Jennifer Lawrence has become such a fixture of conversation on the Internet that it is difficult to remember what we even talked about before she took Hollywood by storm in 2012. The economy? The state of the Third World? Who knows. Over a relatively short period of time, Lawrence has become a mega-star, Oscar winner, and unquestioned internet royal. Despite not being present on any social media, she can barely walk out of her door without being meme’d.
Luckily for us, Lawrence is so delightful that it doesn’t feel like an over-saturation. She’s at the top of many Dream Best Friend/Girlfriend lists, so people are interested in pretty much everything she does. While the “She’s such a relatable, normal girl! (except with a team of stylists, famous friends, a millions of dollars)”/”She’s Just like you! (not at all like you)” angle might be done to death, with Lawrence, it feels genuine. Sure, there are some calling for a JLaw backlash, but those detractors are few and far between. In honor of her 25th birthday, let’s revisit the most epic times when Jennifer Lawrence won the Internet.
When She Gets Star-Struck
Lawrence met Bill Murray at this year’s Comic Con (his first), and reacted how anyone would when faced with that much cool. Comic Con is apparently a good place for her to meet her heroes, because she met and fangirled over Jeff Bridges there in 2013. She also has a really great John Stamos story. Perhaps most notably, she survived being hit on by a lecherous Jack Nicholson, which is not an easy feat.
When She Took On The Wage Gap
Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt are arguably two of the biggest stars in Hollywood right now, but Lawrence is more of a tested draw. Morten Tyldum wanted to bring the two together for his next film, Passengers, but there was some dispute early on over budget. It is almost unheard of for a actress to collect a bigger paycheck than her male co-star, but she demanded and got a $20 million paycheck, while Pratt was given $10 million. Lawrence clearly knows her value, and isn’t afraid to ask for it.
When She Had A Badass Response To Her Nude Photo Leak
After the horrible photo leak of 2014, many were unsure how Lawrence would respond to this violation of her body and her privacy. Turns out, she handled it like she seemingly handles everything else: like a boss. She spoke about the incident to Vanity Fair:
The 24-year-old actress had not previously commented on the incident, but she spoke to Kashner at length about the anger she felt. “Just because I’m a public figure, just because I’m an actress, does not mean that I asked for this,” she says. “It does not mean that it comes with the territory. It’s my body, and it should be my choice, and the fact that it is not my choice is absolutely disgusting. I can’t believe that we even live in that kind of world.”
Lawrence also addresses the legal ramifications of the hack. “It is not a scandal. It is a sex crime,” she tells Kashner. “It is a sexual violation. It’s disgusting. The law needs to be changed, and we need to change. That’s why these Web sites are responsible. Just the fact that somebody can be sexually exploited and violated, and the first thought that crosses somebody’s mind is to make a profit from it. It’s so beyond me. I just can’t imagine being that detached from humanity. I can’t imagine being that thoughtless and careless and so empty inside.”
When She Shut Down Body-Shamers
Jennifer Lawrence is obviously gorgeous, but the world being what it is, she has to deal with plenty of haters calling her fat. According to Harper’s Bazaar, she was repeatedly told to diet in order to get roles.
Lawrence said she was labelled “fat” and encouraged to lose weight by producers.
“It was just the kind of sh*t that actresses have to go through,” said the 23-year-old. “Somebody told me I was fat, that I was going to get fired if I didn’t lose a certain amount of weight.
“They brought in pictures of me where I was basically naked, and told me to use them as motivation for my diet. They thought that because of the way my career had gone, it wouldn’t still hurt me.”
Lawrence said she had developed a technique for dealing with such issues after Academy recognition for her role in David O. Russell’s Silver Linings Playbook and box office glory for last year’s The Hunger Games. “If anybody even tries to whisper the word ‘diet,’ I’m like, ‘You can go f*ck yourself,” she said.
She has repeatedly talked about how to handle assholes at any age, and even engaged in a bit of a tussle with the late Joan Rivers over the body shaming ways of Fashion Police.
When She Understood How You Feel About Food
Jennifer Lawrence has made it abundantly clear that she loves to eat. Whether she’s sneaking snacks into the Oscars or eating everything in sight at Comic Con, homegirl can put it away like a champ. She even managed to taint her American Hustle costumes with Dorito dust. Sure, when she does it, it’s charming and relatable. When I do it, people shun me and stop inviting me to parties.
When She Visits Children’s Hospitals
You never know who might visit @ShrinersCanada ! Today, Jennifer Lawrence took time to see children at the hospital! pic.twitter.com/0Gw5turTn9
— Shriners Hospitals (@shrinershosp) August 8, 2015
It’s always nice to see a celebrity give some of their time and money to worthy causes, and Lawrence has repeatedly done just that. She recently visited a children’s hospital in Vancouver where she was filming the latest X-Men movie, and she also regularly visits a hospital in Kentucky whenever she’s at her parent’s home. Who wouldn’t want Katniss to visit them when they were sick?
When She Has Cool Friends, But Is Chill About It
Celebrity friendship is a fraught thing, and can often feel like orchestrated and advantageous arrangements. Not only is she tight with her Hunger Games and X-Men co-stars (not to mention David O. Russell and Bradley Cooper), Lawrence has also been seen with the likes of Rihanna, Emma Watson, and Amy Schumer. She’s even been friendly with the “Queen of Squad Goals” herself. However, JLaw doesn’t, like, make a big deal about it. She’s just doing her thing and hanging out with other awesome people. Obviously she is living her best life.
When She Talked About Buttplugs And Broke Your Brain
It’s a long story.
When She Loved Lebowski As Much As You Do
Lawrence has made her love of The Big Lebowski well known, and the opportunity arose for her to participate in one of Jason Reitman’s classic live-reads while she was filming X-Men in Montreal. She joined her co-star, Michael Fassbender, who played the Dude, onstage while she read the role of Maude. Apparently the audience lost it during the infamous vagina monologue, but that doesn’t really seem that scandalous coming from the unguarded JLaw.
When She Is A Gosh Darn Delight On Press Tours
No one does a junket like Jennifer Lawrence, and with the final Mockingjay promotional push, she’s bound to capture our hearts again soon. Whether she’s talking about threesomes or tequila, it’s going to be an awesome time.
