BEAUTY is in the eye of the beholder, as the saying goes.
And it feels like there’s a bit of a shift happening in the way we see the attractiveness of male Hollywood stars.
In days gone by, you had to be a Brad Pitt, George Clooney or Ryan Gosling to have women fawn over you and make it big at the box office.
But now we’re starting to get all hot under the collar at the sight of less archetypally handsome men.
Take the glorious Barry Keoghan, star of Saltburn, for example.
His looks, to me, are nothing short of beguiling, exciting and captivating, and I can’t deny being stirred inappropriately by his presence on screen.
And I’m not the only one.
He has been trending on Twitter/X following his appearance at the Golden Globes in a striking red suit at the weekend.
The general vibe was he looks like your cool lesbian auntie arriving for Christmas dinner — but is still hot.
In fact, I already fell for the 31-year-old in 2022 film The Banshees Of Inisherin.
Like, I’m talking in a big way.
Which may be somewhat surprising as in that role he played a tragic, misunderstood and shunned character of very few words.
I don’t know what it is about him.
He has heavily hooded, stern eyes, which are not exactly welcoming.
There is more than a hint of meanness about them.
And his nose is probably as far removed from perfect as can be.
But for me his whole get-up is a bit of a turn-on.
Talking of quirky-looking men, there’s Jeremy Allen White, star of Disney+ hit The Bear.
And then there’s actor Adam Driver, with his cheeks that go on for weeks and a nose you could ski off — but there is something moody and dark about him, and that really gets to me.
Granted, I think I’ve always been attracted to “different-looking” guys.
Or maybe it’s just that I’ve never really fancied or felt at ease around traditionally good-looking ones.
We women often say that handsome men know they are handsome, so they come with massive egos.
They have a stubborn vanity equalled only by their sense of expectation, which in turn makes them lazy because they know they don’t need to try as hard as the more unconventional-looking guys.
I find quintessentially dishy men off-putting for this reason alone.
Throw me a bloke with imperfections — a big hooter, say — and at least half a set of teeth and I’m all in.
If nothing else, they’re guaranteed to be far more interesting.
Of course, beauty should come from within, but we all know that you don’t get that from just seeing someone on the big screen.
So our impressions will always be based on looks first, talent second.
We are but human.
It is the first sight of someone that generates attraction — or not.
I’ve had an unhealthy crush on actor Benicio del Toro for years.
And then there’s Benedict Cumberbatch, whose talent has long since surpassed his less-than-conventional looks, leading to an army of “Cumberbitches” admiring him from afar, and near.
I’m sure most women wouldn’t need Liam Neeson to ask twice.
His whole creation is irresistible but his rugged face could not be considered traditionally beautiful.
It’s what he brings with his face that we love.
Our collective belief is he’s a hard b*d and would threaten to kill anyone who wanted to hurt us.
And it is perhaps that element of volatility and danger, uncertainty and unpredictability, that we admire in faces that aren’t mathematically perfect and balanced.
You have to admit there is something more interesting about an unusual face, right?
If you have perfect eyes, perfect teeth and a nose sculpted by the gods, I’m afraid I’m out.
There’s nothing about a face like that which will pique my interest. Sorry, Brad.
The reason Brad Pitt has never thrilled me or revved my engine is that while I fully acknowledge he is flawless and faultless, and I know that everything about his face is present and correct, his looks bore me.
What you see is actually what you get.
Give me Barry Keoghan, on the other hand, and I could be staring at his face and all its ups, downs, swings and roundabouts for ever.
I’m interested in his face.
It makes me feel it has stories to tell.
Not all of them good, I suspect.
Whereas, waking up next to Brad’s face every morning would either send me back to sleep or be a superficial reminder of how imperfect my own face is.
No one wants that.
Men clearly get much more of a pass when it comes to their looks in Hollywood.
For all skinny schoolboys like Timothee Chalamet, Tom Holland and Charlie Heaton, their female co-stars are all spectacular beauties.
Which is why so many of us women have grown up with deeply ingrained insecurities about our looks, and most of us have struggled to accept our bodies for what they are.
Thankfully, things are starting to change and we’re seeing different images of women projected on billboards and our screens.
Older, bigger, quirkier faces and bodies.
But blokes do get an easier ride.
If a man has an odd, unconventional face, it will be his talent we’ll be lauding.
But for a woman it has been nigh on impossible to get past it and be appreciated for her talents.
Men with interesting faces have always been deemed to be interesting.
They’re considered deeper and more fun, even.
Women, on the other hand, are more likely to be written off.
Don’t forget that more or less the only way Hollywood could make the public digest a woman who was not considered traditionally beautiful was by putting the word “ugly” in the title of the TV hit “Ugly Betty” in the early 2000s.
It starred the gorgeous America Ferrera, who was, in fact, far from ugly.
So while I like this new shift of making hot stars out of men who do not look like cardboard cut-outs of Brad, George, Ryan and all, I really hope it will be extended as generously to women.
I will for ever be on team Barry.
I wouldn’t even turn Rowan Atkinson away.
Call me unconventional if you like.
Just don’t call me handsome.
