Eva Longoria’s confidence comes from her identifying as ‘ugly duckling’

Actress Eva Longoria feels like the ‘ugly duckling’ because she didn’t ‘identify as a beauty growing up’. The 48-year-old actress has admitted she didn’t mind being cast as Gabrielle Solis on Desperate Housewives in a role that focused a lot on her looks, and joked she’s “riding that wave to the beach.”

Asked where her confidence has come from, she said, “For me? The ugly duckling. I did not identify as a beauty growing up and so I don’t have a very healthy relationship with it because it didn’t define me… When people are like ‘You know you’re sexy and beautiful and you’re on this list,’ I’m like ‘bring it yes, yes.’ “

Longoria joked that being recognised for her looks is ‘better than the alternative’ and revealed her family keeps her in check. She recently noted how it’s unfortunate that young women often compare themselves to others because of “unattainable images” on sites like Instagram and TikTok. She said, “I was lucky not to grow up in a time of social media. I never had that relationship with beauty that I think a lot of young girls grow up with, especially today.”