Lea Michele says people told her as a child to 'get nose jobs' if she wanted to be an actor

• Lea Michele revealed that as a child she was told to get "nose jobs" if she wanted to be an actor. 
• The "Glee" star also said that people told her she wasn't "pretty enough for film and television."
• Michele currently stars as Fanny Brice in the Broadway revival of "Funny Girl."

Lea Michele revealed in a new interview that growing up, she received numerous comments about her appearance and how it would affect her career as an actor. 

The "Glee" actress told Town & Country's Marshall Heyman that the comments about her looks came at an early age.

"People would tell me to get nose jobs, that I wasn't pretty enough for film and television," Michele said of the criticisms she received when she was much younger. 

Ultimately, Michele found inspiration in legendary performer Barbra Streisand. 

"She was an icon for me in my life," Michele said of Streisand, who famously starred as comedian Fanny Brice in the Broadway musical "Funny Girl" and subsequent film adaptation. 

As Town & Country noted, Michele has been compared to Streisand throughout her career, most recently when Michele took on the role of Fanny in the 2022 Broadway revival of "Funny Girl." Streisand even wrote Michele a note to congratulate the "Scream Queen" star on her "Funny Girl" performance. 

"It was a beautiful, hand-written note that I will cherish. She was incredibly complimentary," Michele told Town & Country without divulging the actual contents of the note. 

"It exists. It happened, and now I feel like so many dreams can come true," the "Spring Awakening" star added. 

Michele's involvement in "Funny Girl" hasn't been without incident. In July, shortly after Beanie Feldstein departed the role of Fanny earlier than expected, many online began to speculate that Feldstein was unhappy with Michele being tapped as her replacement. 

Michele made her debut as Fanny in early September.