Justine Bateman Has a Powerful Message for Women Who Fear Aging: 'You're Being Lied to'

The former Family Ties actress says fear is driving the discussion around women and aging

Justine Bateman wasn't afraid to speak her truth about aging in last week's interview with 60 Minutes Australia.

The interview caught people's attention after the director, actor and author gave a message to anyone who says she "looks old." The Family Ties star said: "I just don't give a s---. I think I look rad. I think my face represents who I am. I like it."

Speaking to Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie this morning on the TODAY Show, Bateman said that after the segment aired, she received a meaningful message. The woman, a mom, said, "I never realized what impact this conversation was having on younger women until my [16-year-old] daughter came in from the other room. She said, 'Hey, did you guys see the 60 Minutes thing with Justine Bateman?' She said it was great--now I'm not afraid of getting old."

Bateman was glad to hear it. "I was like, oh my god, if just one person, like, is not afraid," she said. "It's silly. I've never been smarter, I've never had more connections. It's like when you're younger you know the [guy at the] door of the nightclub? When you're older, you know the person who owns the building that the nightclub is in."

Related:Justine Bateman Defends Her Decision to Age Naturally: 'My Face Represents Who I Am. I Like It'

The 57-year-old said the war on aging was an "inside job" that left some women doubting their appearance. "I would say to any young woman, you're being lied to. Who is making money off this? You're being lied to and you're being tricked off your path... You've got awesome things coming your way. Just stay on your path and just ride it out."

Bateman told Kotb and Guthrie it was this fear that left people not wanting to look older. "Some people are afraid they'll lose their job or never get a job or not get a mate or no one's going to listen to them or whatever. And that fear, my position is, that fear existed before their face started changing," Bateman says.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

"I'm just somebody who got myself on the other side of what that fear was for me in particular, and I'm just sharing what worked for me. Lots of ways to get there, but for anyone who wants to get free," she told the TODAY Show.

Related:Why Justine Bateman Will Never Get Plastic Surgery: 'Stop Telling Women To Get Their Faces Fixed'

Last week, Bateman told 60 Minutes Australia she was troubled by women's obsession with trying to reverse the natural process of aging.

"I feel sad for them, I feel sad that they are not just enjoying life. I feel sad that they are distracted from the things that they are meant to do in life … with this consuming idea that they've got to fix their face before anything else can happen."

Bateman says she searched for a deeper understanding of aging and beauty standards in her 40s while writing her first book, Fame: The Hijacking of Reality. She remembers Googling herself and finding the autocomplete: "looks old." Justine Bateman looks old.

"I thought my face looked fine," the actor-turned-director told PEOPLE in 2021 ahead of the release of another book, Face: One Square Foot of Skin. "Because of some of the fears I had, unrelated to my face, I decided to make them right and me wrong... I became really ashamed of my face, ridiculously so."

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.