In what’s become a tired and sadly predictable trend regarding women over 50 in Hollywood, Meg Ryan is at the center of internet debate this week after making a rare public appearance.
The “When Harry Met Sally” and “Sleepless in Seattle” actor turned up at New York’s Lincoln Center last Thursday for a screening of Michael J. Fox’s new documentary, “Still.”
Following the screening, the 61-year-old happily posed with Fox and his wife, Tracy Pollan, for photos and mingled with other guests, including musician Elvis Costello and actor Denis Leary.
Unfortunately, the reaction on social media was swift and cruel, with many hurling out accusations of plastic surgery and other cosmetic enhancements.
“Hopefully, women will learn from this,” one person wrote. “Plastic Surgery is for Frankenstein.”
Though others came to Ryan’s defense, The New York Post and other outlets were quick to amplify the criticism with stories accusing the actor of being “unrecognizable.”
Watch an Entertainment Tonight report on the “Still” premiere below.
Meanwhile, videos began hastily popping up on YouTube and other platforms by people purporting to be cosmetic surgery “experts” who shared their guesses on what procedures she may have undergone.
Ryan, of course, isn’t the only famous woman in her age demographic to be subjected to such scorn. In some respects, it felt like a repeat of the 2023 Grammy Awards in February, after which pop singer Madonna, 64, found herself inundated with similar ― and equally misogynistic ― scrutiny online after a brief appearance onstage.
Though Ryan hasn’t responded to the recent commentary, she told Porter magazine in 2015 that she doesn’t “pay a lot of attention” to such discourse.
“There are more important conversations than how women look and how they are aging,” she said at the time, per People. “I love my age. I love my life right now. I love what I know about. I love the person I’ve become, the one I’ve evolved into.”
She noted: “There’s a lot of hatred in the world today, it’s so easy to judge. Imagine being a hater, how stupid!”
Fortunately, Ryan could have the last laugh, as the Golden Globe nominee looks poised to make a Hollywood comeback.
Last week, it was announced that she’d direct and star alongside David Duchovny in “What Happens Later,” an “evolved and nostalgic” take on the romantic comedy.
A release date for the film has not been announced.