Andie MacDowell rose to fame in the late '80s with memorable appearances in films like Sex,
Lies and Videotape, Groundhog Day, and Four Weddings and a Funeral.
Her public profile also increased due to long-lived status as a hair and beauty model.
The years have been kind to Andie MacDowell, and at almost 60 years old she's just as stunning
as ever, but her career as been much more low-key lately.
Here's a look at what the actress has been up to under the radar in recent years.
Stepping away from the limelight
MacDowell has spent the better part of her adult life in the spotlight, but too much
attention can sometimes overwhelm her.
In a 2013 interview with The Washington Post, she said, "There's a deep piece of me that
wants to be very personal and not share everything with everybody and not put it out there.
There's a piece of me that wants to hold on and not to have to be out in front.
But there's another part of me that's perfectly fine with it.
It's almost a dual personality."
Perhaps smaller roles in TV films and her Hallmark Channel series have helped her find
a happy balance between those interests, but there's a sign she might be coming out of
her shell now.
She did her first nude scene at the age of 59 for 2017's Love After Love and found that
she was surprisingly comfortable with the work.
She told The Hollywood Reporter, "And after all of that worrying about taking my clothes
off, it didn't even affect me in the least, seeing myself naked.
What affected me more was to see how sad I looked.
The only reason I could do that is because I know that sadness.
That to me made me feel more vulnerable that being naked.
It had no effect on me, being naked, which is fascinating."
That body positivity has also inspired MacDowell to speak out against some ageist terminology
that might be thrown at her.
Taking a stand
One can call MacDowell talented, graceful, intriguing and even sexy.
But the term "cougar" will send this star into the red zone.
Despite having played a thirsty southern mom in Magic Mike XXL, MacDowell refuses to label
her character and even other woman of a certain age "cougars."
She believes it's downright rude and derogatory.
She told People, "I find it offensive.
There's this notion that as men get older they become more handsome, so therefore they
can have younger women, but there is no reality to that obviously – it's just another way
to disempower women… if we want to date a guy that's 20 years younger than we are
then we definitely have that same right, just like any man does.
I dare any 57-year-old man to tell me that he looks younger than me."
It's hard to argue with that, although she did famously decline to kiss Dane DeHaan in
a Lifetime movie because he was the same age as her son.
"He's beautiful but I just eeeeh I don't know."
Given what she's been through in her personal life, though, it's no wonder she's widening
her potential match market.
Surviving heartbreak
Since entering the spotlight in the late '80s, MacDowell has endured two major divorces,
and each time it left a mark on her heart.
She told The Washington Post, "Divorce is horrible.
I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.
I don't think it's anything that's ever completely resolved....
I can usually tell when a woman is going through a divorce because they look so gaunt and tired
and sad.
It's just a huge sadness.
It's horrible.
It's like death.
You mourn, but the person's still there."
She's feeling better about those lost loves now, but she still doesn't plan to take a
third trip down the aisle any time soon.
She told Town and Country, "I'm in an unusual stage right now, because I haven't dated in
so long.
The sense of isolation turns it all into a bigger deal.
Just taking the risk of opening that door is really hard for me right now."
In other words, she's steering clear of the long-term relationship scene right now, which
might have something to do with her face not being plastered all over gossip headlines
anymore.
Taking care of business
The reason MacDowell seems so ageless is that she's committed to keeping herself in shape.
She told ABC that she does at least one hour of exercise every day, saying, "If I miss
a day, I'm not as happy.
I definitely feel it."
She's also been flexing her fame muscle to guide her daughters into their careers in
front of the cameras.
Her two girls, Margaret and Rainey Qualley, have decided to step into show business, despite
MacDowell's attempt to steer them away.
She told Town & Country Magazine, "I tried to talk them into doing something less stressful.
Because while what I do is beautiful, it's not easy.
But I do like the idea of Margaret doing some stage training while she's still young which
I didn't do."
The training paid off, as Margaret has a recurring role on HBO's The Leftovers, which she films
in between her college career at NYU.
Rainey on the other hand, is a budding country music star, who has already made a splash
on the airwaves.
Rainey moved to Nashville in pursuit of her passion, and her mom is just "fired up about"
that development.
Rainey, who was named Miss Golden Globe 2012, is also a talented actress who landed a sexy
role on a 2015 episode of Mad Men.
Back to work
While it seems that MacDowell has been relatively absent in recent years, she's actually been
working very quietly.
She appeared in Freeform's 2012 series Jane by Design before snagging the lead in The
Hallmark Channel's Cedar Cove for three seasons.
She's been trying to keep herself involved in cheerier screen opportunities.
"I'm a really sensitive person, so when I watch TV that's super dark.
I get agitated.
I get upset.
I get disturbed.
I can't sleep."
Even though her starring series have ended, she still seems ready to return to primetime
again sooner than later.
As she told The U.K.'s Express, "One of the reasons I didn't really want to do TV earlier
in my career was because it is so life-consuming and I wanted to spend time with my kids and
be a mother.
I didn't want to leave them.
But as soon as my youngest daughter finished high school, I started thinking it would really
be great.
It was all timing."
So, don't be surprised if you see Andie MacDowell's name attached to the next big network pilot
in the near future because she's ready.
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