Anne Hathaway Admits 'Beauty Can Contain Ugliness' as Doctor Warns Pressures of Hollywood Setting Unrealistic Standards

At 43, Anne Hathaway has been named PEOPLE’s 2026 World’s Most Beautiful, a title that arrives as she gears up for a packed year that includes five film releases and the highly anticipated The Devil Wears Prada 2. But while the honor celebrates her enduring star power, it’s also reigniting a familiar question: what does it actually mean to call someone “the most beautiful” in 2026?

“When I started out, I thought I’d be a better artist if I was really hard on myself,” she told People. “And then turning 40, I just kind of found a different gear, and I was no longer interested in living an awkward life. I was just interested in getting to the fun part.”

That “fun part,” she suggests, is rooted in something deeper than appearance. “Beauty can contain within it ugliness as long as it contains truth,” she said.

“When beauty is framed as a title or something to be awarded, it subtly reinforces the idea that it is limited or comparative,” said Jenelle Kim, a Doctor of Chinese Medicine, 9th-generation Taoist practitioner and author of The Korean Art of Living Well. “That can create a quiet pressure to measure ourselves against an external standard, rather than cultivating a sense of beauty that comes from within.”

That tension between admiration and comparison is especially pronounced in an era shaped by social media.

“Celebrities are under enormous pressure because even ordinary moments can be scrutinized and every flaw pointed out,” said Dr. Stephanie Johnson, PsyD, MSCP.

“Celebrity culture does influence beauty standards, and trends often trickle down to the general public,” Johnson added. “Culturally, this can be harmful because there is no real perfect beauty standard. Standards also keep shifting.”

“Anne Hathaway has had such a controversial history in the press where years ago she was considered to be one of the most disliked actress and now is considered to be the most beautiful just shows you the power of a great PR agent and the fickleness of Hollywood,” said body language and communications expert Dr. Lillian Glass.

“In Hollywood age is a taboo,” Glass added. “That is why there is such an obsession to doing whatever it takes to look great.”

Reflecting on her early years, Hathaway described a long stretch of uncertainty: “For decades — decades. I think I had the longest unbroken awkward phase in Hollywood.”

Now, she credits her family and a shift in mindset for grounding her, even as she continues to navigate the “perpetual hustle” of the industry.

“There is a meaningful shift happening where beauty is being redefined less by perfection and more by presence, vitality, and authenticity,” Kim said. “When that shift takes hold, confidence becomes less about how we are seen and more about how we feel in ourselves.”