Why does Hollywood still treat Jennifer Aniston like an ingenue?

Narrative is a powerful thing. She has that narrative and she leans into it.

She was ALWAYS over-exposed/rated.

She owes it all to Brangelina. She sure can’t act.

She has top-notch PR and she takes their advice. It’s not that difficult, but I guess ego or addiction trips up many celebs.

If you go into Stewie’s time machine, you can program it to go to the land where Jennifer is Forever 21.

I think she's adorable and unless she really fucks it up, she'll live in our hearts forever. Smart, smart girl.

Also, she’s a very good example of moderation. She’s not beautiful but she’s not ugly. She’s not stunningly talented but she’s decent. She’s not scandalous but she’s not a goody-two-shoes. She’s never too much of anything.

An actress’ career usually ends at 35 and they’re lucky if they make it to 40. She must be paying her people a fortune to keep her face out there with her minimal talent and beauty.

She is way overexposed but there is something tangible and comfortable about her. Her beauty is not remarkable but her has great eyes and a fit body and she acts like she’s humble (maybe an act) . Therefore she seems likeable to many. At least she’s not taking selfies in her bathroom mirror like so many others.

^ * she has great eyes

R6 = Olivia de Havilland

Why do I get the feeling that the only people who hate her are overweight moos that are bitter about their own life choices? Jennifer Aniston is about as non-threatening as it gets. Stays in her lane, manages her career to the best of her talents, etc. Her life is a dream. Wealthy, no kids, trips to Cabo to drink margaritas by the pool. Why hate on someone who made better choices than you?

[quote]An actress’ career usually ends at 35 and they’re lucky if they make it to 40.

Not so much today. Most things stick for decades.

R12 She got her career because her daddy is an actor.

Jennifer is inoffensive, but the media’s obsession with her having her first baby while in her 50’s is offensive.

[quote] Why hate on someone who made better choices than you?

R12 - you're a bore, darling.

[Quote][R12] She got her career because her daddy is an actor.

This daddy?

She must have a great publicist and the desire to be permanently before people, but what really made her was Pitt leaving her when he did. She was still Gen X's darling from Friends at that point. From the moment he left, all the hot chickies and married women who read the women's mags (and who had been envious of her position as wealthy young star with A+ list gorgeous husband), could all cluck sympathetically about her being unlucky in love, while feeling good about themselves because they might not have Brad Pitt but they had nice partners who didn't leave them, and they had children and she didn't. In this way she became even more of a generational darling than when she was at her peak.

Never understood her appeal.

R17 Her dad is a soap star named John Aniston. He has been on Days of Our Lives off/on for decades.

Wow that is an unflattering picture of her in OP's post. Her face looks lumpy.

She represents a quaint throwback to that bygone era when a woman didn't have to release a sex tape or flash her cooch coming out of a limo in order to become famous.

She has an amazing publicist.

People see her still as Rachel.

Who is her publicist? Asking for a friend.

I think DL tends to dismiss her appeal to straight GenX/millennial men--not merely the fans, but more importantly, those guys who work in media, who decide who's newsworthy, who gets the cool projects, flattering press, etc. There are still more straight men at the highest levels making executive decisions than you'd think.

They've grew up with FRIENDS in constant rotation, long after she first became "America's Girlfriend" and her perky tits became the true stars of the series.

Hellloooooo, Rachel!

Ugh those tiresome nipples again.

Do men really like Jennifer Aniston, though, R26? They’re not the ones who read all the stories about how she’s finally pregnant or back together with Brad or both. They’re not the ones who see the romantic comedies we parodied in the “Let’s Create a Jennifer Aniston Film” thread. If they see an Aniston movie, it’s solely because she’s Sandler’s sidekick.

Friends nostalgia only goes so far.

Have any other female stars continued to generate speculative headlines about their fertility well into their 50s? I can't think of any others offhand.

While I suppose I should be angry about older actresses continuing to be cast as the ingenue, I believe there is plenty of room for younger actresses (such as I).

A lot of people like her. She has a likeable presence. She's very pretty, but not beautiful...thus, for women, she's relatable. She has a good body, a nice face, and is viewed as kind of a "sporty" type...thus, men like her.

And I like her too.

