Paul Rudd covers the latest issue of Men’s Health to promote The Shrink Next Door and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. I learned some things I didn’t know about Rudd in this piece. One, his people come from England?? I always thought he was descended from youthful-looking Irish stock. But no, he comes from the Rudnitsky stock of England, and his grandfather changed the surname because of the prevalent anti-Semitism in England. I also learned that Rudd is a liar! This 53-year-old told Men’s Health that the secret to his agelessness is not that he’s an undercover vampire, doomed to spend eternity as a baby-faced 29-year-old. His fountain of youth is SLEEP. Bitch, you lie!! Some highlights from Men’s Health:
He decided he would be an actor at the age of 16: “I never wavered from it. And I never had a backup. I said, I’m gonna go to school and study this.”
Doing a play in New York right after he wrapped on Clueless: “My agent said, What are you doing? My career was just starting. But I had a real clear vision then of what I wanted and how I wanted to do it. I didn’t want to be considered a joke among actors who I really admire. I really wanted to learn how to do this right. I had a real focus. Certainly some of the movies were not as good as I’d imagined, but they were beneficial, each in their own way.” After a string of romantic comedies, he did Wet Hot American Summer. “Without that, I don’t know if I get to do Anchorman, which was seminal. And I’ve gotten to work with Judd Apatow for years now.”
Landing Ant-Man wasn’t part of his plan. “My agent set up a meeting with Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige. Marvel was pretty new. They weren’t even part of Disney. It would’ve been like somebody saying, How would you feel about doing Dancing with the Stars? A superhero franchise was never on my radar. I never really thought I was the type of actor that they would offer any of those parts to. But when this idea came around, I was excited about doing something that was so out of left field, and I knew that if it was announced that I was going to be joining a superhero franchise, most people would say, What the f–k? And I got to wear a superhero suit.”
His secret to a superhero physique & eternal youth: “Sleep… Then diet. Then weights. Then cardio. People ask me, ‘Can you send me your meal plan? How many times a week do you work out? Do you drink? Do you eat carbs? Do you have a cheat day?’ The most important part of training is sleep. People will set their alarm and then sleep for four hours and they’ll get up so that they can train. They’re doing themselves a disservice. If you can somehow get eight hours of sleep . . .”
How Ant-Man changed his habits: “I get up and I have a cup of coffee, and then I do cardio before I eat anything. I never would’ve done that before [Ant-Man]. I lift weights, hopefully at least three times a week. And I’ve learned so much about how my body reacts to foods, how it reacts to exercise, and where I’m happiest and how much it affects me mentally. . . . If I’m in this suit, running around playing a character who’s supposed to be a superhero, I just feel better. And I feel less like an impostor.” He eats eggs every day. A lot of salmon. Protein shakes that are just protein and water, no fruit. “It sounds like hell. It’s really not. I find routine comforting. There isn’t an office that we have to go to every day where we see the same people and do the same kind of job. Routine is a human need. It’s grounding in a really positive and healthy way.”
How he feels when people talk about how young he looks: “I see some things that people are politely not acknowledging. I’m certainly happy that people don’t say the opposite. Like, God, he looks a hundred years old! It’s flattering, but at the same time, I never know what the response is supposed to be.”
One, it’s truly crazy how winding and weird his career has been – he’s arguably been a household name since the ‘90s and he’s worked consistently in all kinds of films and TV shows but none of that build-up would indicate that he would eventually be a Marvel superhero in his 50s. What a crazy career for him. Two, I believe that Paul believes that sleep is important. Sleep IS important and people should prioritize getting better sleep. But “sleeping” is not the reason why Rudd is so ageless. It’s because he IS a vampire.
Cover & IG courtesy of Men’s Health.
Yup. Keep your diet to perimeter foods. Exercise. Sleep. By George I think he’s got it!
Can you explain perimeter foods? I googled but didn’t find much.
Grocery stores are laid out adhering to a very strict marketing plan ushering consumers throughout the store. If you can go in, and predominately stick to foods sold along the outside, or perimeter, and only go interior for staples and what-not, you’ll find yourself eating healthier just by shopping smarter.
Most US groceries display highly-processed foods in the aisles in the center of the store. The foods on the “perimeter” of the store tend to be the ones with better nutritional content (veg, dairy, eggs, meats). So if you “shop the perimeter” you’re less likely to eat processed foods with high calories and low nutritional values.
