Helena Bonham Carter ageism attack

04-10-2006 11:30

Helena Bonham Carter has hit out at the rampant ageism in Hollywood.

The 'Fight Club' star - who turned 40 this year - claims Tinseltown has an unhealthy obsession with youth and unfairly pressurises older actresses to look younger to land roles.

She fumed to Easy Living magazine: "It's ridiculous. We're all going to age and we have to start learning to accept it.

"I recently made a film called 'Conversations With Other Women' and loved my character. She was a genuinely three-dimensional woman who was allowed to be in her late 30s, which is so refreshing in a world where everyone consistently tries to be younger. We aren't all 20 so why should we play parts where we're trying to look it? There are actual 20-year-olds to do that."

Helena - who is the long-term partner of director Tim Burton - admits she was dreading turning 40, but insists hitting the landmark age was not as "dramatic" as she had feared.

She added: "When I hit 40 I thought it was going to be a dramatic turning point but on the day I realised that the world hadn't exploded.

"I prefer being 40 to 20 - I think most women do. You are far more comfortable in your skin than you were at 20."