Sandra Bullock Says She Considered Leaving Hollywood Over Sexism

“I’m being treated this way because I have a vagina,” says Oscar winner

Sandra Bullock
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“Ocean’s 8” star Sandra Bullock said she considered quitting acting and leaving Hollywood altogether after facing sexist behavior.

“I was like, ‘Wow, maybe I need to step out of here. Maybe I need to do something else for a living,’” the actress told USA Today. “And that was in the middle of when I was getting work — I didn’t want to be a part of that world where there was that experience.”

This weekend, Bullock will star “Ocean’s 8,” the all-female reboot of “Ocean’s 11” and Bullock’s first starring role since 2015’s “Our Brand Is Crisis.” Early tracking has its opening weekend set at roughly $30 million.

Bullock told USA Today that in her early career, beginning with her breakout role in 1994’s “Speed,” she had little idea of what women have had to face in this industry. “My career has been a domino effect of people who said, ‘I would like this person to fill this role,’” she continued. “I literally went out into the world thinking there was no disparity, that everyone was equal, and I can do whatever a man can do.”

However, Bullock said that later in her career is when she had a “wake-up moment,” though she wouldn’t get into any specifics about the sexism she experienced. She said it had a lasting effect on her.

“‘What is this feeling? Why do I feel so (expletive)?’” she said. “‘Oh my God, I’m being treated this way because I have a vagina.’”

Read the full interview in USA Today here.

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