This Famous Actress with a 'Gorgeous' Mom Never Thought She Was Stunning Yet She Was Named World's Most Beautiful Woman

• The famous actress in the cover picture grew up with a "gorgeous" mom whom she had a strenuous relationship with.
• She never thought she was stunning despite being named the World's Most Beautiful Woman once.
• The star opened up about her parents and her childhood.

The Hollywood star in the cover image has established herself as a revered actress in the entertainment industry. Since rising to international fame after starring in a highly successful and top-rated comedic series, she went on to build an illustrious career.

More than just a talented entertainer, the famous actress is also well-known for possessing 'It' girl qualities. Apart from her undeniable beauty, her charming personality has been brought up numerous times among fellow celebrities in the industry.

In a past interview, Hollywood icon Sandra Bullock emphatically spoke about how generous and warm the star is. Bullock also marveled at the fellow actress' resilience and ability to live a life of sharing what she has, completely unafraid of losing something as a result, telling her:

"You share your wealth, the wealth of your friendships. You literally go, 'Here are my friends, they're going to love you, too. Here's my family, they're going to love you, too. Here's my home, stay as long as you want.' That's a rare thing..."

Friendship is something the actress holds in the highest regard. In fact, her friendships make up a large part of her life's foundation. She admits:

"Where would you be without friends?...Your own chosen family. There's nothing like a really loyal, dependable, good friend. Nothing."

The Tinseltown star has even hosted special Thanksgiving dinners for her friends, which she called Friendsgiving, the day before the actual holiday. She always goes above and beyond to make sure her friends know she loves and appreciates them, like the time she couldn't make it to the bat mitzvah of her good friend's daughter, and so, as reported by the friend, sent one of the best presents out of everyone.

Even when she's working, the blonde beauty is always concerned about the well-being of her fellow co-stars. In a previous interview with the same good friend who said she got his daughter an incredible gift, he spoke about why she is his favorite co-star to work with, and one of the reasons he highlighted to her was:

"Well, you certainly have a way about making life fun on the set..."

As it turns out, the star's good friend, who happens to be famous actor Adam Sandler, is not the only one who adores the actress and enjoys working with her. Music legend Dolly Parton even brought up how much she and her husband love the blue-eyed star, recalling how pleasant her experience was working with her.

In addition to being the greatest friend, also a godmother to the daughter of another good friend, the star's joyful, positive, kind, and good-natured ways have also seen her support countless philanthropic endeavors. Such charitable organizations she has supported include gay rights initiatives and helping out children's hospitals.

The Origin Story: The Star Opened Up about Her Childhood and Her Parents

The star, who is just as talented as she is charming and kind, is none other than Hollywood icon Jennifer Aniston, 54. Though she has built an incredibly successful life, she revealed that she did not necessarily have an easy start based on the way she grew up.

Speaking of her childhood in a past interview, Aniston disclosed that her home environment was not always the most stable or safe, citing her witness of adults in her family being unkind toward each other. Of her family's apartment in New York, she stated:

"My house was not a fun house to live in. I was thrilled to get out."

Aniston's parents, Nancy Dow and John Aniston, ended up divorcing when she was nine years old, which left her world shaken. Though their split meant that she stayed with her mom while her older brother moved to Los Angeles, in her early adolescent years, she sought the support of her paternal Greek grandmother, Stella.

According to the "Friends" talent, Stella was extremely fun to be around, told the best stories, made her laugh, and loved her deeply. Naturally, when her grandmother passed away, Aniston endured one of the most traumatic events in her life. As a youngster, she grew up Greek Orthodox and was baptized at St. Sophia's; however, she explained that she does not follow a strict religion.

In this regard, Aniston expressed that growing up, she had seen a lot of negativity centered around religion. Despite this, she described having a different personal experience of religion during her upbringing:

"I actually had quite a beautiful upbringing with it, because it was never pounded down my throat, and I had the joy of going to church and experiencing ceremony and ritual and incense, and I thought it was quite beautiful..."

As a student, Aniston struggled with her academics, largely as a result of her dyslexia, which also adversely impacted her self-image. She was only diagnosed in her 20s when she had gone to get prescription glasses. Up until then, the Hollywood 'It' girl sadly believed that she just wasn't smart.

Instead of wallowing in despair about struggling with schoolwork, she used her dyslexia to fuel her humor, which was already innate. Besides being the funny girl at school, Aniston took an interest in workshops, art, and drama classes.

Growing up, Aniston had a complicated and strenuous relationship with her mom. She recalled previous years when her mother's temper would cause her to scream and yell, actions Aniston says she could never get behind, citing her preference to discuss things and talk things through. Of her mother and the impact their relationship had on her, Aniston divulged:

"She was very critical of me. Because she was a model, she was gorgeous, stunning...I never was. I honestly still don't think of myself in that sort of light, which is fine..."

Although, as reported by Aniston, Dow was unforgiving and had a knack for holding onto grudges, as Aniston grew older and matured, she learned to forgive her mom after years of estrangement. She deemed her parents' divorce as having a severe negative effect on her mother, citing the different times her parents grew up in, where therapy was not necessarily the go-to route to solve issues.

Aniston's notion of herself and confidence has come a long way since she was a little girl who took her mother's criticisms to heart.

Not only has she forgiven her mom, but she discussed having forgiven her father and her entire family as well. She highlighted the following reason for having done so:

"It's toxic to have that resentment, that anger. I learned that by watching my mom never let go of it. I remember saying, 'Thank you for showing me what never to be.'..."

Aniston may not have had the best relationship with her parents in the past but she still looked to them for guidance, given that they were both actors in show business. In 2020, a pop culture outlet published an old video of a young Aniston in an interview with her dad.

In the footage, she spoke about how watching her dad act enabled her to believe she could do it, too. John also boasted about what a natural talent his daughter is.

Unfortunately, the "Murder Mystery" star's parents have passed away. Her mother died in 2016, at 76, and her father passed in November of last year.

Despite Not Considering Herself Pretty, Jennifer Aniston Was Once Called the Most Beautiful Woman in the World

The same year Dow passed was the year Aniston was deemed the World's Most Beautiful Woman by a popular news outlet. However, due to her past insecurities, which led her to believe she was not pretty, Aniston was humbly surprised when she won the title.

Nonetheless, she expressed being very flattered and excited about the news. During the interview covering the story, Aniston spoke about how she learned to accept her appearance as the years passed.

She also explained how she first became motivated to work on herself and her health after being turned down for a role for being too chubby. Since then, she has followed strict workout regimens and a diet that still allowed her to indulge in her favorite food.

Not only did Aniston win People magazine's beauty title, but she has also been listed in the top 100 Hottest Sex Symbols of All Time by another health and pop culture outlet.

Aniston's notion of herself and confidence has come a long way since she was a little girl who took her mother's criticisms to heart. Now, her concept of beauty is all about inner confidence, peace, taking control of her narrative, and not allowing people to make her feel shameful or like a failure.