Ashley Judd was raised among entertainers and artists. She's gone on to spend decades
in Hollywood herself as an actor while also making time for political activism. But she's
also had a difficult life filled with struggle. Here's a peek inside her tragic life.
In 2011, Judd released a memoir called All That Is Bitter And Sweet, which gave her fans
insights into her difficult past. She had to deal with abuse and loneliness very early
in life, and she didn't have a whole lot of stability, as she attended 13 schools before
she turned 18. Her mother Naomi was part of a celebrated country duo with Ashley's half-sister
Wynonna, which meant that the family traveled extensively. This was a necessary evil, as
it kept the family's finances afloat, but it also meant that Naomi wouldn't get to spend
a lot of time with her younger daughter.
Around this time, Ashley spent plenty of time with her dad, and she experienced a series
of traumatic incidents that left her deeply disturbed. She revealed in her memoir that
she was abused by several men as a kid, including someone from her family. As In Touch senior
editor Amy Palmer noted around the time of the memoir's release,
"When you are trying to make it in show business, everything else falls by the wayside. [Judd]
was left alone so much with her mother and sister touring the country to make it. Something
suffers and it was Ashley's childhood."
"Provided we do the personal work of healing, that is transformed into our particular resilience
and strength."
Ashley Judd has never had a stable relationship with her sister Wynonna. The two have had
a number of conflicts, including in 2013, when Ashley accused Wynonna of being spiteful
and spying on her. She went straight to the cops after she found a spying device in her
car, and she believed that Wynonna had done this because of an ongoing custody battle
with Wynonna's daughter Grace.
The item found in Ashley's car was basically a tracking device. Neither of the sisters'
representatives made any comments to the press, but it was clear that things weren't great
between them. And this was far from the only major conflict between the two of them, as
their relationship was so strained that Wynonna didn't even invite her sister to her wedding
in 2012.
In 2001, Ashley Judd married race-car driver Dario Franchitti, after they'd been dating
for a couple of years and gotten engaged in 1999. Their union lasted for a while, but
it was not meant to be forever. Things went awry, and it was ultimately time for them
to part ways when they divorced in 2013. They put out a joint statement that read,
"We have mutually decided to end our marriage. We'll always be family and continue to cherish
our relationship based on the special love, integrity and respect we have always enjoyed."
This wasn't the end of the story, though, as Judd tried to get back with her ex after
he endured a horrible crash in a 2013 race. The incident shook her up, and she was convinced
that she should give things another shot. But despite a serious effort, the couple were
ultimately unable to make it work. Judd didn't have hard feelings, though. As she told Ladies'
Home Journal in 2014,
"Even before our wedding, we agreed not to tell people about our relationship, but to
show them instead. What we're showing them now is we're human, we're family, and this
is what family looks like."
Judd has unfortunately had to endure malicious comments about her appearance, as people have
repeatedly accused her of modifying her looks through plastic surgery. For example, when
Senator Elizabeth Warren posted a campaign video of Judd in February 2020, some people
responded by commenting that she looked rather different. This was strikingly similar to
an earlier incident back in 2012, when multiple media outlets speculated that she'd had plastic
surgery.
Judd wasn't happy about this speculation, so she took matters into her own hands and
wrote a response in The Daily Beast. She stated that when she'd been violently ill and was
taking medication such as steroids to cope, she was confronted with accusations of plastic
surgery. She pointed out that many credible sources jumped to this conclusion and never
tried to verify the rumors or get in touch with her. She also wrote about being body-shamed
and being judged rather harshly for her appearance. She called such allegations misogynistic and
insisted that it's necessary for everyone to be more responsible, kinder, and more mindful.
As she wrote,
"Who makes the fantastic leap from being sick, or gaining some weight over the winter, to
a conclusion of plastic surgery? Our culture, that's who. The insanity has to stop."
"The amount of gender violence that I experience is absolutely extraordinary."
Mental health troubles are a real struggle for a lot of people, and Ashley Judd has been
fairly transparent about her rollercoaster journey with her own mental health, including
depression. In February 2006, she decided to seek professional help in a bid to cope
with her health troubles. She spent time at a rehabilitation center in Texas where she
was treated for 47 days. As she told Glamour Magazine,
"I needed help. I was in so much pain."
Judd also noted that her turbulent childhood left behind many scars. She'd actually never
even considered getting help until she was approached by counselors during a visit for
an unrelated issue at the Shades of Hope Treatment Center in Texas. They advised her to seek
assistance for her troubles, and she discovered that the treatment was incredibly beneficial.
As she explained to Glamour,
"I was unhappy, and now I'm happy. Now, even when I'm having a rough day, it's better than
my best day before treatment."
In 2019, Ashley Judd spoke out about the topics of assault and abortion, both of which she's
experienced personally. As she recounted at the 10th annual Women in the World summit,
"As everyone knows, and I'm very open about it, I'm a three-time rape survivor. And one
of the times [...] there was conception, and I'm very thankful I was able to access safe
and legal abortion. Because that rapist [...] has paternity rights in Kentucky and Tennessee.
