How she feels about her daughters being naked on screen:
“[As they embarked on their acting careers] I told them, you should take off your clothes, but do it for the right reasons. It has to be something that’s in the character’s purpose. Margaret has been dancing since she was a little girl so she’s really comfortable in her body. And my daughters are very brave. [Ed note: MacDowell has two daughters: Actor/singer Rainey Qualley, 36, and actor Margaret Qualley, 30, who bared a lot this year in The Substance, Drive-Away Dolls, and Kinds of Kindness.]
We talked a lot and they knew my [own] struggles and my thoughts and feelings and my vulnerabilities. And my daughters regurgitated things to me that I told them [in moments when] I’ve messed up and said the wrong thing about myself. They have this strong sense of themselves and awareness of their value.”
When she personally feels worth it (spoiler alert: 99% of the time):
“Ilon was at the forefront of feminism in advertising and had perspective about how we women see ourselves. You can see it in the original commercial—how the male advertisers took the slogan and had a male actor say, “Because she’s worth it,” which emphasized the notion that women want to be beautiful for men and not for themselves. [Ed note: Ilon insisted the slogan subsequently be changed to “Because I’m worth it.”]
I watched the film with a friend yesterday so we could talk about it and bounce some ideas off one another and agreed that that idea is still in the air, the idea that everything we do is for the male gaze. But that’s not me. Sure, the urge [to be looked at] is there, but 99% of my time is for me. And that’s what that tagline is about.
And what resonated with Ilon’s story for me was that she was a woman ahead of her time—and I hope that I radiate that, too. I feel like I’m ahead of my time: I’m bold, I’m willing to say things a little bit out of the box.”
The time she got a big job… while carrying a secret:
“I remember the day L’Oréal hired me 40 something years ago, because I was around six weeks pregnant, and I was terrified. It was a huge deal to get a contract like that. And I had to tell them I was pregnant. I mean, I was afraid they would move on, right? But they didn’t; they kept me. And I worked through the pregnancy. I’ve had three babies while I’ve been with L’Oréal, so I have lots of experience nursing on set. Discreetly, of course!”
