To me, Carrie Coon has the same quality as Cate Blanchett – a shape-shifter, a chameleon, someone who can play characters in their 20s or in their 50s within the same year. Carrie is currently 44 years old, and one could argue that she could conceivably pull off a character anywhere from 32 to 55. Blanchett was like that too, that’s all I’m saying. Anyway, Carrie is currently promoting The Gilded Age, and she recently spoke about why she tends to play “older” than her actual age, and why she’s never gotten Botox.

Carrie Coon is getting candid about her experience with aging in Hollywood and the roles she’s offered.

The 44-year-old actress recently told Glamour magazine during an interview that she’s typically typecast to play more mature and “complex” characters because of her decision not to get Botox, such as with Bertha Russell in The Gilded Age and Laurie in The White Lotus season three.

“We all have a way we present in the world,” she explained. “The perception of me is that I am verbal, intellectual. My voice is lower and I don’t have Botox, so I tend to play older than I am. And so I’ve always had a gravitas or some authority.”

Botox, which prevents wrinkles in the face, is a common medical procedure in today’s society, especially in Hollywood. While Coon is among those who have opted out of facial injections and still found success in the entertainment industry, she also hopes younger Hollywood talent sees that they don’t need to conform to the pressure of Botox and filler to fit a beauty standard.

“Authenticity is more evocative than any kind of engineering you might consider doing to your face or your body,” she said. “Now, this is not the message coming from culture. As a woman who is 44, watching myself in HD is not easy, and it’s not comfortable.”

Coon said she still has insecurities, especially when she sees herself onscreen, but that she looks for other skin care alternatives rather than injections.

“I like science-based skin care,” she added. “But I’m not going to inject anything into my face. It’s just … I think it’s scary and strange.”

[From THR]

As the Botox era continues, I’ve found that the women who have refused to touch their face end up aging better and looking “younger” for much longer. There’s absolutely nothing worse than seeing a woman with a face jacked to hell with injectables and realizing that she’s actually 24 years old. Stop doing this to yourselves, ladies! Anyway, I agree that Carrie usually “plays older,” but she can come across as younger too – like, on The White Lotus, I felt like she seemed younger than Michelle Monaghan and Leslie Bibb (and she is in fact 5-7 years younger than them).

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, HBO/The Gilded Age.