What Brooke Shields Said in Her Controversial 'Armchair Expert' Interview

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Brooke Shields, the Hollywood actress, reflected on career and life—including on raising her "a**hole"-aged daughter—in a candid interview Monday in the latest episode of the podcast Armchair Expert hosted by actor Dax Shepard.

The 56-year-old mother of two daughters, shared with her husband producer/writer Chris Henchy, spoke openly about the challenges of raising teenagers and being sexualized at a young age.

My Kids Are '18 and A**hole'

Shields commented on juggling FaceTime calls with her kids while working. Asked how old her children are, she cheekily replied: "18 and a**hole," which prompted Dax Shepard to correctly guess her youngest (Grier) is 15 years old.

Sarcastically noting how "it's so much fun," raising teenagers, Shields recalled: "[Grier] just FaceTimed me about this dress that she wants to buy and I'm trying to tell her what is the best plan of action to get said dress...just in case it doesn't fit...

"Then I get a text [from Grier] saying, 'I really don't appreciate the way you talk to me. I think that you talk to me like I am a child' and I'm like 'hmm, okay'," Shields said laughing.

The 'Practically Criminal' Barbara Walters Interview

Referring to a previous interview Shields did with veteran broadcast journalist Barbara Walters (who at the time had asked the actress what her body measurements were), Shepard commented: "That Barbara Walters interview is maddening."

Shields replied: "It's practically criminal," adding "It is not journalism."

The Walters interview was among several Shields did following her iconic 1980s Calvin Klein jeans advertisement, which saw a 15-year-old Shields posing and asking: "You want to know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing."

In the interview, Walters asked: "Brooke, what are your measurements?," noting "I think when people see you, they don't realize how tall and slim you are."

Speaking recently to Vogue back in late October about the backlash she faced following the controversial ad, Shields said she was "naive."

"I didn't think it had to do with underwear...didn't think it [the ad] was sexual in nature.

"What was shocking to me was to be berated by 'oh, you knew this was happening...you were thinking these thoughts'. I was a kid. And where I was, I was naive," she explained.

My Mom Was 'Always Drunk'

Speaking about a previous interview she'd done alongside her mother, Shields recalled: "My mother couldn't do anything without a couple of pops of something. She was always drunk. I look at her face and know exactly...

"And they [the press] never wanted my answer, they never wanted the answer. They wanted their point of view," she added.

Shepard spoke about the "competing narratives" the press had created around Shields while she was a teenager - that she was "overtly sexual...a sexual tigress" but also "naive" and "being taken advantage of.

"They [the press] couldn't figure out what they were trying to say about you," he explained, to which Shields replied: "They were mad at themselves for not figuring it out and taking it out on me."

Newsweek has contacted the representatives for Walters for comment.

Brooke Shields at a Glamour magazine event.
Brooke Shields attends Glamour magazine's 2021 Women of the Year Awards on November 8, 2021 in New York City. Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Glamour

About the writer

Soo Kim is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. She covers various lifestyle stories, specializing in travel, health, home/interior design and property/real estate. Soo covered the COVID-19 pandemic extensively from 2020 to 2022, including several interviews with the chief medical advisor to the president, Dr. Anthony Fauci. Soo has reported on various major news events, including the Black Lives Matter movement, the U.S. Capitol riots, the war in Afghanistan, the U.S. and Canadian elections, and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Soo is also a South Korea expert, covering the latest K-dramas—including the breakout hit Squid Game, which she has covered extensively, including from Seoul, the South Korean capital—as well as Korean films, such as the Golden Globe and Oscar-nominated Past Lives, and K-pop news, to interviews with the biggest Korean actors, such as Lee Jung-jae from Squid Game and Star Wars, and Korean directors, such as Golden Globe and Oscar nominee Celine Song. Soo is the author of the book How to Live Korean, which is available in 11 languages, and co-author of the book Hello, South Korea: Meet the Country Behind Hallyu. Before Newsweek, Soo was a travel reporter and commissioning editor for the award-winning travel section of The Daily Telegraph (a leading U.K. national newspaper) for nearly a decade from 2010, reporting on the latest in the travel industry, from travel news, consumer travel and aviation issues to major new openings and emerging destinations. Soo is a graduate of Binghamton University in New York and the journalism school of City University in London, where she earned a Masters in international journalism. You can get in touch with Soo by emailing s.kim@newsweek.com . Follow her on Instagram at @miss.soo.kim or X, formerly Twitter, at @MissSooKim .Languages spoken: English and Korean


Soo Kim is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. She covers various lifestyle stories, specializing in Read more