In a strikingly candid interview, Kate Winslet has taken a powerful stand against the rising trend of plastic surgery and fillers, describing the phenomenon as both “terrifying and devastating.” The 50-year-old actress voiced her concerns over the impact of these beauty standards, as well as weight loss drugs, on today’s youth.

Winslet, renowned for her role in Titanic and her commitment to body positivity, lamented how young women seem to have lost sight of true beauty. She criticized the prevailing obsession with achieving the perfect appearance, driven largely by the pursuit of social media approval and Instagram likes.

Firm in her stance, Winslet has consistently advocated for self-acceptance and has proudly maintained that she has never resorted to Botox or any cosmetic enhancements. Her message resonates with a call to embrace one’s natural self.

In her conversation with The Times, Winslet passionately urged society to “keep being real,” highlighting the overwhelming pressure people face to conform to certain beauty ideals. “It’s f***ing chaos out there,” she remarked, expressing her dismay at the normalization of cosmetic procedures.

She emphasized her distress over this trend, questioning why individuals feel compelled to alter their appearances. “It’s terrifying,” she stated, reflecting on the widespread acceptance of such drastic measures. “I think no, not you! Why? It is devastating.”

‘If a person’s self-esteem is so bound up in how they look it’s frightening. I have moments when I think it’s better, when I look at actresses at events dressed how they want, whichever shape – but then so many people are on weight-loss drugs.

Kate Winslet has blasted the plastic surgery and filler epidemic of recent times as ‘terrifying and devastating’ and criticised weight loss drugs in a passionate and candid new interview 

The Titanic actress, 50, declared that ‘young women have no concept of what being beautiful actually is’ anymore and are now ‘obsessed’ with looking perfect to get more Instagram likes

‘It’s so varied. Some are making choices to be themselves, others do everything they can to not be themselves.  And do they know what they are putting in? The disregard for one’s health is terrifying.’

She added that some of the most beautiful women she knows are over 70 and that it upsets her ‘now more than ever’ that the younger generation seem to have lost their concept of what ‘beautiful actually is’.

Kate has never been scared to voice her opinions on the topic and last year she revealed she ‘refused to cover up her belly rolls’ after a crew member told her to during filming for the film Lee.

She also previously admitted to Harper’s Bazaar that she doesn’t mind looking less-than-perfect on screen, declaring: ‘I take pride in it because it is my life on my face, and that matters. It wouldn’t occur to me to cover that up.’

The star has been famously anti-surgery for years, once declaring that ‘it goes against my morals, the way that my parents brought me up, and what I consider to be natural beauty.’

Instead she takes a from the inside out approach, focusing on what she puts into her body, especially before public appearances.

‘Sleep and health play a big part in looking fresh. If I’m over-tired or stressed, no amount of make-up and hair can disguise the impact of that on one’s face,’ she has said.

The star has long been vocal about body positivity and accepting yourself and has proudly stated on multiple occasions that she has never had any Botox or any other work done (seen in The Holiday)

Kate follows a balanced diet, sharing cooking duties with her vegan husband Ned Abel Smith, but says she will cut out her favourite treats in the days before a red carpet.   

‘I do try and look after myself in the few days running up to that moment. Nothing fancy or expensive… my top tip would be water. Water, water, water. Keep the body hydrated and the skin will follow suit.’

And with her wholesome, refreshing and quite British approach to health and beauty Kate is doing her bit to ease the pressure on Hollywood standards.

‘I do want to say to any woman who is trying to emulate a Hollywood look: it’s a myth. It’s honestly a myth,’ she previously told Vogue.

‘Women on the red carpet have been sat in hair and make-up for four hours to look like that and probably had facials every day during the week in the run up to the event. I know because I’ve been there and had that many facials.

‘It’s a moment in time. For me, the secret to ageing at any age, in Hollywood or not, is actually accepting who you are and accepting that we can’t fight change.

‘Sure, we can do things to support our health and our skin, to feel a little bit better and make ourselves last a bit longer. But for me, it’s about beauty coming from within and not being so self critical – it’s a big deal.’

Her comments to The Times come just a few days after she said she is ‘so proud’ of her rarely seen son Joe Anders as they posed together at the world premiere of their new movie, Goodbye June, in London on Wednesday. 

The actress has gone behind the camera for the first time to make her directorial debut for the family drama, with her son, Joe, 21, writing the screenplay. 

Walking the red carpet at The Curzon Mayfair, Kate, who also stars in the drama, looked sensational in a black gown, with a scooping neckline and belt. 

Joe, whose father is director Sam Mendes, 60, opted for a classic black tuxedo, which he paired with a white shirt, matching trousers and smart shoes. 

Kate separated from Sam in 2010 after seven years of marriage and Joe has subsequently adopted the stage name Anders. 

The all-star cast of Goodbye June includes Andrea Riseborough, Toni Collette and Timothy Spall, who also walked the red carpet. 

The Netflix project is described as a contemporary family drama about ‘fractured siblings who must come together under sudden and trying circumstances’.

Kate recently spoke about what it was like working with her son with host Jimmy Kimmel on Jimmy Kimmel Live. 

She shared that when it came time to find a director, she couldn’t let the project go, adding she wanted her son to experience his story coming to life.

Kate said: ‘When it came to the point of the screenplay being ready, I was going to produce it. I was going to play the character of Julia, and I knew that we were in a position to find a director. 

‘And I suddenly couldn’t let it go. And I said to him, look, I would love to direct it because when you give it to a director, it becomes theirs, which is exactly the right thing that should happen. But I didn’t want that for him.

‘I wanted him to remain a part of it. I wanted him to experience seeing this beautiful thing that he had created come to life. And he happens to be very, very smart about film, and having him there with me every day was just fantastic.’

Kate previously told Elizabeth Day’s podcast, How To Fail, that people in the industry had encouraged her to direct, saying that it could ‘change the culture’ of male-dominated Hollywood.

‘So many people will say to me on film sets, ‘Why aren’t you directing?’ and I’ll go ‘no, no, no, please don’t say it. Stop saying it. Why does everyone keep saying it?’,’ Kate said. 

‘I know why I haven’t done it: because it’s a very long time, and it’s a huge commitment, and I have always had a family. 

‘I had Mia when I was 25 years old and so there’s just no way I would have ever been able to do it. 

‘But the more I’m not doing it now, with the need to change the culture, the more I feel like I’m actually letting down other women by not doing it. I’m really starting to feel that.’

Her comments come after she said she is ‘so proud’ of her rarely seen son Joe as they posed together at the world premiere of their new movie, Goodbye June, in London on Wednesday 

Her children have followed her into the industry. Anders starred alongside his mother in Lee, having also appeared in the Oscar-nominated war film 1917, which was directed by his father.

Meanwhile, her daughter Mia Threapleton, 24 – whose father is Kate’s first husband, actor Jim Threapleton – is also making a name for herself as an actress. 

She won acclaim for her role alongside her mother in the Bafta award-winning domestic drama I Am Ruth.

Winslet also has a younger son, 11-year-old Bear, with her third husband Edward Abel Smith, the nephew of Sir Richard Branson.