R24 WHERE do they sell that type of extremely high powered beer 🍺 goggles??

She's the girl-next-door grown up.

The BETRAYAL of brangelina also made her sympathetic and gave her a built-in excuse. It also turned her into the perpetual underdog whose victories are hard won and deserved.

Unless she does something truly horrible, she's always going get to age gracefully in a way that few women in Hollywood are allowed to do.

She's relatable - for both men and women. There's a huge currency in that.

Plus - she hasn't gone overboard with social media or reality. She keeps out of the fray with comments and scandals.

Like SJP, I don't think she feels the need for adoration like other stars who can't keep themselves off of social media.

I never understood her success and longevity

It's easy to understand. She stays away from scandal(well except for Jolie), not a social media whore, knows her abilities as an actress. I think she got knocked down a peg after the Cake fiasco, though.

Here’s a great podcast from Slate re Aniston and her role in the media. Give it a listen

Here’s a great podcast from Slate re Aniston and her role in the media. Give it a listen

She tries to look and dress like an ingenue, although she's 20 years too late. She should transition into a more mature style and she would get more respect and be treated more seriously by moviemakers. She still could look great for a woman who looks her age.

She should do her hair up like Barbara Bush, and start acting her age!

Hollywood is dead. The movies suck and there aren't any universally known actresses under 40 anymore.

Jen is likable and she is not publicly known for treating people like garbage like JLaw.

She should get a stripper’s name like Courtney Cox.

Jehnnie Wadd

I don't think they are, OP. She is taking on a mature "leading lady" role in the Apple TV series, The Morning Show, and she's great in it. She also was taking on the mature married woman role in Murder Mystery, which was one of Netflix's top rated films for months.

R14 Yes, John Aniston is a soap actor. He was never even B list. He didn't have that kind of clout. He maybe got her more consideration for an audition but she is more famous than he ever dreamed of aspiring to.

Jennifer has talent - she has good comedic timing and she can do a serious role as well. I liked her in Cake and The Good Girl.

If Jen had never become famous ...

R45 are you kidding me? Everybody knew who Victor Keriakis was from the 80s - 90s.

I was a kid of the 80s, my name is Victor so I was always teased at school by being called Victor Keriakis or Victor Newman!

For Jennifer to have bagged / married Brad Pitt in the first place was a huge coup. People forget about that event because it was eclipsed by Brangelina.

IMO, she's treated like an ingenue b/c she still looks young for her age, has never had children, and has never been in a long-term marriage.

Also, whose favorite vacation destination is Cabo San Lucas? IMO, that's a simpleton-ish person. All that money and that's her recurring location?

I would rather have her life than Angelina's life.

[quote] Everybody knew who Victor Keriakis was from the 80s - 90s.

They most certainly did not.

[quote]I was a kid of the 80s, my name is Victor so I was always teased at school by being called Victor Keriakis or Victor Newman!

I don’t know where you went to school, but no one my age knew the names of any soap opera characters. Your classmates were very peculiar.

Sometimes I felt like she was being shoved down our throats. (Even after Friends ended, she was the top story on Yahoo News twice a week for years.) But, I can't really find any reason to dislike her. When she appears on a talk show, she's always self-effacing, and she never really pretends to be anything that she's not.

I also think it's cool that she didn't bend to societal pressure and pump out babies that she didn't really want. She's normalizing the childfree lifestyle for straight people.

I never really watched Friends, but I’ve been watching The Morning Show and I think she’s great in it. This is the first time I’ve paid much attention to her, but she clearly has talent.

I don't get the endless stream of "Jen's pregnant!" stories from the tabloid. They think she's going to pop out a baby at her age?

"The movies suck and there aren't any universally known actresses under 40 anymore."

There are plenty of actresses under 40 who are as well-known as Aniston. What world are you living in?

That's because society dictates that any normal woman would want to have a baby. You would not say that about a man. Watch any red carpet.

I don't understand how she is 51 *cough* when she used to be older than me by two years.

At least she never gets political or throws diva cunt tantrums. I’ll give her that.

She's the epitome of the Gen X/Boomer obsession of never getting old. You have to always look 29.

Several friends of mine have worked with her. They say that she is, for an actress, fairly pleasant and seldom throws her celebrity around. They also say she is remarkably dumb, to the point where they wonder if she is somewhat mentally-challenged.

