StyleWatch Style News Now

Style News Now

Lea Michele: I Was Told I Wasn’t ‘Pretty Enough’ for Fame

08/03/2011 at 08:00 AM ET

Lea Michele Harper's Bazaar
Mark Seliger for Harper’s Bazaar

Though she’s currently one of Hollywood’s hottest stars, Lea Michele remembers a time when she was told she’d never make it. “How many managers told me, ‘Get a nose job. You’re not pretty enough?’” she recalls in the September issue of Harper’s Bazaar. “But I proved them wrong.”

Now one of Glee‘s soon-to-be graduates, Michele is savoring her status — and eyeing her next steps. “I don’t stop,” she says of her booming career. “It’s my nature. People have to tell me to slow down. I plan on playing every role on Broadway … I want to do movies, make music. Glee is only the beginning.”

And while some may see her ambition as snobbery, she says she and her castmates are just seizing the moment. “People have to remember this is all new for us,” she explains. “We’re all reasonably young … I’ve learned some lessons. But people are going to say what they want to say. I know who I am, and I’m not perfect.”

What she is, though, is stylish; lately, she’s been hitting red carpets in looks by Versace, Escada and Oscar de la Renta, and graces Bazaar‘s pages in Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci, Valentino, Moschino and Lanvin. But fashion still feels new to the star. “I’m five-foot-three,” she muses. “I don’t look like a lot of other people, you know what I mean? I look like I’m 12.”

Admitting she’s “not a big spender,” she says she’s happiest at home with her Broadway beau, Theo Stockman. “What I do is what I do, and what he does is what he does, and when I come home, we have each other,” she says. For more with Michele, visit harpersbazaar.com/leamichele.

–Kate Hogan

Lea Michele Harper's Bazaar
Mark Seliger for Harper’s Bazaar

SEE ON-SET STYLE IN ‘LIGHTS! CAMERA! FASHION!’

Your Reaction

Follow Us

On Newsstands Now

On Newsstands Now

Jennifer Aniston: Wedding on Hold
  • Jennifer Aniston: Wedding on Hold
  • Exclusive: Kristin Cavallari's Wedding Album!
  • Paris Jackson in Crisis

Pick up your copy on newsstands

Click here for instant access to the Digital Magazine

Advertisement

Add A Comment

Got something to add to this post? Fill out the fields below to make a comment, ask a question or share a tip. We'd love to hear from you.

Note: If this is your first time commenting on Style News Now, your comment will need to be approved by our moderator before it will appear. Thanks for your patience, and check back again soon.

Showing 78 comments

dfdf on

Who is this person? and, yes, she isn’t pretty.

Joe on

I think she is very pretty, and an amazing singer.

Elle on

I am a HUGE Gleek and I like Lea, but I have to agree with a few of you. I think she is a pretty girl and has an amazing voice, but I follow her on twitter and it’s like she is ALWAYS playing Rachel Berry. She talks like she is Rachel Berry after a few Tony wins as an adult. I love seeing her on the show and I wonder how it will be when she leaves, but I hope she doesn’t let her ambitions eat her alive. I wish her much success and hope to see more of her in Hollywood.

dsfgdfgdfg on

the good shopping place

please input our website

{w w w }{jordanforworld}{com}

YOU MUST NOT MISS IT!!!

thank you!!!

{w w w }{jordanforworld}{com}

Believe you will love it.

{w w w }{jordanforworld}{com}

Lea Michele: "Volevano che mi rifacessi il naso!" | buonaguida.com on

[...] Via | People [...]

julie on

I have to agree that she is not pretty enough for fame, but she is pretty in that average girl kind of way which makes her more believable in the part she plays. If she were an over the top beauty no one would believe she was a high school girl.

Kim on

Lea is a very attractive girl who doesn’t fit the “perfect” mold. We need more celebrities like her. To those hating on her and Glee..if you don’t like her, don’t click on stories about her. And as for Glee..nobody forces you to watch it..which you apparently have if you’ve formed an opinion about it. DUH!

Lori on

Not pretty enough? Get a nose job? Hummm… who does that sound like? Barbra Streisand maybe? Glad she ignored everyone (like Streisand) and is making her own path. She has an awesome voice. Not likely to be heard on the radio, but DEFINITELY Broadway.

christa on

Keep on milking it.

Booo on

MrsJP has a right to her opinion and you don’t know what she looks like so all of you need to pipe down. I’m a Glee fan and I’m not offended. I’m so sick of folks always jumping on someone they don’t know over some other folks they don’t know on these boards. Get a life. Your fake outrage just because someone doesn’t agree with your tastes is very telling of your mental capacities. “…the worst Are full of passionate intensity.” – YEATS

Next | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Next | Show All
 

From Our Partners