Millie Bobby Brown defends herself against headlines criticizing appearance

Millie Bobby Brown is standing up for herself against headlines commenting on her appearance.

The 21-year-old “Stranger Things” actress spoke out about the criticism she began receiving earlier this year about her appearance and her decision to address her critics head-on in a video she shared to Instagram in March.

“‘Oh my God, what has she done with her face? Why has she gone blonde? She looks 60 years old!’” she told British Vogue, recalling some of the comments she received. “I respect journalism. I love reading articles on my favourite people and hearing what they’re up to. I understand that there’s paparazzi, even though it’s invasive, even though it feels like s— to me – I know that’s your job.”

She continued, “But don’t, in your headline, slam me at the get-go. It is so wrong and it is bullying, especially to young girls who are new to this industry and are already questioning everything about it.”

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She went on to say that she wanted to address the criticism, “not just for myself, but for every other girl who wants to try a new hairstyle or wear a red lip.”

“It’s, like, get off my f—ing case, you know?” she added. “I am 21. I am going to have fun and play and be myself.”

Brown’s video received over 7.5 million likes, and three weeks later, she saw a more positive headline. “They were like, ‘Millie stuns in this dress,’” she said, before questioning, “How do you change your mind that quickly?”

The negative headlines came during her press tour for the Netflix movie, “The Electric State.” To pay homage to the 1990s theme of the film, Brown bleached her hair blonde and borrowed clothes from Paris Hilton and Pamela Anderson.

She explained being excited about her new look, but was then “depressed for three, four days,” adding, “I was crying every single day.” Singer Sabrina Carpenter then gave her some words of encouragement when they saw each other backstage at the Brit Awards.

“Truly, always, her mentality is very much like ‘F— ’em’, which I knew inside of me, but when you hear someone else say it, you’re like, ‘Yes! That’s it!’” Brown said.

She acknowledged that she “can’t silence the 500 million people behind their phones,” but that didn’t stop her from finding a “realistic route” to change the narrative.

“I think it’s just uplift and empower young people. Can we fight back harder? Can we instill self-love and confidence into girls to be able to believe in themselves no matter what anyone says? That I can do. That I will do.”

In her original Instagram video, Brown called out the negative headlines and questioned why people “act like I’m supposed to stay frozen in time,” and always look like she did on season one of “Stranger Things.”

Later in the post, she claimed that society has gotten to a point “where it’s so much easier to criticize than it is to pay a compliment,” and urged everyone to “do better,” not only for herself, but also for “every young girl who deserves to grow up without fear of being torn apart for simply existing.”

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“We always talk about supporting and uplifting young women, but when the time comes, it seems easier to tear them down for clicks. Disillusioned people can’t handle seeing a girl become a woman on her terms, not theirs,” she said. “I refuse to apologize for growing up. I refuse to make myself smaller to fit the unrealistic expectations of people who can’t handle seeing a girl become a woman.”

Brown married Jon Bon Jovi’s son, Jake Bongiovi, in May 2024, and the couple announced they had adopted a baby girl in August.

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