JA is mostly a blank slate, that effectively allows people to project onto her persona whatever they want her to be. It also works in her favor that she’s not one of those annoying celebs who are constantly in our face with self-promoting, fake charity work or general famewhoring. Only time we hear from her directly is when she’s promoting a project. The unlucky in love aspect to her persona just adds more sympathy. Being just pretty enough but no great beauty also works in her favor. It means more women identify with her while men think they have a chance with her.

She’s popular in that she’s not public with her views or politics. She goes to Mexican resorts and gets papped drinking margaritas, that’s the extent of her involvement with international politics.

R7 What kind of school did you go to and why did it have so many gaylings?

R26 I was born in 1982, and I knew so many straight guys in high school and college who loved her. These was a popular poster where she's sitting with her legs crossed and wearing only a thong. I think half the guys in my dorm had a copy freshman year.

She's nothing but a pair of erect syndicated nipples.

I don;t think they treat her as much anymore. She hasn't had good leading roles in film in quite a while--she's mostly switched to television.

She definitely likes to show off her body. Half of her crotch is hanging out here.

hello

hello

HELLO!

"The Rachel" haircut put Aniston on the map, the rest is history.

Fans appreciate that she really hasn't changed since 'Friends,' unlike her fellow castmates, with the exception of Lisa Kudrow, and she takes care of her body and face.

The media still treats Britney Spears like she’s 20 and she’s almost 40. They still call her a “pop tart” and other ridiculous shit. It doesn’t help that she still dresses like she did at 20, much like Aniston.

I'm still called an admiral, yet I gave up the sea, long ago.

She’s an actress of a certain age that is still working and is still being regarded as an ingenue. Actors would lie, steal, and kill for that kind of career.

As long as Jen remembers who started the trend.

She just had that it factor and charisma. Attractive in a non threatening way. It was easy for the public to identify with her.

R8 forgot: or limited accomplishment

Her Q Score, what advertisers use to gauge market appeal, is rock solid. Especially with women in multiple age groups (17 to 62). While her appeal should have diminished following the end of Friends (and her less than stellar movie career), her score zoomed again with the same demographic following her split from Brad at the hands of Angelina Jolie.

The tabloids are NOT Hollywood, but then you knew that.

Aniston continued essentially playing Rachel in stream of rom coms for a good decade after Friends ended.. Rachel was an entire persona that Aniston created and used it very well for herself. She's basically a middled aged air head. But her face in HD is revealing her true age. She and Christina Applegate have the same careers. They are playing moms of teens.

Do you have IQs of gnats? JA has nothing to do with the hogwash trash 100 fantasy gossip press, such as the example given by OP.

She certainly looks better than Courtney Cox but then Cox admits she overdid it with the plastic surgery as well as having a procedure that went south. Has anyone ever figured out whether Aniston or Cox who the main mean bitch who tortured guest stars, apparently Schwimmer is/was a huge asshole and helped fuel the dumpster fire?

R78 didn't Kathleen Turner say the whole cast were a bunch of assholes??

Yes she did, but although talented Kathleen Turner is a washed up alcoholic and given to dramatics.

Just saying.

R80, for the record, my name is pronounced "Kah-tah-leen."

I've often wondered that too. Talk about someone being shoved down our throats. It just seems like all she has is her career. Nothing else going on there. It wouldn't surprise me if money doesn't change hands with some of this publicity she gets.

She has her gorgeous LA house, a pack of dogs, smokes the best weed money can buy, and can still catch hot dick. She should be a DL hero!

R20 Wow, that's a huge connection. No wonder she is so exposed

"Talk about someone being shoved down our throats."

How was she shoved down anyone's throat? She was on a hit show for years, then starred in some hit movies.

"talk about someone being shoved down our throats." I have a crazy idea: how about when you see her on tv, YOU FLIP THE CHANNEL

I think they are referring to the consistent media coverage she receives. Even Modonna doesn't receive this much press.

[quote]A lot of people like her. She has a likeable presence. She's very pretty, but not beautiful...thus, for women, she's relatable. She has a good body, a nice face, and is viewed as kind of a "sporty" type...thus, men like her.

