Model and actress Andie MacDowell, 51, had a string of hits in the late 80s and early 90s with films like Four Weddings and a Funeral, Groundhog Day, and Green Card. MacDowell now does ads for L’Oreal and is working on two Lifetime movies based on Patricia Cornwell books. She tells Fox News in a recent interview that she realizes that the roles she’s taking aren’t as prestigious as they used to be, but says she’s happy to continue working and enjoys acting. I’ve always liked Andie MacDowell and found her kind of endearing, and these quotes just confirm that for me. MacDowell also reveals that she has to get nude for one of her upcoming movies. She says she was nervous about it, but it sounds like she just bit the bullet and did it.

MacDowell has given a couple of other interviews this year in which she’s talked about her experience getting work as she gets older. She said this summer that it’s different to get roles in your 40s, but that once you hit 50 there are more roles for older woman and that she’s just grateful to act. She said in a mildly conflicting interview this spring that things are opening up for older actresses and that “women are finally able to get older and be sexy just like men.” It sounds like she’s getting sexy for this film, that’s for sure:

“I play a real bi**h, I was a narcissistic sex addict and had to sleep with young men,” MacDowell told Tarts as L’Oreal Paris (for which she is an ambassador) received a Friend of the Walk of Fame in Hollywood on Tuesday. “But it was embarrassing because I’m pretty shy and yet I had to look at myself in the mirror and take my clothes off …”

But one thing Ms MacDowell isn’t “embarrassed” about is her age and unrelenting determination to get work in an industry centered on juvenescence.

“We live in a society that sees getting older in a certain way, but I keep trying to tell myself of my value and my worth. I’m really comfortable with my age, I’m 51 and I have no shame about that whatsoever and I’m really comfortable in my skin,” she said. “I take really good care of myself and I insist to not go away. I want to work because it brings me a sense of self worth and dignity, I like my job. I may not be the lead or I may not get the starring roles that I used to because so many movies revolve around youth, but I refuse to go away because I enjoy it. I always find a way to get work. It may not be the best parts I used to get or it may not be as easy, but I’m still here.”

And although she’s past the half-a-century mark, MacDowell still manages to look au natural and stunning – so L’Oreal products aside, what’s her secret?

“Drinking a lot of water, getting enough sleep and doing yoga – but I really think it is acceptance. We all get older so I’m celebrating it,” she added. “Wonderful things happen when you turn 50, you change perspective. You ask, ‘who am I? What do I want to do with my life? What have I not done that I want to do?’ I feel like I’m enjoying life more, it’s not so much about pleasing other people. I feel like I’ve had so many successes on so many levels even if it is just my relationships with my friends.”

[From Fox News]

MacDowell has been married twice and has three children from her first marriage. She’s now single after divorcing her second husband, an Atlanta businessman, in 2004. That’s probably what she’s vaguely referring to when she says “I feel like I’ve had so many successes on so many levels even if it is just my relationships with my friends.” She’s always lovely and perfect-looking as the face of L’Oreal, but as you can see she hasn’t opted for as much plastic surgery or botox jabs as the flawless ads would make you believe. That just makes her all the more beautiful when you see a real photo of her.

Andy MacDowell is shown with her daughter, Rainey Qualley, and Eva Longoria at a L’Oreal event on 10/20/09. Credit: WENN.com