Tatiana Maslany Won’t Wax Her Mustache: ‘Orphan Black’ Star Talks Sexism And Beauty Standards

Tatiana Maslany endures hours in a makeup chair each time she films an episode of Orphan Black. The 29-year-old star has played over half a dozen different clones on the popular BBC America sci-fi series, so she’s definitely used to changing her look. However, she won’t let makeup artists touch her facial hair.

During a recent interview with People magazine, Tatiana Maslany talked about sexism in Hollywood and the extreme beauty standards that actresses are expected to live up to. She revealed that she’s been asked to shave her armpits before, but it was the peach fuzz above her upper lip that she decided to fight for — Tatiana has actually refused to wax her mustache. However, the natural brunette doesn’t ask to hold on to her facial hair for every role.

“I’ll do it if the part calls for it and it makes sense,” the Orphan Black star revealed when she was asked about her refusal to wax. “Sometimes it’s not worth being political about it. There’s a point where I have to separate my own political values versus the character I’m playing.”

Tatiana Maslany isn’t the only celebrity willing to fight for her right to rock body hair. As the Inquisitr previously reported, Miley Cyrus and Madonna recently showed off their fuzzy armpits on Instagram. Razor rejection seems to be a growing trend, and Tatiana has already shown off her own underarm growth on Orphan Black. According to Screencrush, Sestra Helena’s hairy armpits can be seen in the Season 3 episode, “Formalized, Complex, and Costly.” She reveals the hair after she lies down on the dirty mattress in her cell located inside the secret military base in Mexico. Tatiana also got to rock facial hair when she played transgender clone Tony during Season 2.

Tatiana Maslany’s affinity for facial hair definitely isn’t shared by every female celebrity. According to the Huffington Post, Kim Kardashian once revealed that she hates body hair so much that she’s “lasered everything” off of her face and body. Kim told Oprah that she views removing her unwanted hair, doing her makeup, and undergoing beauty treatments as a “job.”

Tatiana Maslany might say that Kim Kardashian is a victim of the sexism that is so prevalent in the entertainment industry. Unfortunately, it goes far beyond pressuring women to look a certain way — Tatiana says that women are also expected to be okay with being treated like sex objects. The actress revealed that she was hit on by a 50-year-old co-worker when she was 17. When she complained about the uncomfortable situation, she was simply told, “Let’s not talk about that, sweetheart.”

Thankfully, Tatiana believes that things are slightly different now than they were when she was 17. She sees attitudes toward women changing because “people are too pissed off and too many strong voices are now being heard.” However, she knows that there’s still a long way to go.

Tatiana Maslany’s intact mustache might seem like a small victory in the battle against sexism, but perhaps her stand against hair removal will inspire other actresses to rebel against Hollywood’s ridiculously high beauty standards.

[Image credit: Jason Merritt/Getty]