This. She has an innate “likeability” factor about her. She just does.

Women like her because she had a dreamy fairytale husband who got stolen away by a bitch, and they’re obsessed with the idea of her getting back together with him and having a happy family.

She has excellent PR, she’s seen as modern and trendy, and she’s inoffensive to most people.

Does anyone....um....know who does her PR?

That's because Madonna hasn't had a hit in years

The media will still be peddling stories about how she's trying to get pregnant when she's 60.

Boring, average looks, downright ugly pre-surgery, milked the Brad breakup into the ground, dull, vapid, and basic.

She did a read through for Fast Times at Ridgemont High for charity and mouth is a straight line.

Her fame offends me. How she got Brad to marry her (aside from her huge Friends salary) is truly mystifying.

She's safe and boring. She's one of them that's gotten very lucky. Not going to be the case in a few years.

Because she’s cute.

Unlike you, OP. Which is why you are so confused about it.

R94 is so superficial, only talks about looks. I shudder to think who he cheers for.

50 years olds are not cute. Have you seen her lately?

Her personality is cute.

She is a talentless cunt whose whole career is built on racism: she got famous for a stupid show that stereotypes Jewish women as spoiled brats when she herself is not Jewish.

Most people on sitcoms act stupid and immature. So I don't know why the Jewish characters on Friends are unique in that way

R94= Angelina

She ripped off Teri Garr.

She ripped off Teri Garr.

The haircut thing say a lot. Many other women had the same haircut, including Courtney Cox, but women wanted to look like "Rachel", that talk about her attactive and charisma.

Aniston is stunning and brave.

Like Matthew Perry, she is still coasting on her looks.

It has to be looks. It's sure not talent.

I don’t understand her appeal nor Brad Pitts appeal either. He dresses like it’s the grunge era of 1995.

(R110) You hit it right on the nail. Thank you. I thought I was the only one that felt that way.

[quote] Like Matthew Perry, she is still coasting on her looks.

This is a joke, right? 2020 Matthew Perry looks like a fat bloated shell of a man and Matt LeBlanc is headed in the same direction. They were never much to look at even then. That perpetually scrunched-up face thing is not attractive at any age.

Matthew Perry is tragic.

(R113) No it's not. Had all the money and the opportunities and threw it away. It's his own damn fault.

Yikes, the people saying look at her recently are right. She appeared on the Emmys tonight and it looked like troweled the make up on. Lots of loose skin hanging too.

Those Greek genes finally caught up with her. You can only outrun them for so long.

She just isn't that interesting or talented. She gambled her whole career on what the Frauen wanted her to be. Now, they've moved on. She's lost her Frauen fan base, and once that goes, you don't get it back.

I have never seen a single episode of Friends. I've seen a couple of her movies and she always seems to play the same character, herself.

At the peak of her career I got very tired of seeing her expressionless face, always the same, all over the supermarket magazine stands. I'm one who doesn't see her appeal and I have no interest in watching Friends.

In some ways she's the equivalent of Debbi Reynolds, getting dumped by a husband for a much sexier woman, except Reynolds has far more talent and personality and she actually birthed children, including the amazing Carrie Fisher.

[quote] I have never seen a single episode of Friends

You're not missing anything. I'd honestly rather watch the show about the little girl robot. Even she had more black friends. One is greater than zero.

she has the talent of a one yr old.....go away lady

I like her. Always have. She has never been a public disaster. She appeals to a broad spectrum and is a decent comedic actress. Not a groundbreaker but not many are. Re: Mexico as favourite vacation spot. Why the fuck would anyone want to travel for 8 hrs to get to a world class beach and resort when you can be there in 2 hrs? I love Mexico also. The culture and convenience.

R128, go away, you racist fucking shill! Thanks for proving how much of her popularity is because of white supremacy. Just like Tony fucking Danza.

[quote] Also, she’s a very good example of moderation. She’s not beautiful but she’s not ugly. She’s not stunningly talented but she’s decent. She’s not scandalous but she’s not a goody-two-shoes. She’s never too much of anything.

