Millie Bobby Brown in a strapless light blue pleated satin gown with a bow at the waist, standing in front of an Enola Holmes premiere backdrop.
Cindy Ord / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images
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Millie Bobby Brown Was Underestimated Her Entire Childhood. Becoming a Mom Is When She Stopped Trying to Prove Everyone Wrong

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“Being a female child actor, there was a lot of pressure, a lot of scrutiny on the way I looked, and I constantly felt underestimated by everyone. And for so long, I was trying to prove everyone wrong. But actually, I feel like I came to a realization after having my daughter. I don’t actually care. I think I cared for a really long time, but I actually don’t anymore.” — Millie Bobby Brown

Young Millie Bobby Brown with short dark hair, wearing denim overalls over a white t-shirt, smiling at a BUILD Series event in 2016.
A then-12-year-old Millie Bobby Brown smiles during the BUILD Series at AOL HQ in New York City on August 31, 2016, wearing denim overalls over a white tee. Photo by Michael Loccisano / Getty Images.

Millie Bobby Brown has been in the public eye since she was 12, when Stranger Things made her one of the most recognizable child actors in the world. She’s 22 now, promoting the third Enola Holmes film and doing advocacy work with UNICEF.

Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp at the Stranger Things 5 UK special screening at Odeon Luxe Leicester Square in London
At London’s Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on November 13, 2025, Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp appear at the Stranger Things 5 UK special screening. Photo by Kate Green / Getty Images.

She told The Independent that the scrutiny started early and never really let up. Years of commentary on the way she looked. A constant sense of being underestimated by nearly everyone around her. In 2025 she spoke out against tabloid coverage of her appearance, calling it bullying and saying the press seemed to want her frozen in time.

Millie Bobby Brown and Jake Bongiovi at the Enola Holmes 3 premiere in New York City
At the New York City premiere of Enola Holmes 3 on June 25, 2026, Millie Bobby Brown and Jake Bongiovi appear together on the red carpet. Photo by Roy Rochlin / Getty Images.

The criticism didn’t stop. She just stopped organizing her life around it. She and her husband, Jake Bongiovi, welcomed a daughter through adoption in 2025, and she points to becoming a mom as the moment that shift finally happened.

Millie Bobby Brown at the Enola Holmes 3 premiere in New York City
At the New York City premiere of Enola Holmes 3 on June 25, 2026, Millie Bobby Brown makes an appearance. Photo by Roy Rochlin / Getty Images.

For years the whole project was changing other people’s minds about her. Now she says she doesn’t need them changed.

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Millie Bobby Brown in a strapless light blue pleated satin gown with a bow at the waist, standing in front of an Enola Holmes premiere backdrop.
Cindy Ord Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images
Young Millie Bobby Brown with short dark hair, wearing denim overalls over a white t-shirt, smiling at a BUILD Series event in 2016.
A then-12-year-old Millie Bobby Brown smiles during the BUILD Series at AOL HQ in New York City on August 31, 2016, wearing denim overalls over a white tee. Photo by Michael Loccisano Getty Images.
Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp at the Stranger Things 5 UK special screening at Odeon Luxe Leicester Square in London
At London's Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on November 13, 2025, Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp appear at the Stranger Things 5 UK special screening. Photo by Kate Green Getty Images.
Millie Bobby Brown and Jake Bongiovi at the Enola Holmes 3 premiere in New York City
At the New York City premiere of Enola Holmes 3 on June 25, 2026, Millie Bobby Brown and Jake Bongiovi appear together on the red carpet. Photo by Roy Rochlin Getty Images.
Millie Bobby Brown at the Enola Holmes 3 premiere in New York City
At the New York City premiere of Enola Holmes 3 on June 25, 2026, Millie Bobby Brown makes an appearance. Photo by Roy Rochlin Getty Images.

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About the author

January Nelson

January Nelson

January Nelson is a writer, editor, and dreamer. She writes about astrology, games, love, relationships, and entertainment. January graduated with an English and Literature degree from Columbia University.