Demi Moore, 61, was plagued by ‘self judgment’ when she was younger because she was ‘chasing perfection’

Demi Moore opened up about how hard she used to be on herself.

The 61-year-old GI Jane actress opened up about her self-loathing when discussing her latest role as Elizabeth Sparkle in the horror film The Substance.

The actress said The Guardian Saturday that women in the 1990s were not considered attractive if they were not thin.

Referring to the decades of dieting and exercising she endured in Hollywood, Demi said she was sad about what she had done to herself.

“I made it mean to myself. Really looking at that violence, how violent we can be to ourselves, how just brutal,” she noted.

Demi said: ‘Self-condemnation, the pursuit of perfection, trying to rid ourselves of ‘flaws’, feeling rejected and despair, none of this is something that only happens to women,’ while noting that men also experience insecurities about their bodies.

The actress told The Guardian on Saturday that women in the 90s weren’t considered attractive unless they were thin. Referring to the decades of dieting and exercising she put herself through in Hollywood, Demi said she was sad about what she had done to herself. Seen in 2003

“We’ve all had a moment where you go back and try to fix something,” she said.

And she added: ‘You’re just making it worse, to the point where you’re not able to do it anymore.

‘We see little things that no one else looks at, but we’re so focused on everything we don’t see.

“If we all start thinking that our worth depends solely on our appearance, we will eventually be crushed.”

She added that she is amazed at how “cruel” people can be to themselves when it comes to their bodies.

Demi told The Guardian that the nightmarish plot appealed to her because it shows the “circumstances of a woman in the entertainment industry who faces rejection and deep despair” as “everything in her life that seemed meaningful is stripped away”.

She said it made her think about the cruelty people show themselves when it comes to their bodies: ‘What struck me most was the harsh aggression people feel towards themselves.

“It’s not what is done to you, it’s what we do to ourselves.”

The star was naked with Rob Lowe in 1986’s About Last Night

She and Bruce Willis were a famous power couple. Seen in 1990

Demi added that there’s a “depth to the exploration of our psyche” and “our inner dialogue” that the body horror genre “seems to enhance.”

She also said that she has placed more emphasis on her work than on romance for many years.

The actress has been divorced three times – from exes including Ashton Kutcher, 46, and Bruce Willis, 69 – and has now said she has been fixated on her career rather than men since around 2019.

She told The Guardian: ‘Dating isn’t really my focus. Especially the last four or five years, my focus has been on leaning into my work.

“I find myself more in a place where there is much more freedom of choice than where I feel like there is something missing.”

In her new film The Substance, Moore plays a 50-year-old woman who uses drugs to look younger

In Demi’s new film ‘The Substance’ she plays an unqualified fitness guru who uses an experimental drug that causes her to ‘give birth’ to a younger, more perfect version of herself. The role is played by 29-year-old actress Margaret Qualley, known for ‘Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood’.

Her confession about her relationship comes after Demi said she ‘cherishes’ the time she spends with Bruce Willis as he continues to struggle with dementia.

Demi was married to the ‘Die Hard’ star from 1987 to 2000, with whom she has children Rumer (36), Scout (33) and Tallulah (30). She now has regular contact with her ex, despite his health problems.

On ‘The Drew Barrymore Show’ she said the following about the advice she gives her children about communicating with their ailing father: ‘I always tell my kids, meet (people) wherever they are.

(L-R) Emma Heming, Rumer Willis, father Bruce Willis, sister Tallulah Belle Willis, mother Demi Moore and sister Scout LaRue Willis in 2015

‘You’re not holding on to who they were or what you want them to be, but to who they are in this moment.

‘And out of that comes so much beauty and joy and love and sweetness.

“When I’m in LA, I go to Bruce’s house every week. I really appreciate the time we spend together.”

In 2022, Bruce’s family – which includes his current wife Emma Heming Willis, 46, and their children Mabel, 12, and nine-year-old Evelyn – announced that he was retiring from acting after being diagnosed with a speech and language disorder called aphasia. His dementia diagnosis was confirmed the following year.