I would have had to co-parent with a rapist."
"Democracy starts with our skin. We're not supposed to regulate what we choose to do
with our insides."
Judd has also alleged that she was one of the victims of a very high-profile abuser,
as she's accused disgraced media mogul Harvey Weinstein of harassing her when she met him
for work projects. Weinstein, who was convicted of sexual assault in 2020, attempted to sabotage
Judd's career and generally make her life miserable. She filed suit against him in Los
Angeles Superior Court in 2018, as she declared in a statement,
"Mr. Weinstein's abusive conduct toward others has caused no end of damage to aspiring actors
and others in the film and entertainment industry. As my experience and the experience of others
shows, even a few false statements from Mr. Weinstein could destroy potentially career-changing
professional opportunities. It’s time that Mr. Weinstein be held accountable for that
conduct and for the ways in which he’s damaged careers."
Weinstein's spokesperson denied all the allegations and insisted that the producer had never tried
to hurt Judd. While the 2018 case was initially closed, things changed for her in 2020 when
a district court ruled that she'd indeed been harassed by Weinstein and was free to pursue
her case against him. Judd's representative said that this was a major win for her and
other women like her who were simply trying to seek justice.
"She says, before she decided to speak out, it was frightening, not clear whether anyone
would believe the women, or anyone would care."
In early 2021, Judd endured a traumatic accident that left her with some serious injuries.
While visiting a Congolese rainforest for a research trip to locate bonobos, she fell
and almost lost her legs. She had to be rescued after enduring five agonizing hours waiting
for help. The pain was immense, and it took her a lot of effort to stay strong. The experience
was understandably horrifying for Judd, and it made her wonder whether she would've made
it back to safety if she weren't a celebrity. She later wrote on Instagram,
"I do not understand why what has happened has happened. I do understand I have been
loved and helped enormously. I understand nights are a savage agony."
Doctors deduced that Judd had suffered internal bleeding, a broken leg, and nerve injuries.
She was able to return to the United States, where she was treated for her injuries. Her
sister Wynonna rushed to her aid and has been doing what she can to help her through the
process.
"Well, I guess I would say I'm in a lot of love. I'm in a lot of compassion, and I'm
in a lot of gratitude."
Chronic pain is a major health struggle for many, including Ashley Judd. She used to suffer
from such terrible migraines and debilitating pain for extended periods to the point that
she needed to seek serious medical relief. She opted for Botox, which she noted on a
Facebook post in 2020 is a standard treatment for the kind of pain she was experiencing.
Judd also revealed that her pain inadvertently contributed to her putting on some weight
as well, but this didn't bother her. She was able to take everything about the experience
with a grain of salt, because any negative comments she received were based on ridiculous
norms about gender. As she wrote,
"The good news for my empowered self is I don't take compliments any more seriously
than I do slurs."
In addition to her acting career, Ashley Judd is a devoted activist, but there have been
times when her opinions have led to controversy. For instance, she's been criticized for her
comments about illegal sex work. She's expressed support for a system that would make paying
for sex illegal but not illegal to sell it. She explained her thoughts on the matter on
Instagram in 2018, as she wrote,
"Proud as hell and fiercely humbled to stand with survivors of prostitution who are saying
#MeToo."
This irritated many people who felt that Judd was spreading false information about sex
work and what it means to provide consent. As far as she was concerned, she was simply
being vocal about her views. She's a strong supporter of an organization called Demand
Abolition that hopes to eliminate sex work completely. Those who criticize Judd believe
that her viewpoints are harmful because the laws they're advocating for would make sex
work much harder to navigate for professional sex workers. As Alison Bass, author of Getting
Screwed: Sex Workers and the Law, wrote for The Huffington Post in 2016,
"Many sex workers are careful to screen clients before they meet with them, asking for detailed
information about who they are and where they work [...] Laws criminalizing buyers would
make such screening much more difficult — what buyer is going to readily divulge such culpable
information — and thus jeopardize their ability to work safely."
Ashley Judd used to have an emotional support dog named Shug who she was extremely fond
of. He was a constant companion, as he would even accompany her on movie sets. One time,
he even managed to save someone at an airport who was thinking about killing himself. The
man told Judd he was writing his suicide note but had a change of heart after he came across
Shug.
This man then sought help for his mental health battles and remained in touch with Judd. As
Judd recounted to The Christian Post,
"Today, he's in recovery and still sends me texts, updating me on his health. Shug was
a remarkable dog. It's amazing how God works through dogs."
When Shug died at the age of 17, it was understandably a huge blow for Judd. But she was nevertheless
able to appreciate all the lessons that her dog taught her during their time together.
These lessons included the importance of empathy and the value of listening without judgment.
As she put it to The Christian Post,
"Dogs practice presence. They love us exactly as we are. Sometimes, that's all we need;
just sitting with someone and letting our empathy flow is the greatest helpfulness."