Actresses who simply age in public are subject to a certain level of scrutiny, which Joan Cusack encountered this past week. It had been eleven years since she had walked a red carpet. Then, on a Thursday night in London, she wore a high-waisted black pencil skirt and a clean white button-up to the Toy Story 5 premiere. Her hair was cropped short with wispy bangs, and she wore thick-framed glasses that sat low on her nose. People gazed. At first, some people didn’t recognize her.
That’s the peculiar math of celebrity following a protracted absence. Cusack hasn’t exactly been hiding; for the past 25 years, she has been voicing Jessie the cowgirl, primarily behind a microphone. However, voice acting doesn’t keep your face in the public eye the way a movie premiere does, and when she eventually made a face-to-face reappearance, people seemed taken aback by the discrepancy between memory and reality. It’s possible that the glasses and attire had more of an impact than any real changes to her appearance. It’s also possible that even in cases where nothing significant has happened to a face, eleven years is simply long enough for it to appear unfamiliar.
What came next was recognizable, almost ritualistic: a flurry of online comparisons, before-and-after photos making the rounds on Reddit and Instagram, and commenters discussing cheekbones and jawlines with the assurance of forensic experts. However, she wasn’t being accused of surgery by the loudest voices. They were standing up for her because she seemed to be avoiding it. “Aging like a real person and not filled with Botox,” a fan commented. Another described it as “wonderful to see a woman like her” refusing to pursue the polished, timeless appearance that so many of her peers do. Nowadays, praising an actress for appearing, well, like she’s lived sixty-three years, is almost countercultural.
Being the antithesis of glamorous by default has been the foundation of Cusack’s career. She is the second banana, the sidekick, and the actress whose rubber-faced comedic timing and Inland Northern vowels made her an indispensable character in Addams Family Values, Working Girl, and Sixteen Candles. Since no one casts supporting actors based on jawline symmetry, they have always had more freedom to age without repercussions than leads. It’s difficult to determine whether this is due to her position in Hollywood or a choice, but it aligns with her 2019 statement to The New Yorker that celebrity life isn’t “that fun, over and over.”
It’s difficult to ignore how quickly rumors about a woman’s appearance become a referendum on aging, plastic surgery, and what viewers expect from actresses who just decide to take a break for more than ten years. None of it was directly addressed by Cusack herself. Rather, she discussed the art of portraying Jessie and the peculiarity of acting without a face or body. Perhaps the more truthful narrative here is what remained constant underneath the surface changes.
FAQs
1. Has Joan Cusack confirmed having plastic surgery?
No, she has never confirmed or addressed any cosmetic surgery claims.
2. When was Joan Cusack’s last red carpet appearance before Toy Story 5?
Her last appearance was at Showtime’s Emmy Eve event in 2015.
3. What role is Joan Cusack known for in Toy Story?
She voices Jessie the cowgirl across the franchise.
4. Why do fans think Joan Cusack looked different at the premiere?
Her short hair, bangs, and glasses changed her appearance.
5. How long has Joan Cusack voiced Jessie in Toy Story?
She has voiced the character for twenty-five years.