'And Just Like That' Star Kristin Davis On Aging In Public Eye: 'Very Stressful And Difficult'

Kristin Davis opened up about the challenges of aging in the public eye.

Davis, 56, has been playing Charlotte York for over 20 years — from the time "Sex and the City" premiered up to the present spinoff "And Just Like That." However, fans seemed to have issues with Davis and the other cast members, Sarah Jessica Parker and Cynthia Nixon, growing old. Davis admitted that it was not easy to be constantly scrutinized for their looks.

"It can be extremely stressful to be aging and to be compared to your much, much, much younger self," she told NewBeauty. "If I was from a regular life, I would feel fine; I would feel great! I’m healthy, I’m strong, I’ve got this little 3-year-old son, and I carry him around and it’s all good — but, no, I’m on television, where every bit of my physical being is analyzed."

She continued, "That part was always very stressful and difficult for me, because, as much as I can look back on my life and think, ‘Oh, I looked great then,’ you never think that at the time. I guess no one does."

The "Sex and the City" stars have been on the receiving end of ageist commentary over their looks since their first on-set photos from the reboot landed on the internet. For instance, several criticized Parker when they saw her photos with gray hair while out enjoying lunch with Andy Cohen in New York in July. The "Watch What Happens Live" host found it "misogynistic" that the netizens only targeted Parker when he also had white hair, as seen in the snaps.

Davis added that things got worse because the paparazzi would constantly aim to photograph them in their unflattering angles.

"I have bad days; I have days where I literally want to put my face in a bowl of ice like Joan Crawford," she said. "There’s going to be bad pictures, and they’re going to talk about them, and they’re going to discuss your hair, your face, your this and your that and that’s just how it is I guess … at least in this industry."

Davis acknowledged that it is not an isolated issue as women tend to be subjected to impossible beauty standards regardless of whether they are popular or not. For the "Deadly Illusions" actress, there is more to life than one's look, but culture has put so much weight on women's aging appearance.

"That how you look is a lot," she said. "It’s a whole, bigger cultural conversation we need to have, but, right now, it’s hard."