The actress revealed she channelled the difficult relationship she had with her mother into her new film, Dumplin'
Hollywood actress Jennifer Aniston's latest film, Dumplin', charts the difficult relationship between a pageant-obsessed mother and her daughter who doesn't quite fit into the stereotypical 'beauty pageant' mould. Now the former Friends star has revealed she channelled the difficulties she had with her own mother, model and actress Nancy Dow, into the role.
Jennifer Aniston had a difficult relationship with her mother
The 49-year-old had a famously strained relationship with her mother and the pair were estranged until Nancy's death in 2016.
Speaking about her mother, Aniston revealed Dow's beauty - and her fixation with her looks - had a negative effect on her as a teenager.
She said: "My mom was very, she was just consumed and concerned with her physical. Her parents were basically non-existent. She was one of five sisters.
"She had this beauty and that’s how she was able to go out and make a living, modelling.
"It wasn’t her fault, but the things she was able to teach me were things I wasn’t really that interested in and also didn’t have what she had necessarily.
MORE: Jennifer Aniston Rages Against Tabloid Culture To Ellen DeGeneres
"It didn’t instil a lot of security in how I felt about my physical appearance, just because she was always telling me what to do and how to do it."
Aniston - who has starred in a slew of films, including Along Came Polly, Marley & Me, Life of Crime and Just Go With It - explained how she had a 'pull, push' relationship with her mother but refused to blame her for how she was brought up.
She added: "[She’d say] 'put your eyes on [if you’re going] to the market.'
"I’m like 13, so I really have to put my eyes on? Aren’t they there? It’s not a criticism about her, it’s just all she knew.
"She [Nancy] was a model and was raised during a time when her parental support wasn't very strong."
The actress stopped speaking to Nancy altogether after the latter published a book, From Mother and Daughter to Friends: A Memoir, in 1999.
Their estrangement lasted years and Jennifer didn't invite her mother to her 2000 wedding to Brad Pitt, although they eventually reconciled after the couple divorced.
MORE: All Friends' Fans Are About To Feel Really Old
Aniston had not seen her mother in several years prior to her death, not since Nancy's stroke in 2011.
The daughter of Days of Our Lives actor John Aniston takes on the role of Rosie Dickson alongside up and coming Australian actress Danielle MacDonald, who plays her daughter Willowdean.
Dumplin' is released on Netflix today (7 December).
Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman reunite with The Switch directors Josh Gordon and Will Speck...
There's nothing particularly original about this animated comedy adventure by Nicholas Stoller (Neighbors). It has...
For many large companies, the office Christmas party are nights that can rapidly descend into...
Over the centuries Stalks have been entrusted to create and deliver human babies to their...
Mother's Day is the latest in the series of Garry Marshall's films which include Valentine's...
Hogarth Hughes is an intelligent young boy with a love of exploring. One day, his...
Wacky enough to make us smile but never laugh out loud, this screwball comedy harks...
Jennifer Aniston delivers an Oscar-calibre performance in this rather over-worked drama, which tries to emphasise...
With preparation well underway for his latest Broadway show, director Arnold Albertson (Owen Wilson) heads...
Claire Bennett is struggling to get through day-to-day life despite her buffet of pills, one-on-one...
Like The Hangover, Horrible Bosses was a movie no one really wanted to see a...
In the wake of their struggle to murder their bosses in the first film, 'Horrible...
Although the plot itself is nothing special, this kidnapping comedy keeps the audience entertained by...
Having previously got involved with a scheme to kill their abusive bosses (a plan which...