Whether she’s playing the strong-willed Erin Reagan on CBS front-runner Blue Bloods or making a comeback as the famed “20-something” from Sex and the City, there’s something familiar about 51-year-old Bridget Moynahan. But make no mistake: It’s never too late to do something for the first time.
“I came into the business at a really nice time. When I first started out, there was this taboo thinking that if you do films, you don’t do TV; if you do TV, there’s no way you’re doing films. And if you are a model, you can’t really be an actress. Making that jump was really difficult—so much so that I was super conscious of not taking modeling jobs so that I could only be seen as an actress. But everything was changing at the same time. There was complete fluidity and you could jump from one platform to another with nothing holding you back. It really opened up roles and opportunities for women to expand and explore all these different mediums.
It was a really profound experience to be 50 and doing something new.
As a woman in this business for so long, I finally got the opportunity to direct this year. It was a really beautiful experience to explore the different departments, different ways people worked and learn from men and women in different roles, whether they were editors or screenwriters, script supervisors or other directors who really took me under their wings. It was probably the first time that I was really aware I had a support group and mentors at every turn. It was a really profound experience to be 50 and doing something new. And to find that support and leadership really being offered up to me. I wish I had had that earlier in my life, but it’s great to be recognizing it now.
I would tell my younger self to buy real estate—and lots of it—in New York City in your 20s. Maybe don’t do long-distance relationships. I can’t even believe it. I wish I was not in a long-distance relationship when I was living in Europe; I should have been having a lot more present fun. And to trust your gut. I feel like women are being encouraged to trust their gut and listen to it. We all have that voice and we should learn to trust it.
Self-care can be physical, or it can be emotional and mental. Sometimes it looks like a nap. Sometimes you just need to turn off your phone, not answer texts and be quiet. And that’s OK. Going for walks, finding time for yourself, and making it. That’s something that we don’t often do is make time for ourselves. Especially when we’re new mothers. I think we lose that. And if you can remember to do that for yourself, or encourage your friends who are possibly new mothers to take that time, it’s really important to do.
It’s been so wonderful to see the positive side of social media, allowing women to use their voices to be heard and expanded, and support each other. There are also a lot of terrible sides. It really is an exercise, a muscle you have to train, of being able to monitor how much time you spend online and what you want to absorb. If you can really embrace the positive sides and support your peers, there’s no downside. I like to promote good, positive things and inspiring energy. If you can embrace it and keep pushing it forward, everybody can feed off of that. We need more of that.”