Basically, fresh food needs to be refrigerated and electrical outlets are on walls. So the fresh food tends to be in cases on the outer walls of grocery stores, and shelf-stable, processed foods on the shelves in the middle.
At least he’s describing normal food things, for the most part. Rob Lowe being an Atkinson person weirded me out. Rudd seems so nice. I watched the last season or two of friends in college, and I remember he and Phoebe were by far my favorite story line. He’s offbeat and joyful.
Yay for more Paul Rudd!!
As someone who is struggling to sleep right now, he’s right. The lack of sleep shows up in the mirror.
Sleep, diet, exercise – yes, all good. But also, he doesn’t seem like a high drama kind of guy – like not super stressed with PR thirst and emotional entanglements. Stress is really aging, too.
I don’t think that he’s ageless, Paul has good genes and takes care of himself. That goes a long way. He looks like an attractive middle-aged man.
I agree. Also, he’s looked about 30 since Clueless and Romeo and Juliet, so it’s more about him looking around that age for several decades, from his 20s to his 40s, which of course, is in and of itself a blessing.
JLo has the same thing going on. She looked mature in her 20s and didn’t change much in the ensuing decades. She also lives an extremely healthy and active lifestyle.
On the title of this entry alone in my head I said “Sleep. Then diet. Then weight. Then feasting on the blood of the innocent.” I’m right there with you Kaiser. Vampire. Lol.
Still, I think he keeps to a routine and just loves life. His positive outlook and inability to produce stress hormones helps. I feel people who keep a pretty decently positive outlook on life just don’t age as fast as others. But I am kind of wondering about the weights then cardio. I’ve always done cardio then weights. I’m curious what would happen if I switch it up.
I also appreciate how he says that when people talk about how he stays young that it doesn’t tell the full story. I’m sure it doesn’t and I’m glad he knows that’s not all their is to his life. I kind of imagine he’ll be a little like Dick Clark who it felt aged in phases.
I agree with all he said, but I want to see his parents! His genetics are great! Also, I think his joy and contentment show on his face.
Oh! It would be interesting to see if the older members of his family also aged really well.
Tom and Lorenzo had a good podcast recently where one of the topics they covered was Hollywood stars and aging (sparked by the comments on Madonna) and they mentioned Paul Rudd, amongst others like JLo, Julianne Moore, etc. Hollywood stars age well because of surgery and tweaks. Some have better surgeons than others, some have better support network for that surgery – nutrition, etc. But no celeb or non celeb is defying time just by sleeping more and stressing less.
Thank you! It’s ridiculous how people actually buy that celebrities just sleep, exercise normally and eat well…smh. Are we really back in the days where you’d see models claiming that they ate giant burgers all day and didn’t exercise? Who believes this crap anymore?
Women in Hollywood start getting botox and fillers these days before 40! It used to be the brow lift at 35, then boobs lifted/implants removed and tummy tuck (especially after kids), then full facelift at around 50. Now the throat/chin sculpting, chin implant and the buccal fat removal are de rigeur. Any woman with a full head of long hair after about 40-45 has extensions, period (I’m looking at you, Helen Mirren).
Plenty of male celebs have been very open about the difficulties in getting shredded for the new superhero physique especially as they age…Henry Cavill, thanks for your honesty about that, in comparison to Hugh “I don’t take steriods” Jackman. Sure Jan.
Julianne Moore, J.Lo, Sharon Stone etc have had nice work done just like a lot of other celebs including, IMO, Paul Rudd. I have no doubt they take care of themselves but to claim otherwise after the age of 35 in Hollywood is laughable! Just because Madonna and others get bad work done doesn’t mean good work isn’t possible…
“Any woman with a full head of long hair after about 40-45 has extensions, period (I’m looking at you, Helen Mirren).”
Uhhhh. I’m turning 59 this May and I have a full head of long hair. I can thank my hispanic/Hopi ancestors for that.
I’m 46, full head of long hair, zero wrinkles (laugh lines when I smile or laugh, but they don’t stay). I never get enough sleep, don’t always eat well, usually forget to wear moisturizer (started doing more this year because I noticed my cheeks are getting dry).
My whole family looks way younger than they are and no one has had any surgery or youth treatments. Lots of them have smoked and sometimes drank too much. We have genetics for days, that’s what it boils down to. My great aunt also lived to 104 and only moved into a home at 102, she lived on her own prior.
