'Film fans want to see young flesh so stop moaning': Charlotte Rampling on speed dating and being a 'femme fatale' at 66

She says: 'We should hope there are roles every now and then which show real women as they grow older'
'Sex is about being young - young bodies and beauty and youth'

By Daily Mail Reporter
1 December 2012
Source: dailymail.co.uk

Many ageing actresses hate the way Hollywood turns its back on them when they reach a certain age.

But at 66, Charlotte Rampling has no problems about growing older and says they should 'stop moaning' and accept film fans want young, attractive women on screen.

She said:'There are fewer roles for older women because cinema likes young flesh and we shouldn't moan about that.

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Latest role: Charlotte Rampling with co-star Gabriel Byrne in the psychological thriller I, Anna, in which she plays a divorcee who meets a man on speed dating.
  
In a wide-ranging interview with Radio Times, Ms Rampling spoke of speed dating in her new film, why she doesn't need sex 'so much' and the reason she has avoided cosmetic surgery.

The twice-married actress, now engaged to Jean-Noel Tassez, a businessman 10 years her junior, says she looks more for companionship than passion in a relationship.

Film beauty: Ms Rampling pictured in 1968 and still stunning at a premiere in 2001

She said: 'Sex is about being young - young bodies and beauty and youth. And then you pass into other things. You don’t need it so much, I might add, if we’re being honest.

'When you’re older you need other things. You need to develop real companionship and go further into what sharing your life with somebody is all about.'

In I, Anna, a psychological thriller, she plays a lonely divorcee who meets a man on speed dating - a femme fatale role she portrays with 'convincing aplomb' according to one critic.

Unlike many older actresses, Ms Rampling has resisted the surgeon's knife and Botox injections and says she keeps her looks by 'not eating much.'

Film role: Charlotte Rampling appeared in the Cherry Orchard in 2000 with Alan Bates

Bedroom scene: Charlotte Rampling and Menothy Cesar in the 2006 film Heading South

She is quoted in the Daily telegraph as saying: 'I think you have to be very careful with plastic surgery because once you start doing it your face starts to change.

'People lose their face; they lose their personality in a way. Inside they’re the same, but they look at themselves and go, "It’s not me!"'

Her son Barnaby Southcombe directed her in I, Anna - out next week - which includes a sex scene she described as 'not too bad to do.'

She said speed dating in the film was 'creepy' but that it took courage to find romance online.

She told Radio Times: 'I suppose it’s like playing the Lotto - you might win.'
 
VIDEO: See the haunting I, Anna trailer here...