At 62, Helen Hunt Opened Up About ‘Misery And Shame’ Of ‘Not Looking Exactly’ Right For Hollywood & Embracing Herself

Aug 06, 2025 by apost team

Helen Hunt is a renowned actress known for her roles in film, television and theater. She has won numerous awards, including an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1997 film “As Good as It Gets.” With a career spanning over four decades, Hunt has established herself

as a versatile actress capable of portraying complex characters with ease.

Hunt was born on June 15, 1963, in Culver City, California. Her father was a film director, and her mother was a photographer. From a young age, Hunt was exposed to the entertainment industry and developed a keen interest in acting. She attended several schools in the Los Angeles area, including Providence High School, where she began performing in school plays.

Hunt started her career as a child actor, appearing in television shows including “The Swiss Family Robinson” and “The Facts of Life.” In 1983, she landed her first significant film role in the horror-comedy “Trancers.” However, it was her role in the 1990s sitcom “Mad About You” that brought her widespread recognition and acclaim.

“Mad About You” aired from 1992 to 1999 and starred Hunt and Paul Reiser as a newlywed couple navigating life in New York City. Hunt won four consecutive Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for her performance on the show, cementing her status as one of the most talented actresses in television.

While Hunt’s success on television was impressive, she also continued to make a name for herself in film. In 1996, she starred in the blockbuster hit “Twister,” which grossed $495 million worldwide. The following year, she won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in “As Good as It Gets,” in which she played a single mother and waitress opposite Jack Nicholson’s obsessive-compulsive writer.

Hunt continued to take on challenging roles in film and theater throughout the 2000s and 2010s. She starred in the films “Dr. T and the Women,” “Pay It Forward,” “What Women Want,” and “Cast Away,” among others. 

Hunt appeared to fly under the radar for a few years as she focused on her family. Hunt was previously married to actor Hank Azaria, but they divorced after a year of marriage. She then entered a relationship with producer Matthew Carnahan, and they had one daughter. The couple split in 2017.

In September 2022, Hunt addressed the mystery of her “disappearance” from Hollywood. She told The Guardian:

“I wrote and directed two movies and starred in them and had a baby (Makena Lei in 2004). So yeah, I don’t know what to say when people say: ‘What happened?’ That’s a lot. You know, for me, that’s plenty.”

She also told the outlet that she wasn’t particularly bothered by the notion that the work she puts in as a mother isn’t as valued by society as her star status in Hollywood.

“I’ve been so in deep, deep love and care of this human being that I’ve gotten to mother that I really haven’t been paying attention to what people think about that,” she explained.

However, Hunt did make headlines in 2020 when photos of her flaunting her fantastically trim physique in Malibu surfaced. At 56, she wowed the media in a black bikini that showcased her flat stomach as she went boogie boarding with a friend. However, the star has revealed that her incredibly toned figure isn’t the result of dieting or regular trips to the gym.

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Hollywood is known for its obsession with filters, fillers, and impossible standards of youth. However, not everyone seeks to defy the passage of time. Hunt has carved her path in Hollywood with grace, boldness, and without apology. Now at 62, the Oscar-winning actress is embracing a kind of beauty that doesn’t come from a syringe or a surgical table but from decades of confidence, self-awareness, and a refusal to conform to anti-aging beauty standards. 

Hunt’s natural beauty was on show when she appeared at the season 2 premiere of her TV series “Blindspotting.” She posted a selfie in the car on the way to the event on Apr. 12, 2023, and showed off her elegant look. The caption read:

“On the way to the @blindspottingstarz Season 2 premiere!! @darrellredleaf as always, did my hair. Doesn’t it look good? And SO much of it is mine!”

Fans were taken by Hunt’s classy visage and praised her in the comments for keeping it real at 60.

“Thank you for looking real, authentic and gorgeous!!” one comment read, while another said, “You look radiant! It’s always a pleasure to see your smiling face.”

A third user wrote: 

“You are aging well 🥰 you look very beautiful,” while another smitten fan commented, “Aging is a beautiful thing and so are you!”

She revealed her approach to life was greatly influenced by the book “The Only Diet There Is,” written by spiritual leader Sondra Ray. She shared the main takeaway from the book and how it has influenced her life.

“What I took from it is, eat what you want and love every bite, period,” she said. 

Now, she reveals that her approach to life is greatly influenced by the book “The Only Diet There Is,” written by spiritual leader Sondra Ray. She shared the main takeaway from the book and how it has influenced her life.

“What I took from it is, eat what you want and love every bite, period,” she added.

Instead of diets and gym sessions, Hunt credited her healthy body to simply keeping active. According to the Daily Mail, Hunt told Healthy Living Magazine:

“I don’t go to a gym ever. I don’t diet ever. I used to diet but sometime after the ’80s, it made me miserable, but I do like to walk, run, and I do like to surf when I can just to warm it up, and I do enjoy doing yoga when I can get there.”

She added:

“It’s a religion for me to never diet. I think it makes you unhappy. It makes for unhappy things, so I just decided I would rather not have the perfect body, not have the body I want than diet. And when I dropped the idea of dieting, my body went closer to the way that I was wanting it to be. So for me, it’s never worked.”

In 2025, Hunt touched on ageism in Hollywood after turning 62 on June 15. She remarked that one of her favorite things about her age was “that when I get really upset about something, or worried about something, or anxious about something, I have tools. I have tools to come back and get a bigger view. I don’t think I had those when I was younger.”

While Hunt has grown in confidence, she conceded that in early on in her career, it “felt impossible not to internalize the way you’re supposed to look,” adding there was “a certain amount of misery and shame around not looking exactly that way.”

She added:

“I realized, ‘This could quietly ruin your whole life.’ I made a decision: I’m not playing. Not gonna (let it) take up a lot of space in my mind.”

What do you think of this? Are you impressed by Helen Hunt for not succumbing to the pressure to undergo plastic surgery? Let us know what you think, and don’t hesitate to pass this on to any Helen Hunt fans you know!