Wow! Michelle Pfeiffer, 58, Proves She's An Ageless Beauty on Interview Magazine Cover
Michelle Pfeiffer is making her return to Hollywood in full force-and looking just as beautiful as ever.
The 58-year-old actress covers the April issue of Interview Magazine, and PEOPLE has the exclusive first look at her stunning photos and interview with director Darren Aronofsky.
Following a brief hiatus from the spotlight, she tells Aronofsky of her resurgence: “I’m an empty nester now. I’ve never lost my love for acting.”
“I’m a more balanced person honestly when I’m working. But I was pretty careful about where I shot, how long I was away, whether or not it worked out with the kids’ schedule. And I got so picky that I was un-hirable,” she continues. “And then...I don’t know, time just went on.”
Pfeiffer shares daughter Claudia Rose, 24, and son John Henry, 22, with her husband of 23 years, David E. Kelley.
Her upcoming projects include starring in HBO’s film The Wizard of Lies, Aronofsky’s drama, Mother!, alongside Jennifer Lawrence, and the film adaption of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express with Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz and Daisy Ridley.
“I’m more open now, my frame of mind, because I really want to work now, because I can,” she says. “These last few years I’ve had some really interesting opportunities. And I have this weird synchronicity with Annette Bening.”
She explains: “I was supposed to do Bugsy [1991]. I fell out of that. She did it, so she met Warren [Beatty]. That wouldn’t have happened. And then she was supposed to do Batman Returns [1992]. She fell out of that. I replaced her. So, we’re always kind of tag-teaming.”
Pfeiffer notes her strong dislike of being interviewed because she has a “constant fear” that she’s a “fraud” and is “going to be found out” since she never had any formal training in acting.
“I just got this e-mail from Steve Kloves who wrote and directed The Fabulous Baker Boys, and he said, How’s it going on Murder on the Orient Express?’ which I just finished with Kenneth Branagh. And I said, Oh, you know me. I feel like I’m ruining his movie,'” she says. “Because the first week into shooting Baker Boys, I said the same thing to Steve: I think I’m doing a terrible job in this.'”
The actress ultimately received an Oscar nomination for her role in The Fabulous Baker Boys, and three nominations total in her career.
“I’ve had days, and I still do, when I just pray to the acting gods,” she admits. “When I have a particularly hard scene and I’m really frightened, I show up, throw my arms up and go, Okay, acting gods, I need you with me today.'”
Growing up in Southern California, Pfeiffer says she “couldn’t have been more removed from the entertainment business.”
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After trying out jobs at stenography school and a local Vons supermarket, and realizing they weren’t for her, Pfeiffer knew that her true passion was for acting.
A self-described surfer chick that loved theater class, she was inspired to pursue acting with the encouragement of a high school teacher.
“There’s always a lot of talk to young people about finding their passion, following their passion. But I remember reading somewhere that a lot of people don’t have a passion. And there’s this pressure to have one,” she says. “It’s perfectly fine not to have one. But to be lucky enough to know what that is at such a young age is really a blessing.”