When Friends first aired I remember seeing her as totally gorgeous but now when I come upon an episode while channel surfing it hits me how homely her looks really were. Courtney Cox is basically a symmetrically perfect goddess next to her. And I guess that's why people like Aniston, she's not perfect but can look fabulous when properly styled. And as a person she seems to be likeable and approachable which obviously means a lot as well.

All three of those bitches were basic and the Jewish one was the least worst actress but still embarrassingly overrated.

I hate Candace Cameron for the same reasons I hate her. I hate seeing untalented people, especially untalented people who are neither gay, nor Jewish, nor Black get ahead of the expense of talented people who are. If that isn’t racism, then the word itself is what it describes.

Given that she's half Greco-American, I think of Miss Aniston as "white-adjacent," frankly.

She's totally approachable, relatable. Girls want to hang out with her, guys want to date her, and she makes you feel you'd have a shot.

Yeah, you try to hang around her. With her bodyguards always around her. And not being famous. You tell me how that works out for you.

She’s not a mom.

That’s why.

It’s why Kim Cattrall is still somehow a babe, even though she’s 64.

R124: She’s white as a Bounce sheet and her acting smells just as fake.

Because that's how she markets herself. She's still treated like an ingenue for the same reason J-Lo is still treated like a sex kitten despite being the menopausal mother of a teenager. Hollywood treats you like the brand you present yourself to fit.

R126 I said "she makes you feel like you have a shot", which is part of her allure, NOT "I have a shot."

Op, she’s non-threatening and she’s basically frozen in time to 2005 when she was robbed of her husband by that temptress Miss Jolie! We collectively feel sorry for her and have allowed her to remain frozen in time for what happened to her.

Anniston is a lipstick lez who never wanted to be tied down with kids. More and more women are choosing to be childless, keep their money, and enjoy their freedom. Her marriage to Brad never really made sense as he is a midwestern guy who was gonna want a family. I can only assume Anniston was never up front about all that when they were dating. Brad has made some terrible life choices and they've really taken a toll. He looks old.

Brad would have left her anyways. If it hadn't been Angelina it would have been somebody else. From interviews I've read it sounded like he was bored in the marriage. It doesn't make it right what he did. But she's no saint either. Justin Theroux was in a long-term relationship when she met him. She's played that victim card for all it's worth.

Brad and Jennifer seemed like best friends who liked to smoke pot together and laugh at fart jokes. Jennifer just happened to be a girl and he was horny and thought they were a match. He's a hands-on old-school Midwestern guy and she's a rich bicoastal modern girl, so very different personalities and upbringings.

Also, Angelina was ambitious and power-hungry which attracted Brad. Jennifer was complacent and happy being a boring sitcom/rom-com actress. Brad is or at least was a major Hollywood actor and probably wanted a woman on his level with his ambition. He realized Jennifer would never try to be taken seriously as an actress.

[Quote] He realized Jennifer would never try to be taken seriously as an actress.

She tried.

Jennifer during her year playing Jeanie on that failed Ferris Bueller TV spin-off.

In Leprechaun.

She is not the world's most beautiful or sexy woman like the press hails her. She is an average looking woman who can look pretty with the right hair, makeup and wardrobe. She is basically relatable in that regard.

Why doesn’t Jennifer have any kids?

Jennifer is a PR creation. Never doubt the power of PR.

R139 because she doesn't want to.

A friend of mine described Pitt as a “creepy farm boy” when he first came on the scene 30 years ago. That’s how I’ve always thought of him. There’s something simultaneously boring and sinister about him.

R142 sinister in what way??

Brad is about as sinister as a golden retriever puppy.

R137: After ruining [italic]Mac & Me[/italic], she ruined both that show and that Fox show she did with Mayim Bialik in the span of a couple of months. That should have been the end of her career.

Brad isn't sinister, he's just from the Midwest.

She's the female version of Paul Rudd. I'm surprised they didn't play house for a while. That confirmed bachelor rumor about Paul is nonsense.

Ugh...

Fake news. And I wouldn't trust her with a goldfish, never mind a human child.

As marginally talented as she is, there aren't that many actresses that are as lovely and likable as Jennifer Aniston. She's a pothead who is easy to get along with and doesn't seem to be a stuck-up bitch like other actresses in Hollywood. I know it's her image but other actresses have had those images and couldn't keep it up and showed their true colors. The fact that Jen still has a good reputation and nothing bad has leaked, shows her wholesome image is somewhat based in reality. Compare her to Halle Berry who got drunk and hit someone, Angelina Jolie who seems batshit crazy, Jennifer Lawrence who seems cold and stuck-up, Jennifer Lopez who is a bitch, etc.

