said in his 2014 Oscar acceptance address he will never stop striving for happiness: “My hero is always 10 years away. I’m never going to beat my hero. I’m not going to obtain that, I know I’m not. And that’s just fine with me because that keeps me with somebody to keep on chasing.”
RENEE ZELLWEGER
April 25
The Bridget Jones actor says she doesn’t see what’s wrong with ageing. “I’ve never seen the maturation of a woman as a negative thing,” she told The Hollywood Reporter. “I’ve never seen a woman stepping into her more powerful self as a negative.” She says she particularly loves playing Bridget Jones because “Bridget makes imperfection all right”.
MATTHEW PERRY
August 19
The Friends actor has been open about his struggles with addiction, even at the height of his fame. While positive about the future he says he’d never try to revive the hit show.
“I have this nightmare that we do Friends again and nobody cares,” he told Variety. “We do a whole series, we come back, and nobody cares about it.”
SIMON BAKER
July 30
The Mentalist actor is one of the most stylish men on the planet, not that he admits it. An ambassador for Longines, he told Stellar he still doubts himself. “I think doubt’s healthy,” he says. “When I have moments of doubt, what
I have is a little bit of distance behind me: ‘You’ll be fine. You can actually get through this, and it’s going to be OK, so just push on’.”
CATHERINE ZETA JONES
September 25
The Queen America star previously admitted she lost her mojo as she
began to age. “What shaped me as an actor, more than anything, is getting older. I genuinely lost my mojo,” she told The Mirror. “Somewhere along the middle I got frightened again and I started to question myself. As I matured as a woman, as a mother, as a wife, I’m not scared anymore.”
Originally published as How turning 50 became something to celebrate in Hollywood
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