Andie MacDowell Says No One Would Care About Her Gray Hair If She Was a Man

Andie MacDowell’s gray hair is an oft-repeated subject of conversation surrounding the actress since she decided to let it turn that hue—and, by the way, MacDowell would like us all to know, it is silver, and not gray, thank you very much. 

Something else she’s like us to know? That if she were a man, we wouldn’t care at all about her gray hair. In NewBeauty’s March cover story, MacDowell discussed the constant attention surrounding her hair, and the actress told the outlet “For me, it’s fascinating that it’s such a curiosity and interest to people,” she said. “I think also, it’s important to stop and think about that interest and curiosity—because it wouldn’t happen if I was a man. It happens because I’m a woman.” 

MacDowell added “We have to look at that. We have to look at why there’s interest in me having silver hair, because if I were a man, there would be no question I had silver hair, right?”

Chatter aside, MacDowell said she loves her hair and wouldn’t have it any other shade. She actually told NewBeauty she would have gone gray sooner, but admitted she was “afraid.”

“I finally got the courage during COVID when I saw it with my eyes and my skin color,” MacDowell said. “Once it was growing out, I could see what the color was going to be like, and I really loved it. I knew it was time.”

MacDowell told People back in 2022 that she was inspired by her sister when it came to letting her hair do what it wanted to and be its natural color: “My sister’s full-on silver and she’s only 18 months older than me,” she said. “I thought she looked so much more beautiful being silver. I was jealous.”

MacDowell added that, despite the attention paid to it, “she’s been overwhelmed with gratitude for the love she’s received, simply for letting her hair naturally do its thing,” People writes.  

“I knew instinctually that this was something that I wanted to do,” said MacDowell, who has been a L’Oréal Paris ambassador for four decades. “I’m just so thankful that L’Oreal Paris supported me and that everybody’s been so kind to me and positive. The response has been really nice. I’m just appreciative that people let me be the individual that I am without question. I think people also agree that silver hair probably suits me.”