Why You Don't Hear From Andie MacDowell Anymore
Andie MacDowell rose to fame in the late '80s with the release of Sex, Lies and Videotape, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination. From there, she went on to star in other iconic films such as Groundhog Day and Four Weddings and a Funeral. There was no stopping her rise to fame as her image quickly spread to modeling and even a L'Oreal contract, reports the UK Express.
Today, at 58, she's still equally stunning but she also lives a much quieter life. When she's not working on her new series, Cedar Love, she's busy raising her daughters, giving divorce advice, complaining about American Airlines service and hiking—because it keeps her beautiful.
She's happy out of the spotlight
MacDowell has spent the better part of her adult life in the spotlight. But it's a job she doesn't always seems to enjoy as the attention can become overwhelming. Rather, she comes across as introverted in a 2013 Washington Post interview. She tells the publication that sometimes she'd prefer to go bird watching or read a book instead of acting before millions, as she can be both introverted and extroverted.
"There's a deep piece of me that wants to be very personal and not share everything with everybody and not put it out there," she said. "There's a piece of me that wants to hold on and not to have to be out in front. But there's another part of me that's perfectly fine with it. It's almost a dual personality."
She went on to describe her social life. "I'm not a party person. I'm a nerd. I'm not an extrovert in that way at all. The things I enjoy doing could be boring to somebody else," she said, despite having attended of the swankiest parties in Hollywood over the years.
She was bumped from first class
Flying can be a pain in the butt for anyone: the long lines, heavy bags, cramped leg room aboard and occasionally a rude employee. Back in January 2016, MacDowell took to Twitter to complain that she was bumped from first class and forced to sit in coach, reports People. As the story goes, MacDowell was traveling to South Carolina for charity work. She was also traveling with her rescue puppy as it was also the dog's first flight. In a string of tweets, MacDowell made her case that American Airlines has poor customer service.
"@AmericanAir HELP I paid for first class & they put me in tourist because of my dog that I pre-booked & paid for," she tweeted. But instead of getting sympathy from social media users, MacDowell was harshly criticized with some calling her a bit stuck up for complaining. "@AmericanAir there was no excuse why the guy would not just let me ask someone to change seats he had a power trip," she tweeted. "@AmericanAir he said take the seat or don't get on my plane I was there early to ask for help and from the moment I met him he was rude."
Days later, the matter still wasn't cleared up. "I'm very happy flying in coach I'm happy on a bus or the subway but if I pay for first class, that's where I want to be, that was the point," she wrote, attempting to clear the matter while dodging headlines she's acting like a diva. "Lessons learned never, complain on Twitter & don't pay for first class on American Airlines, only express gratitude...can we move on now." She then agreed to donate the price difference in seats to charity.
She also shut down one troll who labeled her elitist over the entire snafu. "@3dgenfire that's not at all how I feel I'm sorry if it sounded that way i'm happy taking a bus and preferred dirt roads it's the principle," she summed up. "No matter who you are it's nice to be treated kindly when flying & it just depends on the employee if they're nice or not... Kindness always wins, in the end it's all that matters."
She's offended by the term 'cougar'
One can call MacDowell talented, graceful, intriguing and even sexy. But the term "cougar" will send this star into the red zone. Despite having played a thirsty southern mom in Magic Mike XXL, MacDowell refuses to label her character and even other woman of a certain age "cougars." She believes it's downright rude and derogatory.
"I find it offensive," she told People without batting an eye. "There's this notion that as men get older they become more handsome, so therefore they can have younger women, but there is no reality to that obviously – it's just another way to disempower women."
Although some would say MacDowell is taking the term too seriously, she points there is no male equivalent as it's quite common for older men to date younger. "[Women] have been disempowered for so long and I think that it's finally our time," she says. "And if we want to date a guy that's 20 years younger than we are then we definitely have that same right, just like any man does. I dare any 57-year-old man to tell me that he looks younger than me."
In all, she views love and dating different than some people. Age, as she describes, shouldn't play such a role. "The thing of it is that people are people and age is just a number," she said. "It all depends on how you connect with someone, how you relate to someone, so why demean either one of us? Why should we do that to disempower either one of us?"
She's twice divorced
Since entering the spotlight in the late '80s, MacDowell has endured two major divorces. Each time it left a mark on her heart. She was married to Paul Qualley from 1986 to 1999; her second marriage, to Rhett Hartzog, lasted just three years, from 2001 to 2004, reports the Daily Mail.
"It's not really something I like to talk about," she told the Washington Post. "It's interesting I say 'my divorce' because the second marriage was so fast it just wasn't the same. And divorce is horrible. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. I don't think it's anything that's ever completely resolved." MacDowell even says that women coping with a divorce often have a distinctive look. "It's a huge part in the life of many women I know," she added. "I can usually tell when a woman is going through a divorce because they look so gaunt and tired and sad. It's just a huge sadness. It's horrible. It's like death. You mourn, but the person's still there."
