Lena Headey Said She’s ‘Happier’ Playing Women Who Aren’t Expected to Be Beautiful
Best known as Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones, Lena Headey has earned a reputation as an accomplished actor. Headey has been active in the entertainment industry for over two decades, appearing in movies and TV projects worldwide. Headey is a seasoned show business veteran. And she’s developed some strong opinions about the way that women are treated in Hollywood. In a 2017 interview, Headey opened up about sexism in the entertainment industry, revealing why she’s much happier playing women who “aren’t expected to be beautiful.”
Lena Headey opened up about facing sexism in Hollywood
Headey was born in Bermuda in 1973. After her family settled in England, she started taking ballet lessons. But after she was discovered by a talent agent, she embarked on an acting career. According to IMDb, she had made her breakthrough into films by the early ’90s, appearing in British productions such as The Clothes in the Wardrobe and Waterland.
By the middle of the decade, Headey had crossed the Atlantic, appearing in both British and American productions. She remained a vital force in entertainment throughout the 2000s. Through it all, the actor hasn’t minded opening up about sexism in the industry. In a 2017 interview with Porter, she revealed that women often get short shrift.
“I was talking about (being a woman in the industry) with another actress, and I said, ‘Do you find that you have to say the same things seven times, whereas a man says it once and everyone listens?'” Headey said. “Male counterparts can say the same thing (I just did), and everyone’s like, ‘Oh, that’s a great idea,’ and I’m like, ‘I just said that 19 times, but you chose not to listen or take it on board.'”
What Lena Headey said about getting older
These days, Headey accepts that women get typecast in many roles. But she knows what kind of parts she likes — and which ones she feels the most comfortable signing on for. In the Porter interview, the actor shared, “I’m happier now I’m older, playing women who aren’t expected to be beautiful. That pressure has gone for me. (Male) actors can be ‘interesting,’ but there’s a real pressure on women to be beautiful and skinny.”
Headey described some of her own experiences as a working actor in a male-dominated industry. And they’re definitely jarring. “When I was in my 20s, and doing a lot of audition tapes in the States, a casting director told me, ‘The men take these tapes home and watch them and say, ‘Who would you f***?'” she said.
What is Lena Headey doing these days?
Headey’s role as Cersei in the HBO series Game of Thrones catapulted the actor to worldwide fame. When the show ended in 2019, Headey opted to make a return to lower-key roles, including lending her voice to several animated movies such as DC League of Super-Pets. Movies like Twist, Gunpowder Milkshake, and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies round out her recent canon. An activist on behalf of humanitarian causes, Headey has always done her own thing in Hollywood and has more than proven that she’s got the staying power to succeed in any decade.
