Everyone Hates Renee Zellweger For Proving That Eternal Youth Is Totally Unnatural

21st Annual ELLE Women In Hollywood AwardsIs there some magic formula out there that shows women exactly how much or little they are supposed to care about their appearance? I’d like to see it, because I am a little confused about all of this Renee Zellweger backlash. I’m not confused about what people are referencing — she’s obviously had some work done. I’m just wondering, in the grand scheme of internet judging, why did her obvious work tip the scale into viral territory? Why is everyone talking about her face?

She left her house on Monday night to attend the Elle Women in Hollywood Awards in Beverly Hills. Then, all hell broke loose. Here are some of the headlines that emerged after the press saw her face on Monday.

The Daily Mail: What has Renee Zellweger done to her face?

Fox News: Renee Zellweger nearly unrecognizable after mysterious facial changes

Gawker: Here Are Some Pictures Of Renee Zellweger’s Face

The Guardian: Renee Zellweger’s face is her brand – a new look will change her career beyond recognition

Zellweger told People that she looks the way she does because she’s taking care of herself:

”My friends say that I look peaceful. I am healthy,” Zellweger continues. ”For a long time I wasn’t doing such a good job with that. I took on a schedule that is not realistically sustainable and didn’t allow for taking care of myself. Rather than stopping to recalibrate, I kept running until I was depleted and made bad choices about how to conceal the exhaustion. I was aware of the chaos and finally chose different things.”

Let’s be clear: we as a society don’t have a problem with plastic surgery. We have a problem when someone has plastic surgery and fails to convince us they didn’t. No one has a problem with the fact that women in Hollywood are expected to look younger and younger every year – we only have a problem with being reminded that it is not a completely natural state. Not visibly aging goes against the laws of nature. We don’t care about that. We don’t care that Zellweger’s face has changed or that she’s probably had some work done. We care that she wasn’t able to do it without us noticing. We care that the veil has been lifted.

Is having plastic surgery okay?

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Nope, I guess not.

Can you age while looking good and not be berated?

demi-moore-us-weekly-cover

Nope, I guess not.

Is working out a lot okay?

skinny-tabloid-cover

Nope.

Is not working out okay?

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Oh, hell no. Of course not.

Basically – you have to be a magical beauty fairy if you are a woman in Hollywood. You can’t show that you’re working too hard to look young, but you also better not give the idea that you’re okay with aging, either. You can’t win. This week it’s Renee Zellweger, next week it will be someone else.

(photo: Getty Images)

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