That post was pure projection, R150.

Don't even try it.

I wonder if Jen and Brad are trolling the media on purpose just to get more hype for their projects.

R139 perhaps she was traumatized by her relationship with her mother but it’s definite a red flag that there’s something wrong there unless she’s barren then it’s not her fault.

R154 is batshit crazy. Lots of women don’t want kids.

Brad Pitt has diverse taste in women, dated Juliette Lewis, Jill Schoelen, Robin Givens and Gwyneth Paltrow. Married Jennifer Aniston and then Angelina Jolie. He doesn't seem to have a type at all. Only Robin and Angelina could be considered beauties.

Who is/was Jill Schoelen?

Of those exes, I like Juliette Lewis, despite her being a Scieno. She seems pretty down to earth and unpretentious with a great sense of humor. She's a better actor than is commonly thought--she's often just typecast as airheads or hippies.

Whither Robin Givens' career?

Juliette is definitely a Gen X icon. Her resume in the 90s was impeccable: From Dusk Till Dawn, The Basketball Diaries, Kalifornia, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, Cape Fear and Natural Born Killers.

Robin deserved better but I think getting beat by and having a nasty divorce wit the beloved figure Mike Tyson made her seen as "damaged goods". Misogyny really did a number on her career. When it happened to Rihanna, society was way more sympathetic to black women.

R152 She looked like a brat when she was little. That is brat face.

[Quote] Compare her to Halle Berry who got drunk and hit someone, Angelina Jolie who seems batshit crazy, Jennifer Lawrence who seems cold and stuck-up, Jennifer Lopez who is a bitch, etc.

Well Angelina was batshit before she tried the whole Mother Theresa thing. And i haven't heard many horror stories about JLaw on set.

That’s pure projection, R160.

R161 if you say so.

Being cheated on by Brad Pitt with a sex goddess like Angelina Jolie, won her a lot of sympathy points. I remember, at the time, my female relatives were saying how much they liked her and hated Angelina. Not just for being a homewrecker, but for the holier than thou act. Nobody likes to see an adulterer act like they're better than anyone. But stories about Jennifer Aniston being a bitch are out there. I don't think you can get to her level of success on such little talent without being at least a little cutthroat. It's hard to imagine now, but at the height of her fame and success, she was being cast in a ton of movies with major A-list stars. It's funny, because I remember reading some article where they ask celebrities to talk about the different movies and shows they've been in and reflect on their experience. And she basically trashed most of them as not being good enough for her. Like she's Meryl Streep or something.

Back when she had her original nose and real tits.

Like I said, everything about her is fake.

[quote]And i haven't heard many horror stories about JLaw on set.

I've never heard of her acting like a diva besides complaining about the body painting in the X-Men films. That in itself was a real shame since it affected the feel of the movie.

I’ve heard from friends in production that JLaw is essentially nice and approachable but dumb

That’s because she threatens to sue people for violation of nondisclosure agreements, letter R166.

I wonder why Jennifer is always in a bad mood. She's a big pothead you think that would calm her down.

Neither Jennifer nor Angelina are that great of actresses. Jennifer was originally a b-movie actress who struck gold with Friends and some lame rom-coms on her side. Despite Angelina having nepotism and her beauty/sexiness on her side. She would have went the way of other sexpot actresses like Sharon Stone, Kathleen Turner and Jessica Alba as soon as she turned 35 and got replaced. The controversy over Brad helped both of their careers.

Brad was 27 when he publicly announced he was dating the then 17 year-old Lewis. Take from that what you will.

R171 Wow, he wasn't smart. In California, the age of consent was 18 in order to protect child and teenage actors from people like him lol. Paul Walker also dated teens and he's from California. I guess nobody cared enough to enforce that rule.

It's interesting in high school Jennifer Aniston's best friend was Chastity Bono. I never see them together anymore. She's always with Jason Bateman's wife. Probably hangs on her every word.

Probably plotting against him.