Like everyone else, a few decades of fame often catches up to celebrities, with the telltale signs of aging becoming more visible on their faces and bodies over the years in front of the camera. Then again, there are those in Hollywood who seem to avoid the ravages of time altogether. A few (very fortunate) stars have actually avoided most visible effects of aging over their careers. Whether it comes down to good lifestyle choices, amazing makeup, savvy doctors and stylists, or simply good genes, it’s impossible to know how they continue to look great – and possibly even better – after all of the years they’ve spent in front of the camera, but it sure is commendable. These celebs’ appearances give us hope that maybe there actually is a Fountain of Youth out there somewhere.
Tom Cruise recently turned 52, but the devout Scientologist doesn’t look much older than he did during hisTop Gun days in the mid-1980s. His breakout role in the 1986 film made him a household name, and he continued to appeal to both sexes in his many subsequent on-screen roles ranging from Days of Thunder toMission: Impossible and Jerry Maguire. By the late 1990s, he was one of the highest paid actors in the world. The years have definitely been kind to Cruise, as his boyishly handsome appearance has revealed virtually no signs of wear and tear during his thirty-plus years of stardom. Even three divorces (including two high-profile marriages, one with Nicole Kidman and the other with Katie Holmes) haven’t seemed to put any strain on those good looks.
Jennifer Lopez
JLo not only seems to be aging gracefully, she may actually have figured out how to turn back the clock. She’s potentially even hotter than ever before now, in her mid-40s, than she was when she first appeared in the spotlight in her 20s. In 2000, at the age of 31, the actress and singer grabbed the world’s attention when she walked the red carpet wearing a now-famous green Versace frock, which slit to her navel and up to her thigh. Jennifer rocked mini dresses throughout the early 2000s, which showed off her impeccably toned legs, as she dated some of the hottest celebrities of the time including Ben Affleck (who also makes this list of non-aging celebrities). By the mid-2000s, she was smoldering with Marc Anthony in body-hugging dresses and flawless makeup, and then in 2009, to celebrate her 40th birthday, she wore a skintight bodysuit. This year, she will be 45 years old and continues to rock the tight outfits and high-cut dresses, still looking better than ever.
Gwen Stefani
Gwen Stefani apparently stopped aging in the 1990s. Before launching her solo career, she was a part of the 90s group No Doubt and best known for singles like “Underneath It All” and “Hey Baby.” This year, she turns 45… although she could easily pass for 25. She rocks short-shorts, has a flawless face (even when only wearing minimal makeup), and infuses youthful energy in everything she does. She is unafraid of sporting sheer fabrics and cropped shirts, and wears funky accessories like fishnet tights and platform shoes, animal print patterns and cool hairstyles that she became famous for when she was still in her 20s and early 30s. She makes staying young look like a cinch – and perhaps there’s a thing or two that could be learned from her young, energetic attitude.
Beyonce
At 32, Beyonce is the youngest star on this list, but is well on her way to becoming one of those celebrities that only gets more flawless with age. It’s safe to say that every woman would love to know Beyoncé’s secrets to looking perfect over a decade-long career. The megastar, who began her career in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny’s Child, broke out as a solo artist with the release of her second solo album in 2006. She continues to astound audiences almost a decade on; her fifth studio album dropped unexpectedly in 2013 and continues to top the charts. Queen Bey has often been asked about her secrets to looking fabulous: she credits her looks to subscribing to a vegan diet and working out with her husband Jay-Z.
Sandra Bullock
Even when captured in photos without makeup, Sandra Bullock easily looks half her age. The effects of gravity (pardon the pun) seem to have not had any impact on her looks. Bullock has looked amazing since her breakout roles in 1990s movies, including Speed, The Net, Hope Floats and Miss Congeniality. Following the success of the movie “Gravity” last year, Bullock has become Hollywood’s top-earning actress. Despite a hectic schedule as one of Hollywood’s it-women, she continues to be one of the hottest actresses in Hollywood and seemingly has not aged a minute since her earlier Hollywood roles.
Ben Affleck
Actor Ben Affleck first hit it off in Hollywood in movies like Dazed and Confused, Dogma, and 1997’s Good Will Hunting. Since his rise to stardom in the 1990s, he’s kept very busy with tons of film projects, and yet still managed to avoid visibly aging in his nearly two-decade long career. Over the years, he has won awards for his work both behind the camera and in front of it, and looked great throughout. Despite all of the hard work, he doesn’t really look much older than he did in his film debuts in the 90s. The actor is married to another great-looking A-list celeb, Jennifer Garner, and the couple has three children.
Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer Aniston was America’s “girl next door” in the 1990s as the star of the hit sitcom Friends. Since then, she has managed to hold on to her fresh and youthful looks. In the 1990s, just about every woman copied her famous “Friends” haircut -known as “The Rachel” – and her shiny locks still inspire hairstyles today. Aniston seems to avoid most of the effects of time by staying in great physical shape and maintains her bronzed, glowing skin. Between her healthy lifestyle and “girl next door” personality, she has managed to hold on to a fresh and youthful image even after two decades in the limelight.
Johnny Depp
He might have a teenage daughter and maybe sports a little bit more facial hair than he used to, but Johnny Depp has seemingly aged very little in 20 years. The 1990s heartthrob enjoyed his breakout role in 1990,Edward Scissorhands, and has been in dozens of successful movies including Pirates of the Caribbean since. Not only does he look great, Depp is still in excellent physical shape: he continues to do his own stunts in movies. The actor also works hard, often having a dozen projects going at the same time. Some of his biggest fans joke about how the actor, who played a vampire in the Tim Burton film Dark Shadows, actually is a vampire, which would explain why he doesn’t seem to age.
Pharrell
The voice of Pharrell Williams has been a mainstay on radio airwaves this year: he’s enjoyed one of the biggest hit songs of the year, “Happy,” and his boyish good looks certainly help him win over audiences during live performances. Although he easily looks like he could pass for a 20-something, he was actually born in 1973 and recently turned 41. Photos and quizzes based on the singer’s appearance have made the rounds on the Internet that show off the fact that Pharrell’s face has barely changed since he was a part of the musical groups Neptunes and N.E.R.D. in the 1990s and early 2000s. Like Johnny Depp, many on the web have suggested he is also a vampire, but Pharrell has gone on the record saying he doesn’t drink blood. His beauty secret, he claims, consists of simply washing his face.
Elijah Wood
At age 33, Elijah Wood is hardly over the hill, but what is remarkable is that the Lord of the Rings actor has managed to look basically the same over his entire career. He began acting at age 8 and to this day looks like he might be somewhere in his teen years, even though Wood was actually a teenager in movies such as Deep Impact and The Faculty back in the late 1990s. He is best known for his work in The Lord of the Rings trilogy in the early 2000s when he was barely 20, and definitely looks the same now, a decade later.
Reese Witherspoon
Reese Witherspoon has been a Hollywood darling since age 14 when she landed a role in the movie The Man in the Moon. Her breakout roles were in the movies Cruel Intentions and American Psycho, but her career really took off in 2001 following the success of the movie Legally Blonde in which Witherspoon played Elle Woods, a sorority girl turned Harvard law student. Witherspoon hasn’t seemed to have aged much since her Elle Woods days, continuing to pull off her trademark fresh, peppy, “all-American” look well into her late 30s. Her teenage daughter, who is now 15 and bares a startling resemblance to her, shows that starting out with great genes is definitely helpful when it comes to aging beautifully.