Fully. And certainly what celebrities mean by “skincare” can now mean pretty much anything, from peels and lasers to fillers and Botox. Not to mention veneers and eyelid/brow shaping. Sarah Michelle Gellar spoke the God’s honest truth many years ago when she acknowledged that looking like they do is completely inaccessible for us normies: people who train then, who cook for them, who tweak their faces gradually and subtly enough that no one notices.
Now, to be clear, I have no problem with any of this. What does upset me, though, is the lack of transparency and honesty — which sends the message that anyone who doesn’t look like a celebrity isn’t doing things “right” or trying hard enough. The whole GOOPY Paltrow suggestion that “anyone can exercise” or look like me if you try hard enough! They almost turn it into a morality lesson and make the rest of us feel terrible by comparison.
You’d also be surprised what a strict and regimented skincare routine can do for someone. I wouldn’t be surprised if Paul spends an hour per day on his skincare. I’ve been told the acting program at UCLA spends time teaching about skincare.
Tax deductible too! Man/woman/trans, they probably all have at least two dermatologists and use about 20 different products each day.
If it were your livelihood, you’d get those tweaks too. Bet Cate Blanchett has also had a lot of subtle work done. Jessica Chastain is so beautiful but have noticed she’s getting the shots and whatever else done recently too. It’s just part of their industry. Paul, like J Lo, just happens to be the among those who end up looking pretty natural despite all the work. But I do believe the celebs who prioritise sleep big time (Penelope Cruz, J Lo, and Paul Rudd) do end up looking better.
No one has a sharp cut jaw angle without a hit of jowl at 50 let alone 53 without surgical help. He’s just the example of fabulous work.
Sleep yes important but if feel like it’s the go to answer when it’s really nothing that they are doing it’s just genetics. He might have had a very good and subtle lift. The secret is to do it slowly a tweek here and a tweek there and nobody really notices. But also he’s got the kind of face like Ralph Macchio – just a youthful looking face that’s he’s always had. It might have been annoying in your twenties and thirties when he might want to have played a real leading man but now I’m sure he’s happy with it.
I don’t believe he’s had any plastic surgery. His routine is very similar to mine (I’m 49, sleeping 8-10 hours a day, eating a protein-rich diet and exercising regularly) and I’m also being told that I look 10 years younger. I’m 100% convinced that the more you sleep, the longer you live and the younger you look!
That man uses fillers and he knows it.
Probably. But I still feel the aesthetician and/or plastic surgeon should be applauded for the nuance & subtlety of the work.
Probably, they all do. But eating well, sleeping, drinking lots of water and using a good moisturizer is great for your skin too. It’s probably a little bit of everything.
He was on Finding Your Roots a few years ago, and his family story was pretty interesting! I think it’s the same episode as Scarlett Johansson
I’m here for the Wet Hot American Summer shout out. Love that movie.
He didn’t say that he doesn’t eat carbs but it seems like he eats a pretty high protein diet (eggs, protein shake no fruit). When I am well rested it really shows on my face. Paul obviously takes care of himself and it shows. He’s not Leo rolling out of the club at 4am.
Think he’s had subtle work done at least like most of them (celebs) but sleep definitely makes a huge difference. Leo has that bloated look.
And minding his business also helps.
Rudd been in this business for decades and not a issue, scandal and does his job and leaves and go about his day.
I am HERE for the anti-aging comments and advice. I would say: start with good genes, add consistent sleep hygiene and plenty of it, hydration, consistent gentle skincare with daily SPF application, regular exercise, decent diet (but not too much because, eventually, its your face or your fanny), and keeping stress to a minimum. Stir that all up with A LOT of humor, a firm grasp of reality, a general shunning of booze, a giant portion of excellent social interactions, and failing vision so that you don’t see too well that getting older is a privilege and not a right.
Paul Rudd needs to come out of the coffin by making an appearance on What We Do In The Shadows.
I love Paul Rudd, but I have noticed in a recent Men’s Health video that he had a tiny bit of realistic chin looseness. Nothing major, just subtle. I thought, “So he is human.” Still it was much less than what we mere mortals in our 50’s would experience and comforting at the same time. I found his realism about his training regimen amazingly B.S. free.
Exactly what a nutritionist once said to me.
Protein + Produce
Walking + Weights
My friend made-out with him at the playboy mansion in 2007.