World's Most Beautiful: Of Course It's Demi! Read Her Candid Interview and See the Stunning Photos
Long a beauty icon, Demi Moore delivered the performance of her career in 'The Substance' — and proved she's never been more comfortable in her own skin
Demi Moore’s Oscar night wasn’t the fairy-tale ending many had predicted for the star, the season’s favorite to win best actress. But she greeted the morning after in peace and pajamas. “I think I was in them all day,” she says, laughing. “I was just so happy to kind of sleep in, knowing I had nowhere to be. It was just a beautiful, easy day.”
At 62, Moore has earned her resilience, drawing from a life filled with trials and triumphs — from a troubled childhood and marital ups and downs to trailblazing roles and the joy of being a mom to her three daughters, Rumer, Scout and Tallulah, whom she shares with ex Bruce Willis.
“Giving birth is one of the only times that you can 100 percent know that pain is bringing you a gift,” she says. “And when you can apply that to other things, you start to see that that is a truth of all things that are difficult.”
With her intense role as an aging star fitness instructor desperate for youth in the horror hit The Substance, Moore showcased her long-underrated acting chops — and her unparalleled ability to shape Hollywood’s narratives around power and beauty. (Remember her naked and pregnant on that 1991 Vanity Fair cover? Or doing one-arm pushups in G.I. Jane?)
The accolades — including her first Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards — have given the single Moore, who’s now filming season 2 of the Paramount+ hit Landman, an emboldened sense of who she has become.
“I have a greater appreciation for all that my body has been through that brought me to now,” she says of aging in Hollywood. “It doesn’t mean that sometimes I look in the mirror and don’t go, ‘Oh God, I look old,’ or ‘Oh, my face is falling’ — I do. But I can accept that that’s where I’m at today, and I know the difference today is that it doesn’t define my value or who I am.”
So how do you define beauty at this stage in your life?
In a way, beauty just is. You can look at a flower and see its beauty. On a human level, I find it’s authenticity and positivity. Beauty comes out of comfort with being exactly who you are.
What are your thoughts on why The Substance resonated with so many people?
I think there’s an aspect that we all have experienced, which is compare and despair. And it isn’t necessarily just about our outsides. It’s that harsh, self-critical judgment. And everyone who’s in the public eye does face a little more judgment and harsher external criticism. I think the thing that was so relatable is really that violence we can have against ourselves.
"The moments that feel the most beautiful are when I’m showing up for others"
Demi Moore
The film premiered at Cannes in May 2024. Can you even encapsulate what the past year has been like for you?
As somebody put it to me, it’s been like a full pregnancy — really joyous moments, exhausting moments. But overall it was an extraordinary time and experience. Especially because all of it was unexpected. I had no idea what might happen with this film. And I certainly could never have imagined it unfolding the way that it did.
When did you first realize you could make it as an actress?
The first big moment was when I got General Hospital a month before my 19th birthday. It was like a real job where I was going to have an actual salary, meaning I didn’t have to have another job. I could live by doing this thing that I loved and hoped I could do. But I really never felt like I knew what I was doing. I didn’t really study. I really did come from the university of Fake It Till You Make It. Everything for me was watching, listening and learning from fellow actors.
Did you ever have an awkward phase growing up?
Definitely. I had amblyopia, which is a wandering eye. When I was 5, it had crossed all the way in, and I had surgery to pull it out. So I had a very awkward time. And I can think in particular of an image with this bad haircut when the winged look came along. I may have been 11 or 12 in a jean jacket that had this red-and-white fabric with a bow. It was really not attractive.
You’ve talked about how your mom’s alcoholism was devastating to your relationship. Did that shape the way you wanted to raise your daughters?
For many, many years that was really about not wanting my kids to ever experience certain things that I had. It created a real drive in me to want to look for opportunities to transform and become the best version of myself. One of the beautiful revelations was: How could I expect my children to have compassion for me if I didn’t have compassion for my own mother?
And I really then moved into the beauty and the innocence of the soul that came into this world, that in no way had a desire to be neglectful or less than nurturing. And I think I had a pendulum swing where I didn’t want to burden my children, I never let them see me emotional. I really see now how important that is for our children to see us sad and see that we walk through it and get to the other side. It’s okay to be angry and move through it. There’s a lot I’ve learned and some I wish I had figured out sooner, but I also trust that it all happens in its right time.
How did it feel being there with all three of your girls for your granddaughter Louetta’s birth?
It was really incredible. Rumer was at Scout’s birth; Scout and Rumer were at Tallulah’s birth. Rumer had a home birth, and there was a moment when I thought, “Oh boy, I don’t know if she’s going to make it," like she has a different pain threshold than I do. To just see her move into her own power and focus, it was a really extraordinary, beautiful moment.
"I'm a work in progress. I'm certainly more comfortable in my own skin at this point than I've ever been"
Demi Moore
What are you most grateful for when it comes to your relationship with Bruce?
That regardless of what the outside relationship has been, we have maintained being a family in various forms. The foundation of making our children our priority has never wavered.
You’ve been candid about the extreme lengths you went to in the past regarding your body. How has your self-care evolved?
I did torture myself. Crazy things like biking from Malibu all the way to Paramount, which is about 26 miles. All because I placed so much value on what my outsides looked like. I think the biggest difference today is it’s so much more about my overall health and longevity and quality of life. I think I’ve evolved into greater gentility toward myself. I was so harsh and had a much more antagonistic relationship with my body. And straight up I was really just punishing myself.
Now I have a much more kind of intuitive, relaxed relationship with my body. I trust when it tells me it needs something to eat, that it’s thirsty. I listen to my body today, and I have a lot less fear. When I was younger, I felt like my body was betraying me. And so I just tried to control it. And now I don’t operate from that place. It’s a much more aligned relationship.
What does your wellness routine now entail?
I really like anchoring with a short meditation, journaling. And overall I like really nutrient-dense food. I don’t eat meat. I do eat eggs. But I think a big part of wellness is really inside out. And I’ve come to realize how important sleep is. I mean, I’m not perfect. I still do drink Red Bull. I do love it. But not many. One.
You recently said you were defining yourself at this age and no longer playing by the same rules. Which ones were you happy to see go?
I don’t know if I really ever did play by the rules. I remember hearing, “Oh, you get to a certain age, and it’s not appropriate to have long hair.” It really should be more what feels comfortable on you. Part of it was I looked around and saw women of a certain age cutting their hair, almost neutralizing themselves, and it didn’t make sense for me.
Would you ever do a pixie cut again?
I don’t know. There’s energy in hair, you know? But I never like to say never.
Could you see yourself embracing the silver-fox look late in life?
Oh, 100 percent. I look at women who have that incredible gray, especially long, and I think it’s striking. I would definitely do it. Mine’s like a smattering of gray that makes my hair look murky. I didn’t really even start coloring it until I was, like, 55.
What has fame taught you about yourself?
It’s put me through the wringer. Not unlike what The Substance is and why they made the character an actor. Because it really forced me to address my issues of self-judgment and lack of appreciation.
And what have you learned about love?
That without loving yourself, you cannot truly experience love with another. And if you need practice, you can go and find a little Pilaf [her beloved tiny Chihuahua]. Because she is a pocketful of love every day.
Any advice you’d give 15-year-old Demi?
To take risks. And be fearless. And that it’s okay to make mistakes.
How about your 80-year-old self?
Maybe it’s what does my 80-year-old self need to tell me, which is take care of us. Take care of this body. Don’t take this body for granted.
