Ruth Wilson has revealed she feels constantly pressured to get cosmetic surgery to fight off signs of ageing because ‘everyone does it’ in her industry.
The Affair star, 43, opened up about the difficulties of ageing in the public eye and the growing expectations of women in Hollywood to undergo injectables, fillers or more invasive options.
Ruth, who is known for her natural, expressive face and refusing to conform to Hollywood aesthetic norms, admitted the temptation is all around her.
‘It’s really hard, because the pressure is on – everyone does it,’ she said on the How to Fail with Elizabeth Day podcast on Wednesday.Â
‘Everyone does something to their face, and it’s all available now more than ever.’
The stage and screen star – who has previously spoken out about the importance of women retaining their individuality in a world of increasingly uniform celebrity faces – suggested that tweakments rarely achieve what people hope for.
Ruth Wilson, 43, has revealed she feels constantly pressured to get cosmetic surgery to fight off signs of ageing because ‘everyone does it’ in her industry
‘You either choose to join your peers and put stuff in your face and make yourself look… I don’t think it makes you look younger, it just makes you look like you’ve had stuff done,’ she added.
Ruth argued that cosmetic work often fails to disguise a person’s age, and instead simply reveals who has opted for procedures and who hasn’t.
‘If you look at people who are 60, 70, and someone’s had work and someone hasn’t, they don’t really look different ages.Â
‘They just look like someone’s had work and someone hasn’t had work, so it does feel like you make a choice,’ she explained.
Her comments come amid a wave of transparency from stars about cosmetic surgery – with Hollywood stars including Robin Wright, Olivia Colman and Gwyneth Paltrow openly discussing what work they’ve had done.
While some admit tweakments, others deny it, creating what Ruth has described as an ‘unhelpful, impossible standard’ that leaves women feeling they can’t win.
She has previously criticised what she called the ‘homogenisation’ of women’s faces on screen, admitting she found it ‘sad’ that so many actresses felt forced into cosmetic work.
In her remarks this week, Ruth said the pressure is magnified by the realities of her job – seeing her face on giant screens, posters and high-definition cameras.
The Affair star opened up about the difficulties of ageing in the public eye and the growing expectations of women in Hollywood to undergo injectables (pictured in 2007)
‘It’s difficult in my industry,’ she said. ‘If I wasn’t an actor, I don’t think I’d think twice about the idea of having work done. Just because you have to look at your face – your face is on a poster, it’s on a lens and you’re pumped up to this size.’
She added: ‘Your face is made bigger on a cinema screen. You know, you’re like, urgh! You can see yourself ageing.’
Ruth said she deliberately avoids altering her appearance because she believes her face – with its natural movement and changeability – is central to her ability to act.
The His Dark Materials star is known for choosing unconventional roles and pushing back against industry expectations, and has often said she doesn’t want to erase the physical markers of a life lived.Â
While she acknowledges the pressures, she also challenges the assumption that ageing is something to be corrected.
Ruth had previously shared her bewilderment at cosmetic surgery in a 2023 interview with The Guardian, saying: ‘As an actress, everyone does it. Very few resist. I haven’t done anything – yet. But it’s in my head as like, ”Well, do you decide not to and therefore potentially look older than your peers? Or do you just give in?”
It comes after it was announced that Ruth is set to reprise her role as the criminal Alice Morgan in a new Luther film, with Idris Elba also set to return as the titular detective.
Alice Morgan actress Ruth, 43, didn’t appear in The Fallen Sun, but she will be reprising her role for the upcoming movie, which will be penned by Neil Cross and directed by Jamie Payne.
Jamie, who has worked on Child of Mine, U Be Dead and Doctor Who: The Time of The Doctor, said of the upcoming drama: ‘Neil has yet again, created a wonderfully dark tale to bring us all back together
‘It’s a true joy to be back on the streets of Lutherland with the supreme talents that are Idris Elba and Dermot Crowley.
‘I am also thrilled to be reunited with the brilliant and dangerous Alice Morgan played by the extraordinarily talented Ruth Wilson.’
Neil added: ‘Luther, Alice and Schenk are more than characters to me, they’re family. I never stop wondering where they are, what’s become of them …
‘And what horrors might be stirring in the shadows of London while Luther’s not around.
‘So we decided to get together and find out what happens next.’