Since she suffered major heartbreak on two occasions, she's an expert in the matter. MacDowell even has some advice for Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner. "It's really hard," she tells People. "It's not an easy transition. I think that the sooner you can let go of any anger, the better off you are. I think anger really kills you, it's a really negative energy, it doesn't hurt anybody but yourself, it eats you up." But she does have one powerful suggestion about finding inner peace after turmoil. "As fast as you can, resolve your own personal anger, and find your own peace of mind," she wisely said. "There is life after divorce."
But just because she's healed, don't expect her to plan a third trip down the aisle anytime soon. "I'm in an unusual stage right now, because I haven't dated in so long. The sense of isolation turns it all into a bigger deal. Just taking the risk of opening that door is really hard for me right now," she told Town and Country magazine (via the Daily Mail) in 2012.
She's taking care of her body
When MacDowell jumped on the screen in the late '80s, she was stunning. Today, at 58, she's equally stunning and keeps her body in tip-top shape. "I'm thankful that my a** still looks good at 58!'" MacDowell quipped to the New York Daily News (via the Daily Mail). "I'm thankful that I'm still strong and I can still hike as well as any young person."
And hike she does! MacDowell's Instagram is littered with tons of hiking photos and other details about her health. In one snap standing on a mountain top MacDowell writes, "Another beautiful hike... I haven't washed my hair since I got here. All I've done is hike, yoga & I've gone vegan. So all is cool."
According to an ABC interview, she does at least one hour of exercise a day."If I miss a day, I'm not as happy," MacDowell said. "I definitely feel it."
Other snaps show the star hiking with her adorable pooch or caring for horses and other barn animals. It seems her secret to such a fit body is staying active and busy, even as 60 approaches in a few short years.
She's raising and coaching beautiful daughters
When MacDowell isn't busy with her own career, she's busy raising and making sure her daughters turn into superstars. She's the mom to Margaret and Rainey Qualley, both of whom come MacDowell's first marriage. The young girls have decidedly stepped into show business like their famous mom. According to a Town & Country interview (via the Daily Mail), MacDowell tried to sway them out of that decision. "I tried to talk them into doing something less stressful," she said. "'Because while what I do is beautiful, it's not easy. But I do like the idea of Margaret doing some stage training while she's still young which I didn't do."
The training paid off, as Margaret has a recurring role on HBO's Leftovers series. She plays Jill Garvey and was cast right after high school. "[The Leftovers] didn't start filming until I graduated high school," Qualley, who also appeared in a popular commercial for Kenzo, told Vogue. "So I did the pilot in the summer and then was able to go to NYU in the fall." The show was eventually picked up and she decided to take off to keep up with the filming schedule. Leftovers is now in its third and final season.
Rainey on the other hand, is a budding country music star, according to a short Fox5 NY interview from 2014. At the time, she released the song "Turn Me On like the Radio," which was doing well. "She just moved to Nashville and she's working and she's written all these amazing songs," MacDowell beamed about her daughter. "Some stuff is really cooking now for her. So I'm fired up about it."
Rainey, who was named Miss Golden Globe 2012, is also talented actress who landed a sexy role on a 2015 episode of Mad Men, reports the Huffington Post.
She's maintaining her beauty
When most people think of MacDowell, the term "ageless" beauty may come to mind. As she tells ABC, it's no easy task being beautiful. "I have some flaws, like anybody," she said of showing off her natural body without retouching. "I have not had plastic surgery. My face is my face and, you know, at this point, I don't see any need. I'm kind of fine with where I am."
But at 58 and looking so youthful, MacDowell admits she does get a "pinch" tired of talking about aging. She claims her beauty routine is rather simple and includes using coconut oil, homemade salt scrubs and other oils along with a steam shower. And it seems she's not strict with food either. "I love chocolate," the actress beamed. "I know that's my weakness and I have to have some self-control."
On aging gracefully, MacDowell told Town & Country (via Daily Mail), "There is sexy, and then there's tacky sexy. When you're young, you can get away with tacky sexy. I mean, it's not even tacky when you're young. But when you get older, it's just tacky."
As the industry continues to obsess over youth and beauty, she's quick to remind everyone that she's legendary. "I am the original face of L'Oréal," she quipped to London's UK Express. "But you want to know my secret? I always say that kindness is the greatest beauty that you can have. Angry people are not beautiful. On top of that, I take really good care of myself. I love being physical and I want to stay that way. I really want to be able to hike when I'm in my eighties."
She's still acting
While it seems that MacDowell has been absent in recent years, she's actually been working very quietly. After Magic Mike XXL, she leaped into a TV series Cedar Love, on which she plays Olivia Lockhart. She's also landed roles in Model Woman, Trial & Error and the upcoming projects Love After Love, Granite Mountain and Paper Year, reports IMDb.
If it seems like she's taken on a lot more TV than films in recent years it's because she comfortable now that her family has grown up. "One of the reasons I didn't really want to do TV earlier in my career was because it is so life-consuming and I wanted to spend time with my kids and be a mother," she told the UK's Express. "I didn't want to leave them. But as soon as my youngest daughter finished high school, I started thinking it would really be great. It was all timing, and when I read the Cedar Cove script I just wanted to move there. It's like it was meant to be."