Hilarie Burton Morgan, 41, says going gray early ‘was a relief’ and it was exciting to be ‘the salty one in the room’ after teen fame

Hilarie Burton Morgan considered going gray “a relief” after rising to fame right out of high school as a VJ on MTV’s Total Request Live, followed by the WB soap One Tree Hill.

‘We’ll let it all grow!’ the 41-year-old mother of two announced in Thursday’s episode ABC’s The View.

“It’s weird when you were a teen drama actress, and there’s an expectation to stay 17 forever. And I didn’t necessarily like my younger years. I dealt with dark things in my younger years.

“So the idea that you can level up and get to the place where you’re the salty one in the room was exciting to me. And my heroes were Bea Arthur and Ruth Gordon and Betty White. That’s who I wanted to be. So going gray early was a relief.’

To that, co-host Joy Behar commented, “Well, you’re trendy, a lot of women do it.”

‘Well, yes. We’re going to take over the world,” Hilarie replied.

Indeed, Morgan is following in the footsteps of The Way Home actress Andie MacDowell, who was left with gray hair during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when her two daughters told her she looked ‘bada**’.

‘I like to compare myself to George Clooney, because why not? “I’ve been saying for a while that it was time for me personally to make that switch because I felt like it fit my personality and who I am,” the 65-year-old L’Oréal model said. Fashion in 2021.

‘During lockdown I had a lot of free time and became obsessed with Jack Martin, who did Jane Fonda’s hair. I shared those photos with a lot of people and said, “Hey, I want to do this.” I got a job and soon had to decide what to do.

“My managers actually told me, ‘It’s not time.’ And I said, “I think you’re wrong, and I will be more powerful if I embrace where I am now. It’s time, because in two years I’ll be 65. If I don’t If I do it now, I not the chance to be salt and pepper. I always wanted to be salt and pepper!’

Former SI swimsuit stunner Paulina Porizkova has also fully embraced her gray hair and wrinkles.

‘Aging is the privilege of longevity. You can fight it or accept it. But there is a third choice. Embrace it,” the Czech Republic-born 58-year-old further wrote Instagram in February.

‘Embracing it means both acceptance and struggle. Accept that there are inevitable changes, both inside and out. And both are valuable. As your inner strength grows, your wrinkles will reflect the time you’ve spent becoming more powerful. The fighting is better spent not on denying age, but on putting it to work.

The 41-year-old mother of two announced on Thursday’s episode of ABC’s The View, “It’s weird when you’re a teen drama actress, and the expectation of being 17 forever is there.” And I didn’t necessarily like my younger years. I dealt with dark things in my younger years.”

Hilarie explained, “So the idea that you can level up and get to the place where you’re the salty one in the room was exciting to me. And my heroes were Bea Arthur and Ruth Gordon and Betty White. That’s who I wanted to be. So going gray early would have been a relief.”

To that, co-host Joy Behar (L) commented: ‘Well you’re trendy, a lot of women do it’

‘Well, yes. We’re going to take over the world,” Morgan replied

‘I’ve always wanted to be salt and pepper!’ Indeed, Morgan is following in the footsteps of The Way Home actress Andie MacDowell (pictured Sunday), who was left with gray hair during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when her two daughters told her she looked ‘bada**’.

‘Ageing older is the privilege of longevity’: Former SI swimsuit stunner Paulina Porizkova has also fully embraced her gray hair and wrinkles (pictured July 21)

Literary debut! The True Crime Story producer-host promoted her memoir Grimoire Girl: A Memoir of Magic and Mischief, which hit shelves Tuesday (photo Wednesday)

Things are still going well! Thursday was Hilarie’s fourth wedding anniversary and as a gift, her husband Jeffrey Dean Morgan (pictured Thursday) agreed to moderate her Grimoire Girl Book Tour stop at the Bardavon Theater’s Oblong Books this Sunday in Poughkeepsie, NY.

‘Fight to keep your body healthy. Fight to stay curious and flexible. Fight the shame that comes over you to tell you that you no longer matter. Fight to be seen and appreciated for the person you have become. We must embrace age – for better or for worse, because that is life!’

The True Crime Story producer-host was promoting her memoir Grimoire Girl: A Memoir of Magic and Mischief, which hit shelves Tuesday.

Thursday was Hilarie’s fourth wedding anniversary and as a gift, her husband Jeffrey Dean Morgan agreed to moderate her Grimoire Girl Book Tour stop at the Bardavon Theater’s Oblong Books this Sunday in Poughkeepsie, NY.

It is located about 18 miles from the co-owners of Samuel’s Sweet Shop’s farm of cows, chickens and alpacas in the town of Rhinebeck that they share with their 13-year-old son Gus and five-year-old daughter George.

Morgan originally started dating the 57-year-old Walking Dead: Dead City producer-star in 2009.

Jeffrey and the Virginia-born Army brat played on-screen love interests in one episode of AMC’s The Walking Dead, six episodes of CBS’ Extant, and they both starred on ABC’s Grays Anatomy (separately in 2006-2009 and 2013).