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Millie Bobby Brown is publicly clapping back at critics of her styling choices.
For years, fans have observed that she styles herself to look considerably older than her actual age.
After Millie Bobby Brown’s blonde makeover, some remarked that the barely-21-year-old would not look out of place at a Real Housewives Reunion special.
Well, MBB saw the criticism. She’s had enough, and says that it crosses the line. Is she right?
Are people bullying Millie Bobby Brown over her appearance?
Millie Bobby Brown excited a lot of people by going blonde.
Not only is it fun to see someone rocking a ’90s look (even if that someone did not yet exist in the ’90s), but the blonde ‘do had people speculating that MBB might play Britney Spears in the upcoming biopic.
However, there were critics who described Brown as appearing to have “aged far beyond her years.”
Taking to her Instagram page on the evening of March 3, Millie Bobby Brown called out headlines about what she has “done to her face” and about her being “mistaken for someone’s mom.”
“I grew up in front of the world, and for some reason, people can’t seem to grow with me,” the actress, who catapulted to instant fame as a tween on Stranger Things, lamented in her post.
“Instead, they act like I’m supposed to stay frozen in time,” Brown described. “Like I should look the way I did on ‘Stranger Things’ Season 1. And now because I don’t, I’m a target.”
Is this about more than Millie Bobby Brown?
Some, including both fans and critics of Millie Bobby Brown, might say that this is a critique of her styling choices. But she describes it as part of a broader set of unrealistic standards by which society judges women.
“The fact that adult writers are spending their time dissecting my face, my body, my choices, it’s disturbing,” she characterized. (Notably, she is an adult, and most article writers outside of high school newspapers are adults)
MBB added: “The fact that some of these articles are written by women? Even worse.”
“I refuse to apologize for growing up,” Millie Bobby Brown, who married in May of 2024, affirmed.
“Let’s do better,” she suggested. “Not just for me, but for every young girl who deserves to grow up without fear of being torn apart for simply existing.”
In her caption, Brown called out some articles and their writers by name, seemingly in an effort to shame them. Countless “likes” flowed into the article on Instagram — including from A-list actors, some of whom have famously faced misogynistic attacks on their looks.
Is she right? Yes … but maybe a little bit ‘no’
Millie Bobby Brown is right on the money when she points out that women are held to unrealistic, often unattainable standards. This is true outside of the entertainment industry, but even more true within it.
At the same time, she does make styling choices — as she did even as a teen — that make her look older than she is. In some cases, older by decades.
We’re not talking about wearing a dress out of another decade. It’s makeup, hair, and everything. She has every right to style herself however she likes, but when she wears a conspicuous look to red carpet events, it cannot be a surprise when people discuss it.
If, for example, Finn Wolfhard showed up to a red carpet event with his wardrobe, hair, and makeup looking like he’s nearly 50, people would comment on that, too.
That said, it would be less than Millie Bobby Brown, precisely because our society is so weird about women and their looks.
So, like we said, she’s mostly right. But some aspects of her point miss the mark.
Millie Bobby Brown Condemns ‘Bullying’ Of Her Aged-Up Looks was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.