Jennifer Lawrence has a unique kind of appeal. Men think she’s sexy. Women think she’s hilarious. Adults think she’s a fantastic actress. Teens think she’s the epitome of cool. In reality, she’s all of the above — which has garnered a lot of attention for the young star.
In a new cover interview for the September 2013 issue of Vogue, Jennifer talked of her joy with being able to do what she loves… But also of her frustration with all the attention.
“I’m kind of going through a meltdown about it lately. I’m beginning to feel like a monkey in a zoo. All of a sudden the entire world feels entitled to know everything about me, including what I’m doing on my weekends when I’m spending time with my nephew,” said Jennifer, who turned 23 on Thursday. “And I don’t have the right to say, ‘I’m with my family.'”
Jennifer, who always dreamt of fame and began modeling when she was 14, said she now feels a bit like a monkey in a zoo when people start taking cell phone pictures of her.
To be sure, few can really relate to what Jennifer’s experiencing. Even Jodie Foster — whom John Hinkley, Jr. famously tried to impress by attempting an assassination of President Ronald Reagan in 1981 — said she has sympathy for the young star she directed in The Beaver.
“It wasn’t the same when I was young. I never hired a bodyguard in my life,” Jodie told Vogue.
Francis Lawrence, who directed Jennifer in the upcoming Hunger Games: Catching Fire, also said he worries for actresses like Jennifer and Rooney Mara.
“One thing I worry about is overexposure. A lot of the power comes from their anonymity, and I hope that these two young actresses can maintain some of their privacy,” he said of Jennifer and Rooney, who starred in Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.
Jennifer, who was the target of intense scrutiny right after winning her Academy Award when she was pictured while on a vacation in Hawaii with something that looked like a blunt, said people often tell her to make peace with the side-effects of fame. But, living up to her reputation as a Hollywood rebel, Jennifer said she isn’t OK with that.
“It’s as simple as that,” she said. “I am just a normal girl and a human being, and I haven’t been in this long enough to feel like this is my new normal. I’m not going to find peace with it.”
That may be — but it’s apparent Jennifer will have to find some way to sleep at night because the girl’s sure to stick around for a while.
