'I felt like I was in the closet': Ruby Rose explains why opening up about her surgery to fans was so important
Ruby Rose is doing her part to tackle the perception of perfection in Hollywood by opening up about the debilitating injury she faced while shooting Batwoman.
While on the BUILD Series stage, the actress spoke about the reasons that she decided to speak up about an emergency surgery that she had a few months back, after suffering an injury that left her with two herniated discs. And although she’s since “made a great recovery,” the 33-year-old said it was important to be transparent because so much of Hollywood isn’t.
“What [Hollywood]’s been based on forever is this sort of perfection idea and that everyone to be the best ... it’s like you have to look a certain way, you have to be young, you have to be beautiful, you have to be able-bodied, you have to be not controversial, you should probably be straight. There’s just a lot of things there,” Rose explained. “And we’re slowly, slowly chipping away at that and showing real people, and showing that everyone looks and is different and unique and that’s what makes them interesting to watch and to look up to ... And for me, I felt like I was suddenly perpetuating the exact notion that I’ve always felt very strongly against.”
The Australian actress said that she was faced with countless questions about her absence from this year’s Comic-Con — which took place just after her surgery — and was even asked about her rigorous training schedule for the upcoming CW show while on the red carpet at the Teen Choice Awards. In the moment, she hadn’t admitted to her injury and instead lied that she had been practicing her stunts.
“I felt like I was in the closet,” Rose said. “I wanted to own it and I didn’t wanna keep lying about it. It was making me feel sick.”
Since posting a video of the surgery to her Instagram on Friday, and opening up about the chronic pain that she was in beforehand, Rose has received an outpouring of support. Now, she says that the injury might have been a necessary reminder to slow down. “I think that was the intended message,” she admitted. “I just think that as you get a little older and your body starts to feel things, you can’t do everything, and you still want to.”
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