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In Hollywood — where staying youthful looking is an absolute obsession — many stars would never dream of letting their gray hair show as they age. Unlike plastic surgery, a simple trip to the colorist is the quickest way to erase their white roots and look younger. But more and more stars these days are saying yes to Father Time and allowing their natural gray locks to flow free.
Model turned actress Andie MacDowell turned heads when she arrived at the Cannes Film Festival in July 2021 with long salt and pepper locks. The Groundhog Day star later explained that she’s “never felt more powerful” by letting her gray hair show.
“At the very beginning of quarantine, my hair started growing and every time my kids would see me, they kept telling me I looked badass with my gray hair. When I pulled it up in a bun, all you could see was the salt and pepper, which is what I am, you know, dark and silver … I’ve been saying for a while now it was time for me, personally, to make that transition because I felt like it was appropriate for my personality and just who I am, Andie told Vogue in a July 21, 2021, interview.
Even though she wanted to finally take the plunge with her hair, Andie’s management team advised against it. “I got a job and very quickly I had to make up my mind about what I was going to do. My managers had actually said to me, ‘It’s not time.’ And I said, ‘I think you’re wrong, and I’m going to be more powerful if I embrace where I am right now,'” she continued. “It’s time because in two years I’m going to be 65. If I don’t do it now, I won’t have the chance to be salt and pepper. I always wanted to be salt and pepper!”
“Once I did it, it was just so clear to me that my instincts were right because I’ve never felt more powerful. I feel more honest. I feel like I’m not pretending. I feel like I’m embracing right where I am. I feel really comfortable. And in a lot of ways, I think it’s more striking on my face. I just feel like it suits me,” the stunned confessed.
It was Jane Fonda finally deciding to take the plunge and debut her new silver fox look at the 2020 Oscars that helped Andie in her decision. “During lockdown, I had a lot of downtime and became obsessed with Jack Martin, who did Jane Fonda’s hair. I shared those pictures with a lot of people going, ‘Hey, I want to do this,” she told the publication.
Andie isn’t the only celebrity who decided to finally go gray because of the COVID-19 lockdown. Mom star and Oscar winner Allison Janney did the same thing. “It started out with just COVID choices, you know. I was in Ohio for five months of the pandemic,” she told People TV in February 2021. “My natural color started growing in — which is gray. And then I thought, you know, I’ve always wanted to cut it off and do a Helen Mirren thing. I just wanted to try it.”
Scroll down for the before and after photos of celebrities who are proud of their natural gray hair.
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Chris Pine
The Don’t Worry Darling actor is aging like fine wine while embracing his emerging gray hair!
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Hilarie Burton
The One Tree Hill alum decided to let her natural gray hair grow out during the early days of the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns despite being only 37-years-old at the time. Hilarie loved the look and has kept rocking her hair gray ever since.
“The ‘silver lining’ is literally growing out of my skull. For all of our frontline and essential workers who are too busy to fuss with things like hair color, I grow mine out in solidarity with you,” she captioned an Instagram photo of herself with her gray roots in April 2020.
“I let my skin wrinkle and am not afraid to let my hair go gray. I see these as accumulations of life experiences, and they’re treasures,” Hilarie told Harper’s Bazaar in June 2022, adding, “As we age, it’s important we celebrate it — it’s a gift.”
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Ricki Lake
The actress and former talk show host shaved her head in 2019 “after years and years of struggling in secret with my androgenic hair loss.” She ended up growing her locks back in their natural gray instead of dying them and celebrated the decision in a January 1, 2023, Instagram post. “After three years, I can honestly say I appreciate and love my natural gray and sometimes wild unruly head of hair,” Ricki wrote.
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Paget Brewster
The Criminal Minds star was been given the OK by the series to let her gray hairs show on the upcoming 2022 – 2023 season. “Oh, hi Guys! This is my first @criminalminds hair and makeup from this morning. I hope you’re all excited for a slightly older, sassier, no filters, gray-haired Prentiss. And if you aren’t, that’s cool, just tell someone else,” she wrote next to an August 8, 2022, Twitter selfie proudly showing off her graying locks.
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Sarah Jessica Parker
In returning to her role as Carrie Bradshaw in the Sex and the City revival And Just Like That, Sarah Jessica Parker is allowing her natural gray roots to be shown on screen.
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Andie MacDowell
Andie stunned fans when she arrived at the Cannes Film Festival in July 2021 with striking salt and pepper locks. The actress says she was influenced by Jane Fonda’s decision to finally allow her hair to be fully silver. “I feel like I’m embracing right where I am. I feel really comfortable,” the star told Vogue about her hair decision.
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Patrick Dempsey
Former Grey’s Anatomy hunk Patrick still has a head of thick, luscious hair. But now that the actor is in his mid-50s, he’s embraced the gray hairs he has coming in and is rocking sexy salt and pepper locks.
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Allison Janney
Allison underwent a dramatic hair makeover following the COVID-19 lockdown. “I was in Ohio for most of 2020,” Allison revealed during a February 17, 2021, appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show where the Mom star showed off her new short, silver hair. “I started … a big, healthy few inches of gray roots came in and I just decided I wanted to be free from hair color and hair extensions. So, this is the most authentic …” she added. Allison later told another news outlet that she’d always admired actress Helen Mirren’s short, silver fox look, and wanted to give it a try.
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Cynthia Nixon
Miranda Hobbes will be fully gray for Sex and the City fans when the reboot, And Just Like That, airs on HBO Max. Cynthia and her character will be embracing the actress’ natural color for the highly anticipated series.
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Jon Bon Jovi
Even though Jon is approaching 60, his face still looks incredibly youthful. But he has no qualms about the fact that he’s turned into a silver fox, and is not going to head to the colorist to hide it. “My hair is turning gray. I’m cool with that. I’m just who I am,” he told the BBC in October 2020. That same month he told USA Today, “Let me tell you, I’ve earned this gray hair. I’ve been through enough hurting and healing to be here.”
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Jane Fonda
At the age of 82, Jane finally said enough to dyeing her hair and debuted fully silver locks at the 2020 Oscars.
“I tell you, I’m so happy I let it go gray,” Jane later told Ellen DeGeneres. “Enough already with so much time wasted, so much money spent, so many chemicals — I’m through with that.”
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Steve Carell
When Steve debuted a head of gray hair in 2017, the internet erupted with love for his new silver fox look. At the Despicable Me 3 premiere that year, he joked to Entertainment Tonight, “I am so sick of people just looking at me for my physical attributes. It’s just genetic. There’s nothing I can do.” He then added sweetly, “I’m bursting with pride. That’s very nice,” about the positive reaction to his new gray look.
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Jamie Lee Curtis
The Halloween actress decided to let her fully white hair appear naturally in 2017, as Jamie told Everyday Health that she wanted to stop putting “burning chemicals” on her head through the coloring process.
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Helen Mirren
While so many stars decided to go gray in 2020 following lockdowns, The Queen star has led the way for years in embracing her white locks. But she did so for a very simple and oh-so Helen reason.
“I did it because I’m lazy. Honestly, I’m so lazy about my hair!” the Oscar winner told People in March 2020. “It’s a lot of work and as wonderful as many hairdressers are, I don’t want to sit in a salon for hours. I just can’t be bothered with that.”

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