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NEWS > ENTERTAINMENT > CATHERINE ZETA-JONES TURNS 40, DECIDES AGAINST RITUAL SUICIDE
CATHERINE ZETA-JONES TURNS 40, DECIDES AGAINST RITUAL SUICIDE
September 17 2009
Hollywood, CA – Aging isn’t an easy thing for anyone. Wrinkles, new aches and pains, grey hair, and reduced stamina are just some of the expressions of age that make getting older difficult and arduous for many. In Hollywood the process of aging
takes on a whole new weight as roles dry up and interest wanes. This is especially true for women in Hollywood, many of whom turn to plastic surgery to try and turn back the clock and continue working. With the stakes so high, it’s a wonder that so many test the waters of the aged so frequently.
Such is the case with Catherine Zeta-Jones who turns 40 later this month which is generally perceived to be the end of an actresses career in Tinseltown. With so few roles available and the majority of them going towards younger actresses, the over-forty crowd has traditionally had little success in the industry. Despite that many try, at least in the short term, before eventually fizzling out. Now Zeta-Jones is stepping forward and braving the frigid waters of the over-forties hoping to break through where others have drowned previously.
“A lot of people talk about how hard it is to find good roles for older women but I frankly haven’t found that. I’ve actually seen an influx of interesting and compelling roles that makes me confident that the over-forty myth is Hollywood is just that. I’m out to prove that forty year olds can do it just as well as twenty-somethings ever did,” said Zeta-Jones. “I’m not going out to pasture, I’m not wrapping things up. I’m going after the juicy roles and I intend to prove that older woman have just as much strength in Hollywood as young women and men.”
Zeta-Jones won an Oscar in 2003 for her role in ‘Chicago’. That award is seen as a likely reason for her confidence but, according to experts, do little for her long term career. Despite regular appearances in movies, Zeta-Jones has never been a major global box office draw.
“For Zeta-Jones it really doesn’t matter. She’s made her money and she’s married to Michael Douglas which really means she’s set up for years if she wants to continue on in life. Taking away roles from younger actresses is really quite a selfish and ultimately fruitless pursuit. One could argue that artistic merits should be the motivation but she wasn’t thinking like that when she was making the Zorro movies,” said Scrape TV Entertainment analyst Tracey Temple. “The good news is that she will give it the old college try. So often actresses over the age of forty just stop making an effort and appear in meaningless girl movies or independent productions. It’s unlikely that her efforts will be any different than anyone else and she will ultimately end up in the same boat but trying doesn’t hurt anyone.”
Hollywood officials have reportedly been mulling a ‘Logan’s Run’ type of scenario in which actresses over a certain age is forced to commit suicide. That is likely to gain little ground due to legal complications and the need for mothers in certain films.
“There’s nothing worse than seeing your favourite movie star aging poorly and that
could be part of the motivation for the suicide option. Seeing such a venerable personality appearing in the latest Nora Ephron movie could kill potential revenue from DVD re-releases as people just fall heartsick. For Hollywood it’s a simple issue of diminishing returns and where you cut the line,” continued Temple. “The advantage that Zeta-Jones has is that very few people will be looking back fondly on her career and frankly, with one or two exceptions, few of her films will ever be re-released. Movies though do need Moms and that reason alone will reduce the desire for ritual suicide. Hopefully Zeta-Jones will realize how luck she got and just walk away gracefully.”
A remake of ‘Logan’s Run’ is currently in development though the age limit of thirty will eliminate Zeta-Jones from competition for a role in the picture.
Samantha Dryden, Entertainment Correspondent
NEWS > ENTERTAINMENT > CATHERINE ZETA-JONES TURNS 40, DECIDES AGAINST RITUAL SUICIDE
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