It is Women’s history month, and I thought I would spotlight a woman living and thriving in our time right now. A woman who I believe has changed the game for women of a certain age. That woman is 2025 Golden Globe-winning best actress, Demi Moore.
Those of us who are GenX women (Born 1964-1981) and those Baby Boomer women (born 1945-1963) all remember the not-so-subtle mantra of the Oil of Olay commercials from our youth, “to age gracefully.” Then there was the 1988 pushback commercial that said, “I don’t intend to grow old gracefully, I intend to fight it every step of the way.” I was a sophomore in college when that commercial hit and I have been a faithful Olay product user since then. That ad shaped a generation of young women to not accept aging as a grace, but to lean into aging with grit.
Oscar nominee for Best Actress Demi Moore has proven the latter to be true. She has both aged gracefully and beautifully, as well as fought it every step of the way by proving life is not over in Hollywood when you are a woman and you are over 60. She is still stunning, and in great physical shape, and she is a mother of three daughters by actor and ex-husband Bruce Willis.
A member of the famed “brat pack of the 1980’s”. She also famously dated and married a man (actor Ashton Kutcher) 17 years her junior. Setting tongues a wagging at the “cougar” who caught a cub in Hollywood’s often reverse bad boy world of older men and young women. Moore and Willis split in 2000 after 13 years of marriage.
I, for one, was rooting for the glamorous star to win her first Oscar back in 1997 for her gritty role in G.I. Jane. She did not even get a nomination that year. Let’s face it: Hollywood and pop culture can be hardest on powerful women or beautiful women transforming themselves into, well, not-so-beautiful women.
In her latest role, “The Substance” Moore ironically portrays an aging movie star who wants to be young and beautiful again. She starts to use a product called “activator,” and everything goes wrong with overuse and misuse of the product. Eventually, it turns her into a hideous beast. And destroys her.
In this writer’s opinion, Moore’s performance was a tour de force, and she deserved the Oscar, but Hollywood, true to form, went with a younger actress, Mikey Madison, who was for sure deserving of her recognition for her lead acting role in the film, Anora. But, it is unlikely that Moore will get another role like this one. We will have to wait and see.
I am not sure what the future holds for Ms. Moore, but her comeback made all of us who are old enough to remember her break-out role in St. Elmo’s Fire smile and fist-pump the air. She showed us that it isn’t over until it’s over. There is still a chance to reinvent yourself and be beautiful, not just with one’s good looks but with charm, grace, and family, which should matter most of all.
Here is the more subtle lesson I believe Moore offers those of us of a certain age and even those just starting the amazing journey called life. That lesson is–that although, as young girls, we as women are taught about the dangers of growing old. To have youthful faces. To dye our hair. To transform our bodies with breast surgery, buttocks surgery, or liposuction when we have too much fat. Good looks fade. Good character, resilience, and redefining yourself in each new decade is where the magic happens.
But the real lesson of importance is this--we as women must age into our our power. To face each new decade with grace, wisdom, and a positive outlook no matter what hell we may have endured, to form great friendships, and build a loving family (of our own making if we were not born into one). That is how you show up as a winner when everyone has counted you out. Demi Moore taught us all a Masterclass in how to walk in your power as a woman, even after 60!